82_FR_11415 82 FR 11381 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; NASDAQ BX, Inc.; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Increase the BX Options Market Port Fees and Institute a Fee Cap at Chapter XV Section 3

82 FR 11381 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; NASDAQ BX, Inc.; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Increase the BX Options Market Port Fees and Institute a Fee Cap at Chapter XV Section 3

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 34 (February 22, 2017)

Page Range11381-11383
FR Document2017-03461

Federal Register, Volume 82 Issue 34 (Wednesday, February 22, 2017)
[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 34 (Wednesday, February 22, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11381-11383]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-03461]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-80055; File No. SR-BX-2017-009]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; NASDAQ BX, Inc.; Notice of Filing 
and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Increase the BX 
Options Market Port Fees and Institute a Fee Cap at Chapter XV Section 
3

February 16, 2017.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act''),\1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given that 
on February 8, 2017, NASDAQ BX, Inc. (``BX'' or ``Exchange'') filed 
with the Securities and Exchange Commission (``SEC'' or ``Commission'') 
the proposed rule change as described in Items I, II, and III below, 
which Items have been prepared by the Exchange. The Commission is 
publishing this notice to solicit comments on the proposed rule change 
from interested persons.
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    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
    \2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
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I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance 
of the Proposed Rule Change

    The Exchange proposes to increase the BX Options Market port fees 
and institute a fee cap at Chapter XV Section 3.
    The text of the proposed rule change is available on the Exchange's 
Web site at http://nasdaqbx.cchwallstreet.com/, at the principal office 
of the Exchange, and at the Commission's Public Reference Room.

II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and 
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

    In its filing with the Commission, the Exchange included statements 
concerning the purpose of and basis for the proposed rule change and 
discussed any comments it received on the proposed rule change. The 
text of these statements may be examined at the places specified in 
Item IV below. The Exchange has prepared summaries, set forth in 
sections A, B, and C below, of the most significant aspects of such 
statements.

A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and 
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

1. Purpose
    The purpose of the proposed rule change is to increase the BX 
Options Market port fees and institute a fee cap at Chapter XV Section 
3(b).\3\ The Exchange notes that it has not increased fees for the 
connectivity provided under the rule since its adoption in January 2015 
\4\ notwithstanding that the costs that the Exchange incurs in offering 
the connectivity have increased. As described below, the Exchange is 
also proposing to limit the total amount that an Options Participant 
\5\ may be assessed under the rule.
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    \3\ The Exchange initially filed the proposed pricing changes on 
February 1, 2017 (SR-BX-2017-005). On February 8, 2017, the Exchange 
withdrew that filing and submitted this filing.
    \4\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 73894 (December 19, 
2014), 79 FR 78119 (December 29, 2014) (SR-BX-2014-060).
    \5\ As defined by BX Options Rules Chapter II, Section 1.
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    Under the Chapter XV Section 3(b), the Exchange assesses an Options 
Participant $200 per port, per month, per mnemonic \6\ for Order Entry 
Ports,\7\ CTI Ports,\8\ BX Depth Ports,\9\ BX TOP Ports,\10\ and Order 
Entry DROP Ports \11\ without a cap on how much a Participant is 
assessed.\12\ The Exchange is proposing to increase the fee assessed 
for Order Entry Ports, CTI Ports, BX Depth Ports, BX TOP Ports, and 
Order Entry DROP Ports to $650 per port, per month, per mnemonic, which 
is consistent with the fees assessed by The NASDAQ Stock Market for 
comparable connectivity.\13\ The Exchange is also

