About the Security Traders Association

STA is the leading    trade organization for individual  professionals  in the securities industry    that works to improve the  ethics,  business standards and working    environment for its members. STA is  comprised of    26 Affiliate organizations, nationally and   internationally, with a total    of 4,200 professional trade industry   members who are engaged in the    buying, selling and trading of   securities.

The Security  Traders Association is committed to promoting the  interests of its members  throughout the global financial markets,  providing representation of these  interests in the legislative,  regulatory and technological processes, while  fostering goodwill and  high standards of integrity in accord with the  Association’s founding  principle, Dictum Meum Pactum – ” My word  is my bond “.

Vision Statement

Be the representative organization of security trading professionals  across all markets and the leading authority, champion, and educator of  individuals on issues affecting practitioners and markets.

Be the leading advocate of policies and provide programs that foster  investor trust, professional ethics and marketplace integrity, and  programs that support education, capital formation, and marketplace  innovation.

 

We are unique in the industry

The Security Traders Association (STA) is a unique organization. With over 75 years of history, we remain the only professional organization focused on issues related to securities trading. STA is comprised of 4,200 individual professionals – all engaged in the buying, selling, and trading of securities. We seek to provide investors, both retail and professional, with the best possible markets. .

We provide leadership for the industry – through the knowledge of our people.

The securities industry depends on people, and STA is the group that brings those people together. Without the people who execute orders, conduct research and analysis, develop, operate and maintain the technology and – most important of all – put capital at risk, there would be no stock as we know it.

Our industry knowledge is our strength. STA is committed to providing leadership on market structure issues to the SEC, legislators, regulators, and exchange leadership. We want to ensure that our markets remain the most liquid, transparent, fair, and efficient in the world.

STA has a vibrant committee structure. They develop thoughtful, credible position papers and comment letters, which keep the STA name in the forefront when market structure and trading issues arise. STA is dedicated to informing its members and all investors about legislative, regulatory, technological, and investment issues affecting the financial industry.

 

We are large and diverse – which is the reason for our influence.

STA has more than 4,200 members in 26 Affiliates, and support from virtually every top firm and vendor in the industry. We are the largest and most influential voice in the world for professionals engaged in the buying, selling and trading of securities.

The influence of STA lies not only in numbers, but also in our geographic diversity. Our local Affiliates are  the backbone of STA and form a network of members throughout the United States, Canada and Europe.

Because STA represents individuals, it is a powerful conduit through which their voice can be magnified and heard at the highest levels by those who make the rules, regulations and laws covering the securities markets.

 

We are smartly organized – which makes us effective.

STA is effective because of how we operate – with time volunteered by our members, who are professional trading practitioners, supported by a small staff group.

The leadership of STA consists of the elected officers and Board Members, and the officers of the Affiliates, who devote their own time to the Association’s causes. The President and Chief Executive Officer of STA is its only salaried executive.

Many of our members participate in one or more of STA’s committees:  each of which addresses an area of crucial importance to the membership. Committee participation enables members to become directly involved in STA’s policy-making process. Members can provide their expertise and input on issues of importance to them, their companies and the investing public.

STA committees include Executive, Trading Issues, International, Institutional, Compliance and Affiliate Liaison, among others.

 

What STA Does

  • STA provides its members a voice on matters affecting the markets and trading community … with Congress … with the SEC … with regulators … with the exchanges … and with other trade organizations.
  • STA hosts conferences that promote professional development, serve as a platform for influential leaders in the industry, as well as provide a forum for networking.
  • STA members receive registration fee discounts for conferences, events and continuing education courses.
  • STA created a political action committee, STAPAC, to take a more active role in supporting legislators who are standing up for the principals that better our marketplace.