It was great, but the party is over.
Pros
The NYSE over the past 5 years was a dynamic place to work with good perks and prestige. The executive team did their best to communicate and overall the employees were smart, motivated and fun to work with. While internal training and mentoring was not consistent it was a good place to learn about the corporate environment and allowed you to rub shoulders with some of the biggest companies in the world. The pay was moderate for financial services, but good compared to other industries.
Cons
The recent acquisition by ICE (fall 2013) pretty much was the end of the NYSE. It is now a shadow of its former self. ICE dismantled most of the company that was built over the last 10 years. The corporate power center moved to Atlanta and most NY management is gone. Current environment is grim.