[[Page 11382]]

proposing to limit the amount a Participant must pay for the 
aforementioned connectivity provided under Chapter XV Section 3(b) to 
$7,500 per month.
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    \6\ A ``mnemonic'' is a unique identifier consisting of a four 
character alpha code.
    \7\ The Order Entry Port Fee is a connectivity fee in connection 
with routing orders to the Exchange via an external order entry 
port. BX Options Market Participants access the Exchange's network 
through order entry ports. A BX Options Market Participant may have 
more than one order entry port.
    \8\ CTI offers real-time clearing trade updates. A real-time 
clearing trade update is a message that is sent to a member after an 
execution has occurred and contains trade details. The message 
containing the trade details is also simultaneously sent to The 
Options Clearing Corporation. The trade messages are routed to a 
member's connection containing certain information. The 
administrative and market event messages include, but are not 
limited to: System event messages to communicate operational-related 
events; options directory messages to relay basic option symbol and 
contract information for options traded on the Exchange; complex 
strategy messages to relay information for those strategies traded 
on the Exchange; trading action messages to inform market 
participants when a specific option or strategy is halted or 
released for trading on the Exchange; and an indicator which 
distinguishes electronic and non-electronically delivered orders.
    \9\ A BX Depth Port provides access to BX Depth, which is a data 
feed that provides quotation information for individual orders on 
the BX book, last sale information for trades executed on BX, and 
Order Imbalance Information as set forth in BX Options Rules Chapter 
VI, Section 8. BX Depth is the options equivalent of the BX 
TotalView/ITCH data feed that BX offers under BX Rule 7023 with 
respect to equities traded on BX. As with TotalView, members use BX 
Depth to ``build'' their view of the BX book by adding individual 
orders that appear on the feed, and subtracting individual orders 
that are executed. See Chapter VI, Section 1(a)(3)(A).
    \10\ BX TOP Port is a data feed that provides the BX Best Bid 
and Offer (``BBO'') and last sale information for trades executed on 
BX. The BBO and last sale information are identical to the 
information that BX sends to the Options Price Regulatory Authority 
(``OPRA'') and which OPRA disseminates via the consolidated data 
feed for options. BX TOP Port is the options equivalent of the BX 
Basic data feed offered for equities under BX Rule 7047. See Chapter 
VI, Section 1(a)(3)(B).
    \11\ The DROP interface provides real time information regarding 
orders sent to the BX Options Market and executions that occurred on 
the BX Options Market. The DROP interface is not a trading interface 
and does not accept order messages.
    \12\ The Exchange also assesses a $500 SQF Port fee, which is 
assessed per port, per month. A SQF Port is a port that allows a 
Participant acting as options Market Maker to enter its markets into 
the BX Options Market. The Exchange is not proposing to amend the 
fees assessed for SQF Ports or apply the proposed limit on fees to 
SQF Port fees.
    \13\ See NASDAQ Options Rules Chapter XV, Section 3(b).
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2. Statutory Basis
    The Exchange believes that its proposal is consistent with Section 
6(b) of the Act,\14\ in general, and furthers the objectives of 
Sections 6(b)(4) and 6(b)(5) of the Act,\15\ in particular, in that it 
provides for the equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees and 
other charges among members and issuers and other persons using any 
facility, and is not designed to permit unfair discrimination between 
customers, issuers, brokers, or dealers.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \14\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
    \15\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4) and (5).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Exchange believes that increasing the fee assessed for Order 
Entry Ports, CTI Ports, BX Depth Ports, BX TOP Ports, and Order Entry 
DROP Ports to $650 per port, per month, per mnemonic is reasonable 
because it is competitive with the fees of other exchanges. 
Specifically, The NASDAQ Stock Market assesses $650 per port, per 
month, per mnemonic for comparable connectivity under Nasdaq Options 
Market Rules Chapter XV, Section 3(b). Moreover, the Exchange notes 
that it has not increased fees for the connectivity provided under the 
rule since it adopted the connectivity options on January 2, 2015,\16\ 
notwithstanding that costs associated with offering and supporting the 
connectivity have increased, which include the cost of technology and 
infrastructure. The costs that the Exchange incurs is substantially 
similar to those that The NASDAQ Stock Market incurs, since both 
exchanges use the same hardware and support services for the ports. 
Thus, the Exchange has determined that $650 per port, per month, per 
mnemonic is the appropriate fee that will allow it to cover its costs 
and realize a profit, while avoiding an overall reduction in the number 
of subscribers. The Exchange also believes that the proposed $7,500 fee 
cap is reasonable because, taken together with the proposed fee 
increase, it will allow the Exchange to cover costs while reducing the 
impact of the fees on Options Participants that subscribe to a large 
number of ports. Because Options Participants generally need an 
increasing number of ports as provided under BX Options Market Rules 
Chapter XV Section 3(b) as their activity expands on the BX Options 
Market, the Exchange believes that without such a cap Options 
Participants may be inhibited from growing their activity on the 
Exchange. As a general principal, the Exchange believes that greater 
participation on the BX Options Market by Options Participants improves 
market quality for all market participants. Thus, in arriving at a fee 
cap of $7,500, the Exchange balanced the desire to improve market 
quality against the need to cover costs and make a profit.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \16\ See note 4, supra.
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    The Exchange believes that increasing the fee assessed for Order 
Entry Ports, CTI Ports, BX Depth Ports, BX TOP Ports, and Order Entry 
DROP Ports to $650 per port, per month, per mnemonic is an equitable 
allocation and is not unfairly discriminatory because the increased fee 
will apply to all Options Participants that have, or are seeking, the 
connectivity provided under the rule. As noted above, the Exchange is 
increasing the fees under the rule to align them with the costs 
associated with offering the ports as well as to allow the Exchange to 
realize a profit. The Exchange believes that the proposed $7,500 fee 
cap is an equitable allocation and is not unfairly discriminatory 
because the any Options Participant that subscribes to connectivity 
under the rule that would otherwise exceed $7,500 per month will have 
its fees capped. Although Options Participants that do not have fees 
under the rule in excess of $7,500 per month will not benefit from the 
fee cap, the Exchange notes that any Options Participant may increase 
the number of ports subscribed to receive the fee cap, should their 
activity on the BX Options Market warrant increased subscription. 
Moreover, Options Participants that do not qualify for the fee cap will 
benefit from the greater liquidity provided by Options Participants 
that conduct a sufficient level of activity on the BX Options Market to 
require connectivity in excess of the fee cap.
    The Exchange notes that it is not amending or applying a fee 
limitation to SQF Port Fees, which are also provided under BX Options 
Market Rules Chapter XV Section 3(b).\17\ The Exchange believes that it 
is equitable and not unfairly discriminatory to increase the other port 
fees, as proposed herein, and not increase the fee assessed for SQF 
Port Fees because SQF Port Fees are used by BX market makers in 
connection with their market making activities. Unlike other Options 
Participants, BX market makers add value to the market through 
continuous quoting and a commitment of capital. The Exchange believes 
that not applying a limitation on fees to SQF Port Fees is equitable 
and not unfairly discriminatory because the Exchange has found that 
maintaining the separation between SQF ports and the other ports under 
BX Options Market Rules Chapter XV Section 3(b) is appropriate given 
the different purposes for subscribing to the ports. Moreover, the 
Exchange does not believe that applying an independent fee limitation 
to SQF Port Fees is warranted at this juncture because of the limited 
number of SQF ports to which any single market maker subscribes.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \17\ See note 12, supra.
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B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition

