The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced Thursday the creation of a special committee designed to study and provide advice on possible new regulatory improvements in the world of corporate bond and municipal securities markets.
The Fixed Income Market Structure Advisory Committee has 23 members, including Kumar Venkataraman, a professor of finance at the Southern Methodist University’s Cox School of Business.
SEC Chairman Jay Clayton said Thursday that the committee will provide the federal agency advice on the “efficiency and resiliency” of the bond markets and “identify opportunities for regulatory improvements.”
“Individual investors are highly active in fixed income markets, both directly as retail investors and indirectly through various types of funds,” Clayton said. “This committee will help the Commission ensure that our regulatory approach to these markets meets the needs of retail investors, as well as companies and state and local governments.”
Venkataraman, who chaired SMU’s Finance Department from 2012 to 2015, specializes in the area of market microstructure. His bio states that he writes about financial market design, evaluation of trading strategies and functioning of equity, fixed-income and energy markets.
The SMU professor has worked on consulting projects sponsored by Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). He also has served as expert witness in litigation involving price manipulation.
Venkataraman is the only Texan on the committee.