SEC Set to Spur Exchange Trading

Top U.S. securities regulators are embracing a plan designed to shift more stock trading onto exchanges and away from private trading venues operated by banks and other firms, according to people familiar with the discussions. The move, which could deliver a blow to bank trading operations, is expected to be part of a coming Securities and Exchange Commission pilot program aimed at boosting trading in the stocks of smaller companies. The plan’s inclusion in the pilot would mark a small victory in a larger battle over stock trading between exchanges and operators of so-called dark pools. It would affect a small amount of trading, but a successful test could be a precursor to applying it on a broader scale in the future, the people familiar with the discussions said. More in the Wall Street Journal here.