    The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule change will 
impose any burden on competition not necessary or appropriate in 
furtherance of the purposes of the Act. In terms of inter-market 
competition, the Exchange notes that it operates in a highly 
competitive market in which market participants can readily favor 
competing venues if they deem fee levels at a particular venue to be 
excessive, or rebate opportunities available at other venues to be more 
favorable. In such an environment, the Exchange must continually adjust 
its fees to remain competitive with other exchanges and with 
alternative trading systems that have been exempted from compliance 
with the statutory standards applicable to exchanges. Because 
competitors are free to modify their own fees in response, and because 
market participants may readily adjust their order routing practices, 
the Exchange believes that the degree to which fee changes in this 
market may impose any burden on competition is extremely limited.
    In this instance, the proposed changes to the charges assessed for 
Order Entry Ports, CTI Ports, BX Depth Ports, BX TOP Ports, and Order 
Entry DROP Ports under BX Options Market Rules Chapter XV Section 3(b) 
do not impose a burden on competition because the Exchange's 
connectivity services are completely voluntary and subject to extensive 
competition both from other exchanges and from off-exchange venues. To 
the extent that the changes are viewed unfavorably by Options 
Participants, the proposed fees increase and fee cap may result in the 
Exchange losing subscribership and market participation, which would 
likely benefit other exchanges and trading venues. Accordingly, the 
Exchange does not believe that the proposed changes will impair the 
ability of Options Participants or competing order execution venues to 
maintain their

[[Page 11383]]

competitive standing in the financial markets.

