And that makes two.
Just two weeks after the U.S. Presidential election and the subsequent announcement by Chairman Mary Jo White that she would be leaving the Commission at the end of the current administrations term, a second top regulator is leaving. Stephen Luparello, Director of the Division of Trading and Markets, will leave the agency by the first of the year.
He was named director of the office in February 2014.
Upon Luparellos departure, Heather Seidel, Chief Counsel for the Division of Trading and Markets, will become the acting director.
Seidel began her securities law career at the SEC in 1996 in what was then the Division of Market Regulation and later moved to the Division of Investment Management. She then spent several years in the private sector, starting in 1999 as an associate at the law firm of Wilmer, Cutler and Pickering and in 2001 as an associate and vice president in the law division of Morgan Stanley.
She returned to the SEC in 2003 to the Division of Trading and Markets, serving as an Attorney Fellow, Senior Special Counsel and Assistant Director in the Office of Market Supervision. In 2010 she became an Associate Director in the Office of Market Supervision, and in 2015 she was named as Chief Counsel for the Division.
According to the SEC website, Luparello played a key role in enhancing the transparency and strengthening the integrity of the U.S.s markets, including the operation of trading platforms, clearing agencies, and broker-dealers that investors rely on every day.
We set an ambitious agenda to enhance our market structure, said SEC Chair Mary Jo White in a statement. Steve was at the forefront of that effort, and his leadership and expertise have helped produce both important new protections for investors today and a strong foundation from which the Commission can continue to further strengthen our markets for years to come. The agency is extremely fortunate to have the benefit of Steves deep knowledge and commitment to the markets.
During Luparellos tenure, the Commission adopted Regulation Systems Compliance and Integrity (Reg SCI), which established new controls to strengthen crucial technological systems, providing greater transparency, accountability and resilience. He also played a key role in the Commissions efforts to enhance operational transparency and regulatory oversight of alternate trading systems (ATSs) that trade stocks listed on a national securities exchange, including dark pools. Additionally, he oversaw proposed rules that for the first time would require broker-dealers to disclose the handling of institutional orders to customers.
Moreover, Luparellos spearheaded the plan to create a comprehensive database that allows regulators to track trading activity in the U.S. equity and options markets – the consolidated audit trail or CAT. CAT, just approved for creation on November 15th, will greatly enhance regulators ability to monitor market behavior and reconstruct market events.
He also was instrumental in the creation of the Commissions first Equity Market Structure Advisory Committee, and as the Committees designated federal officer, he facilitated significant discussions on the structure and operations of the U.S. equities markets.
Prior to his arrival at the Commission, Luparello was a partner at WilmerHale, in its Washington, D.C. office. Before that, he spent 16 years at FINRA and its predecessor, the National Association of Securities Dealers. As FINRAs vice chairman, he was responsible for its enforcement, exam, market regulation, international and disclosure programs.
