Wednesday Morning Session
(9:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.)
9:00 a.m.
Welcome Remarks: Andrew D'Amore, STA 2021 Chairman of the Board
9:15 a.m.
Michael Piwowar, Milken Institute Center for Financial Markets & Mark Uyeda, US Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
Moderator: Jim Toes, STA
Former SEC Commissioner Michael Piwowar and Mark Uyeda, Counsel for the Senate Banking Committee, will discuss market structure issues raised at the March 9, 2021 Senate Banking Hearing: "Who Wins on Wall Street? GameStop, Robinhood, and the State of Retail Investing." and the US Senate Banking Committee's priorities for 2021. Among the topics to be addressed are Gamification, the T+2 trade settlement process and digital assets
10:00 a.m.
Competitive Landscape between Brokers & Exchanges
Panelists: Joe Mecane, Citadel Securities & Jonathan Kellner, MEMX
Moderator: Kimberly Russell, SSGA
Exchanges and brokers share common goals such as protecting the interests of investors and ensuring our markets remain liquid and resilient. However, exchanges and brokers have long competed for order flow, and recent months have seen reinvigorated debate around their respective roles in the execution lifecycle. Join us as we discuss how exchanges and brokers manage this complex relationship. Among the topics discussed include: quote quality and measuring best execution; distinction between exchange rebates and payment for order flow; and on/off-exchange trading.
10:45 a.m.
Heather Brilliant, CEO & President, Diamond Hill Capital Management
Moderators: Kate McAllister, Global Liquidity Partners & Julie Andress, KeyBanc Capital Markets
The value-add that diversity brings to any organization is well documented. Firms of all sizes are seeking ways to add diversity to their workforce while simultaneously putting in place policies of inclusion that enable intended goals to be achieved. Heather Brilliant, President & CEO of Diamond Hill Asset Management will share her experiences on achieving cognitive diversity - a concept of ensuring that organizations have groups of people making decisions or solving problems who think about problem solving in different ways.
11:30 a.m.
Industry Update on T+1 Settlement (Virtual Only)
Panelists: John Abel, DTCC & Bob Walley, Deloitte
Moderator: Tom Price, SIFMA
Representatives from DTCC, SIFMA and Deloitte will provide a detailed update on where the industry stands with regards to moving towards a T+1 Settlement Process. This panel is available on a virtual only basis.
Wednesday Afternoon Session
(1:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.)
1:00 p.m.
Interview: Allison Herren Lee, Commissioner, SEC
Moderator: Mina Nguyen, Jane Street
Mina Nguyen, Jane Street will conduct a one-on-one interview with SEC Commissioner Allison Lee. Appointed by President Donald Trump and unanimously confirmed by the US Senate, Commissioner Lee was sworn in on July 9, 2019. She served for over a decade in various roles at the SEC. Join us as Commissioner Lee provides an update on some of the SEC’s priorities relating to market structure and shares her opinion on such investor protection topics as: conflicts of interests and the demands for information on ESG.
1:30 p.m.
Achieving Best Execution in Equities & Options
Panelists: Joe Wald, BMO, Howard Meyerson, Financial Information Forum & Venu Palaparthi, DASH Financial Technologies
Moderator: Gigi Szekely, StoneX
As firms moved to “zero-commission” trading and payments for order flow on the rise, the industry seeks to provide greater transparency into order handling and improve the process for measuring execution quality. This panel will provide an update on enhancements to Rules 605 and 606 while also sharing their opinions on how to create best execution industry standards for listed options trading.
2:15 p.m
Listed Options Market Structure
Panelists: Arianne Criqui, Cboe Global Markets, John Kinahan, Group One Trading & Paul Jiganti, IMC
Moderator: JJ Kinahan, TD Ameritrade
The increase of options trading by retail investors has led to a regulatory spotlight on this asset class. Additionally, there are some market participants calling for a review of and possible updates to certain long standing practices with regards to market structure. This panel will provide a holistic view on listed options market structure and the investor experience.
3:00 p.m.