C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed 
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others

    No written comments were either solicited or received.

III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for 
Commission Action

    The foregoing rule change has become effective pursuant to Section 
19(b)(3)(A)(ii) of the Act.\18\
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    \18\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(ii).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    At any time within 60 days of the filing of the proposed rule 
change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule 
change if it appears to the Commission that such action is: (i) 
Necessary or appropriate in the public interest; (ii) for the 
protection of investors; or (iii) otherwise in furtherance of the 
purposes of the Act. If the Commission takes such action, the 
Commission shall institute proceedings to determine whether the 
proposed rule should be approved or disapproved.

IV. Solicitation of Comments

    Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and 
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule 
change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of 
the following methods:

Electronic Comments

     Use the Commission's Internet comment form (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
     Send an email to [email protected]. Please include 
File Number SR-BX-2017-009 on the subject line.

Paper Comments

     Send paper comments in triplicate to Secretary, Securities 
and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street NE., Washington, DC 20549-1090.

All submissions should refer to File Number SR-BX-2017-009. This file 
number should be included on the subject line if email is used. To help 
the Commission process and review your comments more efficiently, 
please use only one method. The Commission will post all comments on 
the Commission's Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments, all 
written statements with respect to the proposed rule change that are 
filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating to 
the proposed rule change between the Commission and any person, other 
than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance with the 
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for Web site viewing and 
printing in the Commission's Public Reference Room, 100 F Street NE., 
Washington, DC 20549 on official business days between the hours of 
10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Copies of the filing also will be available 
for inspection and copying at the principal office of the Exchange. All 
comments received will be posted without change; the Commission does 
not edit personal identifying information from submissions. You should 
submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. All 
submissions should refer to File Number SR-BX-2017-009, and should be 
submitted on or before March 15, 2017.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\19\
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    \19\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Eduardo A. Aleman,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2017-03461 Filed 2-21-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 8011-01-P



                                                                          Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 34 / Wednesday, February 22, 2017 / Notices                                                      11381

