MCI trades on Nasdaq

MCI, the telecommunications company that formerly was the bankrupt and scandal-ridden WorldCom, began trading its stock on the Nasdaq stock market on Wednesday.

Company officials called it the final milestone in “one of the largest corporate turnarounds in history.” The company trades under the ticker symbol MCIP. The company previously had been trading on the Over the Counter Market.

Above, Michael D. Capellas, president and chief executive officer of MCI Inc., center, waves after opening the Nasdaq.

Kansas City, Kan.

Medical center attracts high-tech startup firm

A high-tech company with Lawrence ties has become the first tenant of the new wet-lab incubator facility at the Kansas University Medical Center in Kansas City, Kan.

Kansas City, Mo.-based Proteon Therapeutics became the first business to locate in the incubator facility since it reopened in June after a $450,000 renovation. Proteon is a client of the Lawrence Regional Technology Center, which has helped the startup company secure funding.

The company’s president and chief executive officer, Nicholas Franano, is a Kansas University graduate. Franano said the company considered locating in Lawrence but ultimately chose the Kansas City area to be closer to the medical center, where the company conducts some research.

Proteon is developing a drug that is expected to be widely used by physicians who perform angioplasty and other vascular surgical procedures. The company is hoping for Food and Drug Administration approval in 2009.

Lawrence

Harris Construction taps KU graduate as president

Lawrence-based Harris Construction Co. has named Michael Bell as its new president.

Bell will oversee all aspects of the company’s operations, project development and finance divisions. Bell previously worked as senior project manager for Harris and also was an executive with Turner Construction.

Bell received a degree in architectural engineering from Kansas University.

Lawrence resident Bo Harris will continue to serve as the company’s chairman and chief executive.

Wall Street

Regulators seek greater oversight for hedge funds

Federal regulators on Wednesday proposed new oversight for hedge funds, investment pools traditionally for the wealthy that are growing and attracting small investors but have scant federal scrutiny.

The vote was 3-2, marking the second time in less than a month the Securities and Exchange Commission split over a significant regulatory move. In both instances, SEC Chairman William Donaldson and the two Democratic commissioners opted for stricter regulation while the two other Republican members opposed it.