The word “authentic” has been overused lately. But it’s about the best word I can come up with to describe the CEO of the New York Stock Exchange who I interviewed for the first time today. Duncan Niederauer is a regular guy. He took over as the boss of the Big Board last December when John Thain moved over to Merrill Lynch to become the new Chairman and CEO of the troubled investment firm.

Niederauer talks and acts like a stock trader. His style is breezy and friendly. Minutes after I shook his hand, we were already talking about his years at Goldman Sachs, his three kids, and why he’s a fan of the Cleveland Indians (His mother is from Brooklyn and doesn’t like the Yankees, forcing him to pick any other team to root for. He was attracted to the underdog Indians.) He’s starkly different from Thain, who is reserved and formal. I found it revealing that Niederauer chose not move into the grand office that Thain occupied -- with a combination of antique English furniture and a stock ticker -- preferring a more modest space down the hall.

Before and during the interview, Niederauer spoke candidly and directly. It’s refreshing to talk to a CEO who’s unscripted and unrehearsed. He says what he thinks. He even told me that he got in trouble recently for being too candid. At a gathering in Washington DC on the same day that the Federal Reserve slashed interest rates by three-quarters of a percent, Niederauer commented that a half percent cut would have done the job. Well, his off the cuff remark was widely quoted, and he was criticized. His comments were considered inappropriate because he is not an economist. Niederauer told me he’s more careful about what he says now. I just hope he won’t get too careful. It will be a shame if he becomes predictable and programmed like so many American CEOs.