August 12, 2008
Dear sirs,
regarding the naked shorting debacle that has been allowed to exist by the lack of mandating prompt and accurate trade settlement:
please eliminate the market maker exemption. Dr Boni's SEC study and evidence supports that the market has pervasive startegic fails caused by the indistry to gain profits.
The underlying problem is FTD's.
Make significant deterent fines for all FTD's past T+3.
And, more importantly, force broker buy-ins at T+4. There is no excuse for selling a stock, that one is not willing to buy within T+3. None. Period.
In this era of electronic trade, we should be able to move to trade confirmation at T+0, and settlement no later than T+1. With forced buy-in immediately at commencement of T+2. Forced buy-in is the allowable solution to all FTD's.
There is no need to dematerialize stock certificates. Investors must simply return there certificates back into electronic form via broker, TA and DTCC accounting before those shares may be considered tradable. There is good reason to allow stocks to remain accesable in paper certificate form. True ownership may be established with paper certification for reasons of accounting during times of FTD dilution.
Finally, although not directly related, I urge you to keep on schedule the FASB effort to place back on book the industry's 5 trillion $ in off- balance sheet asset/liabilities in 2009. It is imparative that any stock futures derivatives be accounted for and remedied if they originated as FTD's.
Thank you,
US Citizen and investor