                                                post all comments on the Commission’s                   Commission is publishing this notice to               per mnemonic 6 for Order Entry Ports,7
                                                Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/                  solicit comments on the proposed rule                 CTI Ports,8 BX Depth Ports,9 BX TOP
                                                rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the                         change from interested persons.                       Ports,10 and Order Entry DROP Ports 11
                                                submission, all subsequent                                                                                    without a cap on how much a
                                                amendments, all written statements                      I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
                                                                                                                                                              Participant is assessed.12 The Exchange
                                                with respect to the proposal that are                   Statement of the Terms of Substance of
                                                                                                        the Proposed Rule Change                              is proposing to increase the fee assessed
                                                filed with the Commission, and all                                                                            for Order Entry Ports, CTI Ports, BX
                                                written communications relating to the                     The Exchange proposes to increase                  Depth Ports, BX TOP Ports, and Order
                                                proposal between the Commission and                     the BX Options Market port fees and                   Entry DROP Ports to $650 per port, per
                                                any person, other than those that may be                institute a fee cap at Chapter XV Section             month, per mnemonic, which is
                                                withheld from the public in accordance                                                                        consistent with the fees assessed by The
                                                                                                        3.
                                                with the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will
                                                                                                           The text of the proposed rule change               NASDAQ Stock Market for comparable
                                                be available for Web site viewing and
                                                                                                        is available on the Exchange’s Web site               connectivity.13 The Exchange is also
                                                printing in the Commission’s Public
                                                Reference Room, 100 F Street NE.,                       at http://nasdaqbx.cchwallstreet.com/,
                                                                                                                                                                 6 A ‘‘mnemonic’’ is a unique identifier consisting
                                                Washington, DC 20549, on official                       at the principal office of the Exchange,
                                                                                                                                                              of a four character alpha code.
                                                business days between the hours of                      and at the Commission’s Public                           7 The Order Entry Port Fee is a connectivity fee
                                                10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Copies of such                 Reference Room.                                       in connection with routing orders to the Exchange
                                                filings also will be available for                                                                            via an external order entry port. BX Options Market
                                                                                                        II. Self-Regulatory Organization’s                    Participants access the Exchange’s network through
                                                inspection and copying at the principal
                                                                                                        Statement of the Purpose of, and                      order entry ports. A BX Options Market Participant
                                                office of the Exchanges. All comments
                                                                                                        Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule                may have more than one order entry port.
                                                received will be posted without change;                                                                          8 CTI offers real-time clearing trade updates. A
                                                the Commission does not edit personal                   Change
                                                                                                                                                              real-time clearing trade update is a message that is
                                                identifying information from                              In its filing with the Commission, the              sent to a member after an execution has occurred
                                                submissions. You should submit only                                                                           and contains trade details. The message containing
                                                                                                        Exchange included statements                          the trade details is also simultaneously sent to The
                                                information that you wish to make                       concerning the purpose of and basis for               Options Clearing Corporation. The trade messages
                                                available publicly. All submissions                     the proposed rule change and discussed                are routed to a member’s connection containing
                                                should refer to File Number SR–                         any comments it received on the                       certain information. The administrative and market
                                                NYSEMKT–2016–99 and should be                                                                                 event messages include, but are not limited to:
                                                                                                        proposed rule change. The text of these               System event messages to communicate
                                                submitted on or before March 15, 2017.                  statements may be examined at the                     operational-related events; options directory
                                                Rebuttal comments should be submitted                   places specified in Item IV below. The                messages to relay basic option symbol and contract
                                                by March 29, 2017.                                                                                            information for options traded on the Exchange;
                                                                                                        Exchange has prepared summaries, set                  complex strategy messages to relay information for
                                                  For the Commission, by the Division of                forth in sections A, B, and C below, of               those strategies traded on the Exchange; trading
                                                Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated              the most significant aspects of such                  action messages to inform market participants when
                                                authority.19                                                                                                  a specific option or strategy is halted or released for
                                                                                                        statements.
                                                Eduardo A. Aleman,                                                                                            trading on the Exchange; and an indicator which
                                                                                                        A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s                     distinguishes electronic and non-electronically
                                                Assistant Secretary.
                                                                                                                                                              delivered orders.
                                                [FR Doc. 2017–03398 Filed 2–21–17; 8:45 am]             Statement of the Purpose of, and                         9 A BX Depth Port provides access to BX Depth,

                                                BILLING CODE 8011–01–P                                  Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule                which is a data feed that provides quotation
                                                                                                        Change                                                information for individual orders on the BX book,
                                                                                                                                                              last sale information for trades executed on BX, and
                                                                                                        1. Purpose                                            Order Imbalance Information as set forth in BX
                                                SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE                                                                                       Options Rules Chapter VI, Section 8. BX Depth is
                                                COMMISSION                                                 The purpose of the proposed rule                   the options equivalent of the BX TotalView/ITCH
                                                                                                        change is to increase the BX Options                  data feed that BX offers under BX Rule 7023 with
                                                [Release No. 34–80055; File No. SR–BX–                                                                        respect to equities traded on BX. As with
                                                2017–009]                                               Market port fees and institute a fee cap              TotalView, members use BX Depth to ‘‘build’’ their
                                                                                                        at Chapter XV Section 3(b).3 The                      view of the BX book by adding individual orders
                                                Self-Regulatory Organizations;                          Exchange notes that it has not increased              that appear on the feed, and subtracting individual
                                                NASDAQ BX, Inc.; Notice of Filing and                   fees for the connectivity provided under              orders that are executed. See Chapter VI, Section
                                                                                                                                                              1(a)(3)(A).
                                                Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed                     the rule since its adoption in January                   10 BX TOP Port is a data feed that provides the
                                                Rule Change To Increase the BX                          2015 4 notwithstanding that the costs                 BX Best Bid and Offer (‘‘BBO’’) and last sale
                                                Options Market Port Fees and Institute                  that the Exchange incurs in offering the              information for trades executed on BX. The BBO
                                                a Fee Cap at Chapter XV Section 3                       connectivity have increased. As                       and last sale information are identical to the
                                                                                                                                                              information that BX sends to the Options Price
                                                February 16, 2017.                                      described below, the Exchange is also                 Regulatory Authority (‘‘OPRA’’) and which OPRA
                                                   Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the                  proposing to limit the total amount that              disseminates via the consolidated data feed for
                                                Securities Exchange Act of 1934                         an Options Participant 5 may be                       options. BX TOP Port is the options equivalent of
                                                                                                        assessed under the rule.                              the BX Basic data feed offered for equities under BX
                                                (‘‘Act’’),1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2                                                                       Rule 7047. See Chapter VI, Section 1(a)(3)(B).
                                                notice is hereby given that on February                    Under the Chapter XV Section 3(b),                    11 The DROP interface provides real time

