Business

Sleepless on Wall Street: All-night stock exchanges coming soon

By Sohail Khan 2 October 2026, 8:29 pm

Benchmarks
Nifty22,421.95-198.5

FEATURED FUNDS★★★★★

Motilal Oswal Midcap Fund Direct-Growth

5Y Return
19.6 %

Invest Now

Enter search text:

Business News›Markets›US Stocks›News›Sleepless on Wall Street: All-night stock exchanges coming soon

Read Today's Paper

Sleepless on Wall Street: All-night stock exchanges coming soon
Synopsis

US equity exchanges will begin extended trading hours with an overnight session from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. starting December 6. The changes aim to cater to growing foreign investor interest and compete with crypto markets. However, concerns about market liquidity and increased risks during these hours are prevalent among institutional investors. Pre-existing trading volumes suggest that institutional participation during night hours may be limited.

For decades, US equity exchanges have hit the pause button every night, leaving markets shut for several hours. Come December, the lights will stay on much longer as the stock market shifts toward around-the-clock trading.

Nasdaq, NYSE Arca, 24X National Exchange and Cboe EDGX have crafted plans to add an overnight session from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. in New York, on top of the regular hours and existing pre- and post-market periods they already operate. The expansion, set to take place on Dec. 6, seeks to capture growing demand from foreign investors while competing with crypto and prediction markets, which have upended traditional expectations of Wall Street’s operating hours.

Overnight trading has existed for years, primarily through alternative trading systems, but it’s made up a tiny slice of the total activity — around 1% of equity trading volume in the second quarter, data presented at a Securities and Exchange Commission roundtable last week show. But while tiny next to daytime trading by any account, overnight trading is growing quickly, surging 358% from a year ago.

The anticipated implementation of 23/5 trading has sparked a debate about what longer hours would mean for market participants worldwide. Proponents say the expansion will remove time-zone barriers and give foreign traders better access to US markets. Skeptics see lower liquidity and wider bid-ask spreads as amplifying trading risks.

Institutional investors are mainly worried “about the market quality during the extended hours,” said David Easthope, a senior analyst at Crisil Coalition Greenwich, while concerns about operations and staffing are not necessarily at the top of their list.

A survey of buy-side equity traders the firm conducted last year showed market participants were not eager to trade stocks around the clock. With fewer players active outside regular hours, investors could face lower trading volumes, thinner liquidity and wider bid-ask spreads. That could bring additional operational risk and complexity, or even affect traders’ own physical and mental health, the survey showed.

The group’s sentiment has somewhat improved since the survey was conducted in the second part of 2025. There’s now “a greater sense of inevitability,” particularly as regulators move forward with the changes, Easthope said.

The concept of overnight trading has been popular with retail investors and trading venues for years. Once the December changes kick in, “the usual suspects will be there and be ready,” said Brian Hyndman, chief executive officer of Blue Ocean Technologies, one of the ATS providers that currently facilitate overnight trading.

“But I still think that we’re missing part of the industry, and that’s really the buy side and the investment banks,” he added. “They’ve been hesitant to get involved.”

Key market infrastructure providers are also preparing for the shift. Depository Trust & Clearing Corp., the main firm responsible for clearing US stock trades, in June moved to a 24×5 model running from 8 p.m. New York time on Sunday to 8 p.m. New York time on Friday. Securities Information Processors, or SIPs, which collect and distribute quotes and trade data, also got a regulatory nod to extend their operating hours to support overnight trading.

Proponents of the shift are likely betting on the idea that once the infrastructure is there, institutional demand will follow suit, said Joseph Saluzzi, partner and co-head of equity trading at Themis Trading LLC.

Yet he’s skeptical about the transition.

“Institutional investors have no interest in trading in a low liquidity, wide-spread market which is likely to be very volatile,” he said, adding that the combined volume of pre- and post-market trading on the exchanges accounts for just about 10% of the overall trading activity. “There’s actually a case, if you wanted to make it, that we have too many hours in the market, not too few.”

For now, institutional investors remain in wait and see mode. If the Dec. 6 shift improves price discovery during late hours, the cost of trading will eventually drop, helping institutional money managers capture alpha during the night, according to Jeff O’Connor, Liquidnet’s head of market structure.

