SIFMA Vice President Snook Discusses the Best Path Forward for Equity Markets

SIFMA Executive Vice President Randy Snook delivered opening remarks at the SIFMA Market Structure Conference in which he discussed how to improve the equity markets by (i) increasing the resiliency of market infrastructure, (ii) revisiting the mechanism for disseminating market data, and (iii) increasing transparency and disclosure about order routing and execution practices.

Mr. Snook stated that SIFMA has called repeatedly for a comprehensive review of equity market structure, and recent public commentary "shows the importance of acknowledging the complexity of the modern equity markets and the perils of over generalizing any conclusions or potential solutions." Additionally, Mr. Snook questioned whether the right incentives are in place to ensure a healthy balance of exchange and off-exchange trading, noting that there has been much discussion about the interplay between the need to limit market impact and the need to provide accurate price discovery.

Mr. Snook also said that another key issue is whether the markets are too complex, posing the question of whether market fragmentation is an unintended effect of regulation. He stated that these equity market issues cannot be addressed with a one-size-fits-all solution, and must "be viewed through the lens of enhancing trust and confidence in the marketplace."

See: Mr. Snook's Speech.