Sapna C. Patel serves as the Head of Market Structure and Liquidity Strategy for the Americas at Morgan Stanley and holds the position of Executive Director on the Morgan Stanley Electronic Trading desk. In her current role, she focuses on market structure issues, regulatory developments, order routing and liquidity strategies, and business development.
Before joining the trading desk in 2008, Ms. Patel worked for three years as an institutional equities coverage attorney within Morgan Stanley’s Legal and Compliance Division. She began her career at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in the Division of Trading and Markets (formerly the Division of Market Regulation), where she held various roles over five years.
Ms. Patel is currently the Chair of the SIFMA Equity Markets and Trading Committee and has previously chaired the FINRA Market Regulation Committee. She also participates in the STA Market Structure Analyst Committee and the Cboe Equity Advisory Committee, and is a member of the National Organization of Industry Professionals. Additionally, Ms. Patel serves on the Markets Media Women in Finance Board and received the Markets Media Women in Finance 2015 Excellence in Market Structure award.
Ms. Patel earned her Juris Doctorate from the University of Maryland School of Law and holds Bachelor of Science degrees in Criminal Justice and Psychology from American University.