In opening remarks at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s roundtable on 24-hour trading, the director of the Division of Trading and Markets highlighted industry preparations to extend U.S. equity market operations. Market data infrastructure is set to expand to 23 hours a day, five days a week on Dec. 6, enabling several approved exchanges to offer trading during those hours, while possible future expansion to continuous 24-by-7 trading remains under consideration. Four alternative trading systems already offer overnight trading, the Depository Trust & Clearing Corp. began clearing equities on a 23-by-5 basis in June, and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s Trade Reporting Facility has broadened its hours. The roundtable is examining market readiness, operational resilience, expected effects and potential next steps, supported by SEC staff analysis of overnight and cross-session volumes, the stocks traded overnight and participant activity across sessions.