                                                8, 2017, NASDAQ BX, Inc. (‘‘BX’’ or                     the Exchange assesses an Options                      information regarding orders sent to the BX Options
                                                ‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the Securities                 Participant $200 per port, per month,                 Market and executions that occurred on the BX
                                                                                                                                                              Options Market. The DROP interface is not a trading
                                                and Exchange Commission (‘‘SEC’’ or                                                                           interface and does not accept order messages.
sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES




                                                ‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule                         3 The Exchange initially filed the proposed            12 The Exchange also assesses a $500 SQF Port

                                                change as described in Items I, II, and                 pricing changes on February 1, 2017 (SR–BX–2017–      fee, which is assessed per port, per month. A SQF
                                                III below, which Items have been                        005). On February 8, 2017, the Exchange withdrew      Port is a port that allows a Participant acting as
                                                                                                        that filing and submitted this filing.                options Market Maker to enter its markets into the
                                                prepared by the Exchange. The                             4 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 73894     BX Options Market. The Exchange is not proposing
                                                                                                        (December 19, 2014), 79 FR 78119 (December 29,        to amend the fees assessed for SQF Ports or apply
                                                  19 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(57).                            2014) (SR–BX–2014–060).                               the proposed limit on fees to SQF Port fees.
                                                  1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).                                  5 As defined by BX Options Rules Chapter II,           13 See NASDAQ Options Rules Chapter XV,
                                                  2 17 CFR 240.19b–4.                                   Section 1.                                            Section 3(b).



                                           VerDate Sep<11>2014   16:05 Feb 21, 2017   Jkt 241001   PO 00000   Frm 00046   Fmt 4703   Sfmt 4703   E:\FR\FM\22FEN1.SGM   22FEN1


                                                11382                       Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 34 / Wednesday, February 22, 2017 / Notices

