Tony Bennett to Open The Nasdaq Stock Market

New York, NY—The Nasdaq Stock Market^® announced that ten-time Grammy Award winner Tony Bennett opened the market this morning at a ceremony at the Nasdaq MarketSite^SM in Times Square. Mr. Bennett's opening the market celebrates the current release of his new album, "Playin' With My Friends: Bennett Sings The Blues."

Wick Simmons, Nasdaq Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, who hosted the event said, "We are pleased to have a legend like Tony Bennett with us here to open the market today. He is such an important part of our culture and we pay tribute to the talent and creativity he has brought to his many fans throughout the years."

Mr. Bennett, who recently celebrated his 75th birthday, will release his new album in stores tomorrow. "Playin' with My Friends: Bennett Sings the Blues," features 15 classic blues songs with Bennett joined for duets by some celebrated friends such as: Ray Charles, Natalie Cole, Billy Joel, BB King, Diana Krall, k.d. lang, Bonnie Raitt, Kay Starr and Stevie Wonder.

The Nasdaq Stock Market lists over 4,200 companies and trades more shares per day than any other U.S. market. For more information about Nasdaq, visit the Nasdaq Web site at http://www.nasdaq.com or the Nasdaq Newsroom^SM at www.nasdaq.com/newsroom.