Blackrock, Nasdaq, Citadel to Join SEC’s 24/7 Trading Roundtable

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has revealed the participant list for a public roundtable on 24/7 equity trading, placing Blackrock, Nasdaq, Citadel Securities and more than two dozen traditional finance (TradFi) heavyweights alongside SEC leadership. The Sept. 17 webcast will bring SEC Chair Paul Atkins together with Wall Street heavyweights to debate whether American stock markets should adopt the continuous trading model that bitcoin and other digital assets have used since the first crypto exchanges launched more than a decade ago. SEC Pulls Wall Street’s Power Players into Overnight Trading Debate On Tuesday, the securities regulator released the agenda and speaker list for the roundtable first announced in July. Atkins will deliver opening remarks alongside Jamie Selway, Director of the SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets. The event is designed to examine the risks and benefits of keeping U.S. equities open around the clock. The roundtable reads like a who’s who of today’s TradFi giants. Panel one includes representatives from Robinhood, NYSE, Blackrock, Virtu Financial, Cboe, BNY Pershing, UBS, FINRA, and Bruce Markets. Panel two features Jane Street, State Street, Samsung, Charles Schwab, Nasdaq, Interactive Brokers, DTCC, Exegy, and MEMX. Panel three includes OTC Markets Group, BNP Paribas, 24X, Invesco, Citadel Securities, Drivewealth, Blue Ocean, Citi, and ModernIR. Panel Slot Participating Firms TradFi / Crypto Significance First Panel Robinhood, NYSE, Blackrock, Virtu Financial, Cboe, BNY Pershing, UBS, FINRA, Bruce Markets Mix of stock exchanges, brokerages, market makers and crypto-linked trading venues Second Panel Jane Street, State Street, Samsung, Charles Schwab, Nasdaq, Interactive Brokers, DTCC, Exegy, MEMX Heavyweights in clearing, custody, exchange technology and index infrastructure Third Panel OTC Markets Group, BNP Paribas, 24X, Invesco, Citadel Securities, Drivewealth, Blue Ocean, Citi, ModernIR Alternative trading systems, asset managers and liquidity providers pushing 24/7 access Notably, 18 of the 27 TradFi companies represented at the roundtable are directly associated with cryptocurrency, digital assets or blockchain, according to the SEC’s participant list. That overlap underscores how deeply tokenization and crypto-native trading rails have penetrated established finance. Atkins: Aligning U.S. Equities with Round-the-clock Markets Atkins had already signaled his support for exploring continuous trading when the SEC announced the session in July. “With the expansion to overnight trading, I’m excited at the prospect of U.S. equity markets aligning with those markets that already trade continuously and look forward to balancing round-the-clock trading with all-important investor and customer protections,” Atkins explained at the time. His remarks set the tone for a debate that will likely focus on how to extend a market designed around regular trading hours into an always-on environment. Crypto markets have operated on that model since the first bitcoin (BTC) exchanges went live more than a decade ago, and the SEC’s roundtable is expected to study how that experience translates to equities. The High-stakes Mechanics of 24/7 Trading The push for 24/7 equities arrives as TradFi assets such as stocks and commodities have become regularly tokenized on blockchain networks and are represented by crypto assets which trade 24/7/365. That convergence has forced regulators and market participants to confront a basic question: can American stock markets function safely when the closing bell no longer means a pause? Crypto industry executives will be watching the SEC’s Sept. 17 public roundtable webcast closely, but so will Wall Street. Regulators and market participants are likely to discuss certain risky elements tied to 24/7 market action, including overnight action. Key concerns include: Evening books beyond Wall Street’s regular operating hours are thinner, and spreads and depths widen or vanish. Surprise night movements and weekend pumps or dumps can happen on a dime in crypto markets, a pattern that TradFi regulars have yet to experience firsthand. Round-the-clock trading generates additional fee revenue for market venues, a key incentive for the firms involved. Crypto market watchers already understand how quickly sentiment can shift outside traditional hours. Bitcoin’s price action often acts as a barometer of macro events well before Wall Street opens. If TradFi assets move to 24/7/365, they too may begin to signal future events ahead of the next U.S. trading session. Separately, the SEC is reportedly looking to update custody rules for digital assets, a parallel regulatory track that could interact with the 24/7 trading debate and affect how broker-dealers handle crypto and tokenized assets. The Road to Sept. 17 The Sept. 17 webcast will be the first major public forum where the SEC, top exchanges, brokerages, market makers and crypto-adjacent firms jointly address the operational realities of 24/7 equity trading. With Paul Atkins and Jamie Selway opening the session, the panels will carry the weight of a potential structural shift in U.S. capital markets. For crypto insiders, the roundtable marks another sign that the infrastructure they have relied on for years is becoming mainstream. For TradFi, it is a chance to shape the rules before the always-on model arrives at scale. What Is the SEC’s 24/7 Trading Roundtable? It is a public event scheduled for Sept. 17 where SEC leadership and representatives from major financial firms will discuss the risks and benefits of allowing U.S. equities to trade around the clock. The roundtable was announced in July and includes participants from Blackrock, Nasdaq, Citadel Securities, and more than 20 other companies. Which Companies Are Attending the SEC Roundtable? The 27 firms include Robinhood, NYSE, Blackrock, Virtu Financial, Cboe, BNY Pershing, UBS, FINRA, Bruce Markets, Jane Street, State Street, Samsung, Charles Schwab, Nasdaq, Interactive Brokers, DTCC, Exegy, MEMX, OTC Markets Group, BNP Paribas, 24X, Invesco, Citadel Securities, Drivewealth, Blue Ocean, Citi, and ModernIR. Why Does Crypto Matter for the 24/7 Trading Debate? Bitcoin and other digital assets have traded 24/7/365 since the first crypto exchanges launched more than a decade ago, providing a real-world model for continuous markets. The SEC’s roundtable will weigh whether traditional stocks can adopt similar infrastructure without sacrificing investor protections. Who Is Speaking at the SEC Roundtable? SEC Chair Paul Atkins will deliver opening remarks alongside Jamie Selway, Director of the SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets. The event will then feature three panels of executives from traditional finance and crypto-adjacent firms. When Will the SEC 24/7 Trading Roundtable Take Place? The public roundtable webcast is scheduled for Sept. 17. The SEC first announced the session in July and revealed the agenda and speaker list on Tuesday.