One of the world’s largest exchanges, Nasdaq, is set to file paperwork with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for 23-hour weekday trading as investor demand for non-stop trading in US stocks surges.
The New York Stock Exchange and Cboe Global Markets have already announced plans to move to round-the-clock stock trading.
The paperwork will be the first formal step towards rolling-out round-the-clock trading of stocks and exchange-traded products from the current 16 hours to 23 hours, five days a week. Presently, Nasdaq operates three sessions every day during weekdays: a pre-market session from 4 a.m. to 9.30 a.m. (eastern US time), the usual 9.30 a.m. to 4 p.m. session, and a post-market session from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Once it moves to round-the-clock trading, it will operate two trading sessions that start with a day session from 4 a.m. to 8 p.m., followed by a one-hour break for maintenance, testing, and clearance of trades, and then a night session from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m.
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Additionally, the new plan’s trading week will start on Sunday at 9 p.m. and end on Friday at 8 p.m. after the day session. Meanwhile, the day session will continue to include pre-market, regular, and post-market trading hours, and will include the opening bell at 9.30 a.m. and the closing bell at 4 p.m. The night session will have trading done between 9 p.m. and 12 a.m., which will be considered trades for the following day.
In March, Nasdaq President Tal Cohen had said the exchange operator had begun discussions with regulators and expected to launch non-stop five-day-a-week trading in the second half of 2026.
The US stock market represents almost two-thirds of the global market value of listed companies, with total foreign holdings of US equities having reached $17 trillion last year, as per data by Nasdaq.
While the success of round-the-clock trading is highly dependent on accuracy of the securities information processor that displays stock quotes, there’s some caution advised by major Wall Street banks, who cite concerns around lower liquidity, increased volatility, and uncertainty over returns on investment.
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