A technical glitch at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) caused erroneous price displays and triggered trading halts for several stocks on Monday, June 3rd, 2024. The most notable incident was with Berkshire Hathaway's Class A shares (BRK-A), which showed a drastic 99.9% price drop to around $185, down from the previous close of $627,400.[1][3][4][5]

The issue stemmed from a problem with the industry-wide price bands published by the Consolidated Tape Association's Securities Information Processor (CTA SIP). These price bands are designed to prevent excessive volatility or extreme price movements in individual stocks.[1][3][5] The glitch affected around 40 stocks listed on the NYSE and other exchanges, including Chipotle Mexican Grill, Abbott Laboratories, and GameStop.[4][5]

Trading halts were automatically triggered for the affected stocks to stabilize the market until the problem could be resolved.[1][2] The NYSE stated that the issue was related to a new software release at the CTA SIP, and it was fixed by switching to a backup data center running the previous software version.[1][4]

While the erroneous prices were displayed, no trades were executed at those levels for Berkshire Hathaway or other affected stocks.[4] The NYSE confirmed that Berkshire Hathaway's shares were trading at around $625,066 per share after the issue was resolved.[4]

This incident highlighted the vulnerability of electronic trading systems to technical glitches and the importance of robust safeguards and contingency plans.[1] It also raised questions about the potential impact of the recent transition to T+1 settlement for stocks, although the NYSE did not directly link the two events.[3][4]

Sources [1] NYSE Glitch Causes Volatility in 99% Drop in Berkshire Hathaway ... https://www.quiverquant.com/news/NYSE%20Glitch%20Causes%20Volatility%20in%2099%25%20Drop%20in%20Berkshire%20Hathaway,%20Barrick%20Gold [2] Explaining the NYSE Glitch That Tanked Berkshire Hathaway by 99 ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mL9XsGNIVL8 [3] Berkshire Hathaway stock appears to drop 99.9% after NYSE ... https://finance.yahoo.com/news/berkshire-hathaway-stock-appears-to-drop-999-after-nyse-technical-glitch-153939215.html [4] NYSE resolves glitch that showed Berkshire Hathaway down 99% https://consent.yahoo.com/v2/collectConsent?sessionId=1_cc-session_6176180c-f60e-41fe-8f12-4f1046daeeb8 [5] NYSE Fixes Issue That Showed 99% Drops, Triggered Trading Halts https://finance.yahoo.com/news/volatility-halts-hit-numerous-nyse-140838472.html