Naturally, foreign investors are particularly active in late hours. They accounted for 37% of overnight trading volume in the second quarter, compared with just 7% for institutional accounts, according to the SEC data.

That trading activity is also highly concentrated. In August, just 15 stocks on average were responsible for half of the total overnight volume, often including sub-dollar shares of companies domiciled in China and Hong Kong. By contrast, 256 stocks accounting for half the volume during the regular session.

For now, Nasdaq and NYSE operate core sessions from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET, five days a week. Those hours are supplemented by before- and after-hours sessions allowing limited types of trading starting as early as 4 a.m. and a post-market session from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. After the December expansion, the exchanges will still have a one-hour break from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. for maintenance and trade processing.

Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source
Add Now!

(You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel)

(What's moving Sensex and Nifty Track latest market news, stock tips, Budget 2025, Share Market on Budget 2025 and expert advice, on ETMarkets. Also, ETMarkets.com is now on Telegram. For fastest news alerts on financial markets, investment strategies and stocks alerts, subscribe to our Telegram feeds .)

Top Trending Stocks: SBI Share Price, Axis Bank Share Price, HDFC Bank Share Price, Infosys Share Price, Wipro Share Price, NTPC Share Price

…moreless

(You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel)

Read More News on
overnight stock exchangesWall Street trading hoursNasdaq overnight session

Top Trending Stocks: SBI Share Price, Axis Bank Share Price, HDFC Bank Share Price, Infosys Share Price, Wipro Share Price, NTPC Share Price

…moreless

Enter search text:

BrowseCompanies:
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
123456789

Continue reading with one of these options:
Limited Access
Free
Login to get access to some exclusive stories

& personalised newsletters
Login Now

Unlimited Access
Starting @ Rs120/month
Get access to exclusive stories, expert opinions &

in-depth stock reports
Subscribe Now

Unlock Access to All Exclusives with ETPrime FREE TRIAL

15 Days Free: Unlock All ETPrime Exclusives, Market Tools & ePapers

Trial offer expiring in00 : 05 : 00

I'd rather pay ₹2599 now

Uh-oh! This is an exclusive story available for selected readers only.

Worry not. You’re just a step away.

Prime Account Detected!

It seems like you're already an ETPrime member with

Log out of your current logged-in account and log in again using your ET Prime credentials to enjoy all member benefits.

Unlock ETPrime's Exclusive Stories Today!

Subscribe to gain powerful insights on business, stock market and industry trends.

Big Price Drop! Flat 40% Off

Student Only Offer

Already a Member? Sign In now

Already a Member? Sign In now
Already a Member? Sign In now

Offer Exclusively For You

Save up to Rs. 700/-

ON ET PRIME MEMBERSHIP

Avail Offer

Offer Exclusively For You

Get 1 Year Free

With 1 and 2-Year ET prime membership

Avail Offer

Offer Exclusively For You

Get 1 Year Free

With 1 and 2-Year ET prime membership

Avail Offer

Offer Exclusively For You

Get Flat 40% Off

Then ₹ 1749 for 1 year

Avail Offer

Offer Exclusively For You

ET Prime at ₹ 49 for 1 month

Then ₹ 1749 for 1 year

Avail Offer

Special Offer

Get flat 40% off on ETPrime

Avail Offer
Avail Offer

Claim NowAlready a Member? Sign In now

Need Assistance?

Connect with an ETPrime expert for personalized support and guidance

+91 9484700004

' + h3 + '

' + h4 + '

' + listing + '

What’s Included with

ETPrime Membership

1Exclusive Insights That Matter

Uncover the truth with our investigative stories

Make strategic moves using the real-world case studies

Read industry-specific stories to identify emerging trends

Spot opportunities with in-depth insights that matter

Trump temper on H-1B visas is forcing Indians to do these things to stay put in US

What Adani’s US indictment means for India Inc’s overseas fundraising
Why veterans like Reliance, L&T are on acquisition spree? Aswath Damodaran has an answer.

Will China’s dollar bond sale in Saudi Arabia trump the US in financial world?
Huawei launches its own OS to compete with Google and Apple. But can it win beyond China?

The problem with lab grown diamonds
Why a falling rupee is a better option for the economy

A list of top 20 momentum stocks that have delivered massive returns in one year