DAVOS-UPDATE 2-NYSE chief upbeat for IPO pickup in H2

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DAVOS, Switzerland Jan 30 (Reuters) - NYSE Euronext Inc is upbeat that initial public offerings will recover in the second half of the year and long-term prospects are bullish, Chief Executive Duncan Niederauer said on Friday.

"The pipeline is enormous. People are waiting for the situation to improve. I think we may see a pickup in the second half of 2009," Niederauer told a press conference on the sidelines of the annual session of the World Economic Forum.

If the Pfizer-Wyeth deal succeeds it would help restore confidence in markets, he said. Pfizer on Monday said it would pay $50.19 -- $33 in cash and 0.985 share of its stock -- for each Wyeth share.

"It would be a fantastic sign if a deal like Pfizer and Wyeth can get done and financed," Niederauer said.

"I think that would go a long way towards improving the general tenor, increasing volumes overall, getting people back to work thinking the market is on the way to recovery."

He added: "There are hundreds of companies waiting to go public, it's just not the right time."

Niederauer was circumspect about the near-term outlook, given difficulties in capital markets. Hence he said his company cannot expect 2009 to to be better than 2008.

"I am extremely bullish over the long-term outlook. I think there are some trends, like the move towards transparency of some OTC products, like the global trend in trading."

He sees no quick moves in Asia, however, which he said is not ready for consolidation right now.

BONUS OVERHAUL

The regulatory environment will change and for financial institutions it was clear some compensation models needed to be "not just incrementally changed but completely overhauled," he said.

"You are going to see a move where the overwhelming majority of these individuals are paid in deferred stocks, or other deferred methods where you do not get paid today for the money that you made. You get paid two or three years later, it gives the company the ability to have a claw back mechanism that does not exist today."

For full coverage, blogs and TV from Davos go to www.reuters.com/davos (Reporting by Lisa Jucca; editing by Simon Jessop)