Interview: Doug Cifu, CEO, Virtu Financial
Moderator: Rich Repetto, Piper Sandler
2021 has seen much public debate about equity market structure and Doug Cifu, CEO of Virtu Financial, has been front and center. Piper Sandler’s Rich Repetto will get Mr. Cifu’s assessment on the general state of the equity markets while also asking him to address some of the concerns being expressed by our industry regulators.
3:30 p.m.
Interview: Dan Gallagher, Chief Legal Officer, Robinhood
Moderator: Jamie Selway, Sophron Advisors
Hear from Dan Gallagher, former SEC Commissioner who now serves as Chief Legal Officer for Robinhood. Mr. Gallagher will discuss Robinhood’s vision of further democratizing investing and some of the controversial topics surrounding the firm, such as: payment for order flow, gamification, cryptocurrency, and more.
4:00 p.m.
Presentation: 2021 STA Dictum Meum Pactum Award
Recipient: Tim Mahoney, former CEO BIDS Trading
As our industry continues to evolve, we at STA are thankful to those individuals who uphold our mission of Dictum Meum Pactum, or “my word is my bond." Each year, we award the Dictum Meum Pactum Award to an individual who has shown an unwavering commitment to our markets through leadership and professionalism. We’re pleased to present this year’s award to Tim Mahoney, former CEO of Bids Trading. A seasoned veteran of the financial industry, STA is proud to recognize Tim’s more than 40 years of experience as a highly respected professional.
4:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Opening Reception on Terrace at JW Marriott
then Free Evening
Thursday Morning Session
(9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.)
9:00 a.m.
Interview: Rep. Bill Huizenga, U.S. House of Representatives
Moderator: Jim Toes, STA
Having served as the Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Subcommittee on Financial Services, Congressman Huizenga has played a leadership role on many of the issues that impact the financial services industry. In this one-on-one interview, Rep. Huizenga will provide an update on those market structure issues which his committee is focused on and will share his opinions on capital formation; public vs private markets; and the general state of Congress.
9:30 a.m.
Interview: Stacey Cunningham, President, NYSE Group
Moderator: Matt Billings, Two Sigma Securities
Since assuming her position as President of the New York Stock Exchange in May 2018, Stacey Cunningham has been a leading advocate of the US equity markets and the invaluable role that capital formation brings to the strength of our economy and nation. This one-on-one interview will cover the various choices companies have today in taking a public route as well as some of the latest developments in the exchange space.
10:00 a.m.
Evolving Relationships Between ATS's & the Buyside
Panelists: Mehmet Kinak, T. Rowe Price & TR Lazo, BIDS Trading
Moderator: Jessica D'Alton, UBS
Inaccessible liquidity; innovation among ATSs; and the buy side's decision-making process for trading on- versus off-exchange are among the topics to discussed by this panel of industry experts.
10:45 a.m.
ETFs: Current Landscape
Panelists: Reggie Browne, GTS, Adam Gould, Tradeweb & Eric Pollackov, Invesco
Moderator: Deborah Fuhr, ETFGI
A panel of industry experts will provide global highlights on the level of investments, net inflows and general state of play for ETFs. Specific topics to be addressed include the rise of active ETFs; the impact of a zero-commissions on retail behavior; potential tax policy that would impose new costs; and the prospects of a digital asset ETF. Innovations on how ETFs are traded will also be discussed.
11:30 a.m.
Interview: Tal Cohen, Head of North American Markets, Nasdaq
Moderator: Sonali Basak, Bloomberg News
Nasdaq's Tal Cohen will provide an update on some of the key initiatives at Nasdaq, including the exchange's focus on artificial intelligence and cloud computing; Nasdaq's recently approved Board Diversity Rule; and efforts to better service the buyside.
Thursday Afternoon Session
(1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.)
1:30 p.m.
