The Minutes of Paul Atkins on market structure https://minutesof.com/sec-chair/on/market-structure/ Everything Paul Atkins has said on market structure: 11 verbatim quotes, each with a timestamp and a link to the recording it came from. en Mon, 31 Aug 2026 13:11:59 +0000 Atkins announces the SEC proposes to rescind Rule 611 of Regulation NMS and the prohibition on locking and cro https://minutesof.com/q/c16e0929-1f66-4d56-88e6-59c99e811021/ https://minutesof.com/q/c16e0929-1f66-4d56-88e6-59c99e811021/ “Today, the Commission proposes to rescind Rule 611 of Regulation NMS as well as the prohibition on locking and crossing quotations.” — SEC speeches and statements market structure Atkins calls Rule 611, the Trade-Through Rule, a grave misstep since his time as Commissioner in the 2000s. https://minutesof.com/q/b74e66a0-d3fe-4a81-a807-caa7aedcff82/ https://minutesof.com/q/b74e66a0-d3fe-4a81-a807-caa7aedcff82/ “I have viewed as a grave misstep since I served as Commissioner in the Aughts: that is, Rule 611, also known as the “Trade-Through Rule.”” — SEC speeches and statements market structure Atkins argues the trade-through rule has fueled disorder by encouraging exchange proliferation and dampening i https://minutesof.com/q/8466c488-5ad4-4769-b2e3-5c95de413f0d/ https://minutesof.com/q/8466c488-5ad4-4769-b2e3-5c95de413f0d/ “Indeed, the release shows that, in today’s markets, the trade-through rule has helped fuel disorder by encouraging the proliferation of exchanges, dampening innovation within them, and inspiring ever more complex order types on those exchanges.” — SEC speeches and statements market structure Atkins says current markets are fragmented, costlier than necessary, and needlessly complex. https://minutesof.com/q/f7e3d1c7-48ee-45cc-bf01-561db534587b/ https://minutesof.com/q/f7e3d1c7-48ee-45cc-bf01-561db534587b/ “The result is a market that, despite its many strengths, is fragmented, costlier than it needs to be, and needlessly complex.” — SEC speeches and statements market structure Atkins warns removing Rule 611 will unsettle market structure assumptions and raise questions about execution, https://minutesof.com/q/61a296ce-90cb-40e7-adc2-b83bb1d73459/ https://minutesof.com/q/61a296ce-90cb-40e7-adc2-b83bb1d73459/ “Removing Rule 611 would unsettle long-standing assumptions in our market structure and inevitably raise questions regarding best execution, transparency, trading mechanics, and investor confidence.” — SEC speeches and statements market structure Atkins announces extension of compliance relief for minimum pricing increment rules until November 2027. https://minutesof.com/q/d8c644e7-a563-4876-b201-72fa0888c0df/ https://minutesof.com/q/d8c644e7-a563-4876-b201-72fa0888c0df/ “Today, the Commission further extended the temporary exemptive relief from the compliance dates for Rules 600(b)(89)(i)(F), 610(c) and 612 of Regulation NMS until the first business day of November 2027” — SEC speeches and statements market structure Atkins warns that regulation encrusts equity markets, requiring caution when removing rules to avoid harm. https://minutesof.com/q/75f2fad8-5ae3-4f4d-8003-b376a405dec5/ https://minutesof.com/q/75f2fad8-5ae3-4f4d-8003-b376a405dec5/ “Because regulation encrusts the equity markets, we must be exceedingly careful to avoid doing more harm than good when we seek to break off a piece of that crust.” — SEC speeches and statements market structure Atkins argues the change may create a market structure more aligned with how trading actually occurs today. https://minutesof.com/q/87fbb532-a4f3-4d7d-805a-ff47d60f7c92/ https://minutesof.com/q/87fbb532-a4f3-4d7d-805a-ff47d60f7c92/ “it may also lead to a market structure that is more adaptive, resilient, and better aligned with how trading actually occurs today.” — SEC speeches and statements market structure Today, the Commission also proposed to rescind Rule 611 of Regulation NMS, known as the trade-through rule. https://minutesof.com/q/028b3526-9821-4134-a26a-d3a2b6819e3c/ https://minutesof.com/q/028b3526-9821-4134-a26a-d3a2b6819e3c/ “Today, the Commission also proposed to rescind Rule 611 of Regulation NMS, known as the trade-through rule.” — SEC speeches and statements market structure Atkins anticipates the proposal will be seen as insufficient by some and excessive by others. https://minutesof.com/q/7e36fa4f-31da-4957-80f8-e441f8a056c4/ https://minutesof.com/q/7e36fa4f-31da-4957-80f8-e441f8a056c4/ “Yet, I suspect that, for some, this proposal will not go far enough, while for others this proposal will have gone too far.” — SEC speeches and statements market structure Atkins directs staff to review access fee caps and pricing increments by year-end for potential changes. https://minutesof.com/q/91e25dac-44ec-4094-81cf-8d090f23114e/ https://minutesof.com/q/91e25dac-44ec-4094-81cf-8d090f23114e/ “I have directed the staff to prioritize a review of Rules 610(c) and 612 of Regulation NMS by the end of the year, including whether potential changes to the access fee caps and minimum pricing increments may be appropriate.” — SEC speeches and statements market structure