New York is never short of celebrities. They can be spotted – often just like the rest of us – in chic SoHo restaurants, upmarket stores and on rare occasions on the subway. Three will be highly visible today at the trading desks of BGC partners for its annual Charity Day to remember those lost in the 9/11 terrorist attacks at the interdealer-broker Cantor Fitzgerald.

Rap impresario Russell Simmons, astronaut Buzz Aldrin and tennis star John McEnroe will be among those giving a helping hand to lift the amount raised well beyond the $33m taken in the past five years. BGC Partners was the firm that re-built Cantor Fitzgerald following the loss of 658 employees, two thirds of its workforce, on 9/11.