Interview: Stephanie Dumont, Executive Vice President, FINRA
Moderator: Cass Sanford, OTC Markets Group
Stephanie Dumont began her career at FINRA 22 years ago and most recently was promoted to Executive Vice President and Head of Market Regulations & Transparency Services. In her new leadership role, Ms. Dumont is responsible for oversight of the securities markets to protect investors and maintain market integrity. In this interview, Ms. Dumont will speak to FINRA's response to the market events and volatility experienced in the spring of 2021 and describe areas where FINRA is seeking industry input.
2:00 p.m.
Competition & Innovation in the Market Data and Trade Settlement Process
Manisha Kimmel, MayStreet & Greg Lee, Paxos
Moderator: Doug Clark, Credit Suisse
Our industry has long held a fundamental belief that competition is a necessary ingredient for efficient and stable markets. Competition rewards innovation and provides benefits that accrue to the investors we all serve. Two industry professionals will share their visions on how increased competition in the distribution of market data and the trade settlement process can produce greater efficiencies than what is currently available today.
2:30 p.m.
Future of Electronic Trading
Dmitri Galinov, 24 Exchange & Troy Draizen, JonesTrading
Moderator: Shane Swanson, Coalition Greenwich
The growing evolution in technology is creating innovations for electronic trading across all asset classes. Multi-asset platforms and the ability to trade 24/7 cross-border requires overcoming not just legacy systems, but also legacy mindsets. This panel will offer their views and visions on the future of electronic trading and the catalysts that will drive it.
3:15 p.m.
Market Structure for Digital Assets
Tom Chippas, ErisX & Greg Tusar, Coinbase
Moderator: Travis Schwab, Eventus
Former senior equity executives will share their personal stories of moving into the digital asset markets. They will outline the pure parallels between digital asset market structure and that which exists in equities, options and FX, while also addressing core differences. Panelists will also share their opinions on how the historical events on the market structure design of other asset classes will continue to influence the market structure for digital assets.
4:00 p.m.
Interview: Honorable J. Chris Giancarlo, Senior Counsel,
Wilke Farr & Gallagher & former CFTC Chairman
Author of #Cryptodad: The Fight for the Future of Money
Moderator: Tom Jessop, Fidelity Digital Assets
After serving as the Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trade Commission, CFTC from June 2014 to April 2019, J. Christopher Giancarlo returned to the private sector as a Senior Counsel at Wilke Farr & Gallagher and authored #Cryptodad: The Fight for the Future of Money. Mr. Giancarlo will talk about his personal journey towards understanding blockchain technology and the value it brings, his experiences with crypto assets as Chairman of the CFTC and the current political and regulatory environment surrounding it. This is a must-see interview that will be moderated by, Tom Jessop, Head of Fidelity Digital Assets.
4:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Networking Reception followed by Dinner & Entertainment
Eric Dittelman, Mentalist & Comic
Friday Morning Session
(9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.)
Morning of Philanthropy & Recognition
7:00 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Annual Run/Walk Around National Mall
8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.
Farewell Breakfast
9:15 a.m.
STA Affiliate Big Heart for Charity Award Presentation
Recipient: TBA
9:30 a.m.
STA 2021 Charity of Choice
Greenwood Project introduces Black and Latinx college and high school students to careers within financial services. Greenwood Project was founded in 2016 in Chicago, IL with just five students. Now a national organization with a footprint in New York, Boston and Denver, participation has grown to more than 350 students, despite a global pandemic.
Greenwood Project students gain real-world experience, networking connections and unmatched exposure to the financial industry through paid summer internships and a rigorous training program. Please join us as we recognize the important role Greenwood Project plays in our industry and how its partnerships with the more 65 financial industry firms achieve the value-add of diversity.
9:45 a.m.
Individual Big Heart For Charity Award Presentation & Discussion
STA Foundation is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2021 Individual Big Heart for Charity Award. This award honors those who serve their local communities while bringing a sense of dignity to people from all walks of life in their times of need. Please join us for a brief panel discussion with this year's recipients: Silvia Davi, V&S Strategic Consulting, Kate Faraday, PineBridge Investments & Marc Wyatt, T. Rowe Price
Moderator: Mark Dowd, Forefront Communications
