SEC Names Gregg E. Berman as Associate Director of the Office of Analytics and Research

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Gregg E. Berman has been named Associate Director of the Office of Analytics and Research in the SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets.

Mr. Berman has been a senior advisor to the Director of the Division of Trading and Markets since June 2010, and joined the SEC staff in October 2009 as a senior advisor in the Division of Risk, Strategy, and Financial Innovation. In his new role, Mr. Berman will oversee the office established in 2012 to conduct research and analysis that will help inform the Commission’s policies on markets and market structure.

“Gregg’s analytical expertise and market background make him a tremendous asset for our new Office of Analytics and Research,” said John Ramsay, Acting Director of the Division of Trading and Markets. “In his time at the SEC, Gregg has worked on many complex issues, including an analysis of the causes of the May 6, 2011, ‘flash crash,’ on rulemaking to create a Consolidated Audit Trail, and on the many new rules for derivatives trading required by the Dodd-Frank Act.”

“I am excited to take on these new responsibilities and honored to have the opportunity to continue working with such a talented and dedicated set of colleagues, both within the division and across the entire SEC,” said Mr. Berman. “Though the markets may be complex, they are not impenetrable, and I am confident in our abilities to continue developing data-driven analyses to inform policy.”

The new office will provide expertise in quantitative data analysis, trading, portfolio management, and risk management, and will examine a wide variety of topics, ranging from market structure to new products and rule filings by exchanges. The use of data analysis to help inform the Commission’s policy decisions is central to the office’s mission and will be aided by the SEC’s recent acquisition of an advanced market data system, which will for the first time allow the staff to analyze trading using the same tools and technologies used by some of today’s most sophisticated market participants.

Before coming to the SEC, Mr. Berman was a co-founding partner of New York-based RiskMetrics Group, which focuses on risk management, corporate governance, and financial research and analysis. Mr. Berman served in various roles during his 11 years at the firm, most recently as the head of its global risk business. Mr. Berman holds a bachelor’s degree in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and doctorate in physics from Princeton University.