Plan Amendment has been Submitted to the SEC, Targeting a December 2026 Launch
NEW YORK, Dec. 19, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The Operating Committees of the Securities Information Processors (“Processors” or “SIPs”) today announced that they have submitted a Plan Amendment to the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) to extend their operating hours to accommodate overnight trading. Participants are preparing for a December 2026 launch, pending SEC review and approval.
The Path to Implementation
Upon submission of the Plan Amendment to the SEC, the Commission will have up to 300 days to approve or disapprove it. It is expected that the SEC will publish the Amendment and allow a comment period for the industry and the public to weigh in. Other SEC priorities—such as the implementation of minimum price increment changes (i.e., tick size form)—could impact the targeted December 2026 launch date.
24 Hours, Sunday Evening Through Friday Evening, With a One-Hour Technical Break
As the SIPs previously announced, the proposed Hours of Operation are to be set as close as technically feasible to 24 hours per day—distributing information from 9:00 pm Sundays to 8:00 pm (ET) Fridays, excluding holidays—with the incorporation of a one-hour technical pause during each 24-hour period.
This technical pause will allow the Processors, Plan Participants and other market participants to refresh their systems. The pause will begin at 8:00 pm (ET), Monday through Thursday, and the new trade date will commence immediately thereafter. The Processors anticipate being able to eventually shorten the length of the pause.
Current Hours vs. Proposed New Hours
Current Hours of Operation, excluding holidays:
- Early Hours: 4:00 am – 9:30 am (ET)
- Regular Hours: 9:30 am – 4:00 pm (ET)
- Late Hours: 4:00 pm – 8:00 pm (ET)
Proposed Hours of Operation, excluding holidays:
- Early Hours: Conclusion of the pause – 9:30 am (ET)
- Regular Hours: 9:30 am – 4:00 pm (ET)
- Late Hours: 4:00 pm – 8:00 pm (ET)
“The investment community has been clear in its desire to extend equity trading market hours to facilitate trading on a more global scale, and the SIPs have adopted a Plan Amendment to allow that to happen,” said Jeff Kimsey, Chairman of the SIP Operating Committees. “We look forward to collaborating with the industry on this initiative as we collectively work to continue driving the U.S. equity markets forward.”
About the SIPs
The “SIPs” (Securities Information Processors) link the U.S. markets by processing and consolidating all protected equities bid/ask quotes and trades from every registered exchange, as well as FINRA’s Alternative Display Facility (ADF) and Trade Reporting Facilities (TRF), into a single, easily consumable data feed. The SIPs are an asset unique to U.S. market structure and play a critical role in making the U.S. equities markets transparent and accessible to investors worldwide.
Although often referred to in the singular, there are actually two SIPs: the combined CTA (Consolidated Tape Association) and CQ (Consolidated Quotation System) SIP, and the UTP (Unlisted Trading Privileges) SIP. The CTA/CQ SIP is responsible for the dissemination of real‐time quote and trade information in New York Stock Exchange listed securities (sometimes called “Network A” or “Tape A” securities) and Cboe, NYSE Arca, NYSE American, and other regional exchange listed securities (sometimes called “Network B” or “Tape B” securities). The UTP SIP handles Nasdaq-listed securities (sometimes called “Network C” or “Tape C” securities). This structure has been in place since the late 1970s, when the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) mandated that all registered exchanges that trade Network A, B, or C securities send their trades and quotes to the SIPs for consolidated worldwide distribution.
Each SIP is governed by a Plan and run by an Operating Committee (“OC”) comprised of its Plan Participants. The OCs are counseled by an Advisory Committee made up of individuals representing firms from across the industry and representing the diverse viewpoints of the market. Among other duties, the OCs set their individual Plan policies, select a Processor that is responsible for providing the technology to power it, and review the performance of both the Processor and the network administrators, which are responsible for the administrative functions for each SIP, such as contracting, billing, auditing, policy development, and vendor relations. The New York Stock Exchange serves as the Administrator for the CTA/CQ SIP Plans and the Securities Industry Automation Corporation is the Processor. Nasdaq business units serve as the Administrator and Processor for the UTP SIP.
One of the primary objectives of both SIPs is transparency. Both the CTA/CQ Operating Committee and UTP Operating Committee meet quarterly, and the summary of the General Sessions of those meetings are posted to their respective websites: www.ctaplan.com and www.utpplan.com. Also provided on those websites are their Plans’ announcements, policies, quarterly and monthly performance metrics, the pricing schedules, technical specifications, and more.
Media Contact
Rafi Reguer
Forefront Communications for the SIP Operating Committees
+1 (718) 781-4946
rreguer@forefrontcomms.com
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SOURCE SIP Operating Committees
