2026 Agenda

OCC, 9111 Cypress Waters Blvd, Coppell, TX 75019

DSTA / OCC / Women in ETFs – Innovation in Derivative-based ETFs
12:00 PM to 3:00 PM CT

Opening Comments and Updates – Mike Hansen, OCC, Steve Capurso, DSTA

Charity – Hope’s Door New Beginning Center – Megan Valdez, CEO 

OCC Regulatory Update – Sheila Zak, OCC

OCC Learning Initiative Presentation – Mark Benzaquen, OCC 

Moderator – Sara Levin, WallachBeth

Panelists

• Sladja Carton, Fidelity Investments
• Thomas Generazio, Charles Schwab
• Erica Marquez Avitia, Old Mission
• Vanessa Yang, Global X ETFs
• Brittany Christensen, Tidal Financial Group

Location: The Ritz-Carlton Dallas, Las Colinas, 4150 N. MacArthur Blvd, Irving, TX 75038

DSTA / Women in Finance Brunch
8:00 AM – 10:00 AM CT

Focus Charity – Hope’s Door New Beginning Center

• Megan Valdez, CEO 
• Fanta Coleman – Survivor and Board Member. 

Keynote Speaker 

• Valiere Simpson, Charles Schwab

Panelists

• Erica Attonito, HRT
• Flavia Vehbiu, OTC Markets Group
• Angela Redell, APEX Fintech Solutions

Lunch: 11:00 – 12PM

Invitation Only: Industry Committees and Working Lunch Groups (10:30 AM – 12:00 PM) 

• Buyside Working Lunch – Reid Noch, TD Securities   
• Compliance Working Lunch – TBA
• ETF Working Lunch – TBA
• SIFMA LOTC Meeting – (10:30 am – 12:00 PM CT)

Opening Comments:  Steve Capurso, 2026 DSTA President (12:15 PM – 12:25 PM)

Program Host: Laura Delaney, Vice President DSTA, (Virtu Financial)

Market Dynamics: Competition, Transparency & Execution (12:30 PM – 1:10 PM)

Competition across today’s trading ecosystem and the changing dynamics of market quality. Where liquidity forms, price discovery, and the balance between displayed and off-exchange markets. 

Moderator: Mark Davies, S3

Panelists

• Jeff Mendl, MCAP 
• Jacob Rappaport, StoneX
• Andrew Oppenheimer, Nasdaq 

New Markets Colliding with Legacy Market Structure (1:20 PM – 2:00 PM)

Moderator: Pat McEvoy, Cantor Fitzgerald 

Topics: Tokenization, Perpetual Products, 24/7 markets, Innovation, Prediction Markets and Beyond.

Panelists

• Giang Bui, Securitize 
• Adam Hickerson, Robinhood 
• David Martin, Clear Street
• James Kostulias, Charles Schwab

Capital, Energy & the New Texas Economy (2:10 PM – 2:50 PM)

Moderator: Rob Marrocco, TXSE

Panelists

• Ethan Powell, Brookmont Capital Management
• Daniel S. Hoverman, Texas Capital Securities
• Fabian Gomez, Westwood Holdings Group

U.S. Equity Market Structure at a Crossroads: Regulatory Reform and the Future of Trading (3:10 pm to 3:50 pm) 

The changing regulatory landscape, SEC Rule 611, and protected quotations. What comes next as regulators and the industry reconsiders long-standing market-structure conventions.

Moderator:  JJ Kinahan, Cboe

Panelists 

• Joe Mecane, Citadel Securities 
• Stefanos Bazinas, NYSE 
• Steve Cavoli, Virtu Financial 
• Richard Holley III, SEC

 DSTA Texas Traders Focus Charity Recognition (4:00 PM – 4:10 PM) 

• Boulder Crest Foundation – Ken Falke, CEO

STA & Political Summer 2026 Update (4:10 PM – 4:30 PM)

• Jim Toes, STA
• Joel Oswald, Williams & Jensen 

Keynote: (4:30 PM – 5:15 PM)

Capital Formation, emerging products, investor protection, and the transformation of financial services. A Fireside Chat with:

Moderator: Dr. Shane Goodwin, SMU

Featured Guest

• Brian Daly, SEC

5:15 – 8:00 PM: Texas Traders “Roundup” Networking Event / Cocktails & Dinner Buffet

6:00 – 9:00 PM: Casino night and Raffle Prizes for benefit of Boulder Crest Foundation

7:00 PM – 12:00 AM: Texas Hold’Em Poker Tournament 

9:00 PM: Hospitality Suite