Revitalizing America’s markets at 250
As the US approaches its 250th anniversary, SEC chair Paul Atkins used a speech at the New York Stock Exchange to outline a significant shift in regulatory philosophy.
Delivered beneath the Exchange’s chandeliers and the hum of trading screens, the remarks drew on history to justify a redesigned future.
The argument was straightforward: American markets prospered when regulation was disciplined and focused on information that investors could use. They weakened when disclosure ballooned into an unwieldy exercise in