The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) today issued the following statement by Michael Paese, executive vice president of global advocacy, regarding the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) emergency orders on short selling.
“These are extraordinary times and the industry is committed to the SEC’s overall objectives of addressing abusive market practices such as illegal naked short selling and rooting-out false rumors. Financial markets must be protected from these types of manipulation, and we support anti-fraud regulations which will ensure those who violate these rules will be punished to the fullest extent of the law.
“Louis Brandeis once said, ‘Sunshine is the best disinfectant,’ and it is, I might add, one of the easiest to apply. Therefore, we support meaningful disclosures of short positions that help prevent deceptive market behavior as long as those disclosures are designed so they do not negatively impact market liquidity. We look forward to seeing more details of this proposal.
“SIFMA continues to work with the SEC to clarify questions about the scope and application of the other short sale rules relating to the new close-out requirement, including the elimination of the market maker exemption from this requirement. We hope to solicit interpretation on several important issues in this regard to ensure our markets and the national clearance and settlement system continue to operate smoothly and with the necessary liquidity.”
