In a motion filed with the SEC, NYSE and Nasdaq requested the recusal of SEC Division of Trading and Markets Director Brett Redfearn from the SEC's review of a dispute regarding market data fee increases.
The motion was requested by the NYSE Arca, Inc. and Nasdaq Stock Market LLC and involves a dispute raised against the exchanges by SIFMA. SIFMA has alleged that the exchanges were not justified in levying fee increases for proprietary equity market data due to a lack of competition. An administrative law judge eventually dismissed the case in 2016, but it was later appealed (see SEC order dated July 19, 2018).
In the motion filed on October 4, 2018, the exchanges stated that before joining the SEC, Mr. Redfearn was a SIFMA member representative. The exchanges cited a recent article in The Wall Street Journal reporting that Mr. Redfearn was heavily involved in formulating SIFMA's legal strategy in the lawsuit, and that, since joining the SEC, Mr. Redfearn had "stepped up scrutiny of exchanges' fees."
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.