                                                proposing to limit the amount a                          inhibited from growing their activity on               equitable and not unfairly
                                                Participant must pay for the                             the Exchange. As a general principal,                  discriminatory because the Exchange
                                                aforementioned connectivity provided                     the Exchange believes that greater                     has found that maintaining the
                                                under Chapter XV Section 3(b) to $7,500                  participation on the BX Options Market                 separation between SQF ports and the
                                                per month.                                               by Options Participants improves                       other ports under BX Options Market
                                                                                                         market quality for all market                          Rules Chapter XV Section 3(b) is
                                                2. Statutory Basis
                                                                                                         participants. Thus, in arriving at a fee               appropriate given the different purposes
                                                   The Exchange believes that its                        cap of $7,500, the Exchange balanced                   for subscribing to the ports. Moreover,
                                                proposal is consistent with Section 6(b)                 the desire to improve market quality                   the Exchange does not believe that
                                                of the Act,14 in general, and furthers the               against the need to cover costs and make               applying an independent fee limitation
                                                objectives of Sections 6(b)(4) and 6(b)(5)               a profit.                                              to SQF Port Fees is warranted at this
                                                of the Act,15 in particular, in that it                     The Exchange believes that increasing               juncture because of the limited number
                                                provides for the equitable allocation of                 the fee assessed for Order Entry Ports,                of SQF ports to which any single market
                                                reasonable dues, fees and other charges                  CTI Ports, BX Depth Ports, BX TOP                      maker subscribes.
                                                among members and issuers and other                      Ports, and Order Entry DROP Ports to
                                                persons using any facility, and is not                   $650 per port, per month, per                          B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
                                                designed to permit unfair                                mnemonic is an equitable allocation and                Statement on Burden on Competition
                                                discrimination between customers,                        is not unfairly discriminatory because                    The Exchange does not believe that
                                                issuers, brokers, or dealers.                            the increased fee will apply to all                    the proposed rule change will impose
                                                   The Exchange believes that increasing                 Options Participants that have, or are                 any burden on competition not
                                                the fee assessed for Order Entry Ports,                  seeking, the connectivity provided                     necessary or appropriate in furtherance
                                                CTI Ports, BX Depth Ports, BX TOP                        under the rule. As noted above, the                    of the purposes of the Act. In terms of
                                                Ports, and Order Entry DROP Ports to                     Exchange is increasing the fees under                  inter-market competition, the Exchange
                                                $650 per port, per month, per                            the rule to align them with the costs                  notes that it operates in a highly
                                                mnemonic is reasonable because it is                     associated with offering the ports as                  competitive market in which market
                                                competitive with the fees of other                       well as to allow the Exchange to realize               participants can readily favor competing
                                                exchanges. Specifically, The NASDAQ                      a profit. The Exchange believes that the
                                                Stock Market assesses $650 per port, per                                                                        venues if they deem fee levels at a
                                                                                                         proposed $7,500 fee cap is an equitable                particular venue to be excessive, or
                                                month, per mnemonic for comparable                       allocation and is not unfairly
                                                connectivity under Nasdaq Options                                                                               rebate opportunities available at other
                                                                                                         discriminatory because the any Options                 venues to be more favorable. In such an
                                                Market Rules Chapter XV, Section 3(b).                   Participant that subscribes to
                                                Moreover, the Exchange notes that it has                                                                        environment, the Exchange must
                                                                                                         connectivity under the rule that would                 continually adjust its fees to remain
                                                not increased fees for the connectivity                  otherwise exceed $7,500 per month will
                                                provided under the rule since it adopted                                                                        competitive with other exchanges and
                                                                                                         have its fees capped. Although Options                 with alternative trading systems that
                                                the connectivity options on January 2,                   Participants that do not have fees under
                                                2015,16 notwithstanding that costs                                                                              have been exempted from compliance
                                                                                                         the rule in excess of $7,500 per month
                                                associated with offering and supporting                                                                         with the statutory standards applicable
                                                                                                         will not benefit from the fee cap, the
                                                the connectivity have increased, which                                                                          to exchanges. Because competitors are
                                                                                                         Exchange notes that any Options
                                                include the cost of technology and                                                                              free to modify their own fees in
                                                                                                         Participant may increase the number of
                                                infrastructure. The costs that the                                                                              response, and because market
                                                                                                         ports subscribed to receive the fee cap,
                                                Exchange incurs is substantially similar                                                                        participants may readily adjust their
                                                                                                         should their activity on the BX Options
                                                to those that The NASDAQ Stock                                                                                  order routing practices, the Exchange
                                                                                                         Market warrant increased subscription.
                                                Market incurs, since both exchanges use                                                                         believes that the degree to which fee
                                                                                                         Moreover, Options Participants that do
                                                the same hardware and support services                                                                          changes in this market may impose any
                                                                                                         not qualify for the fee cap will benefit
                                                for the ports. Thus, the Exchange has                    from the greater liquidity provided by                 burden on competition is extremely
                                                determined that $650 per port, per                       Options Participants that conduct a                    limited.
                                                month, per mnemonic is the appropriate                   sufficient level of activity on the BX                    In this instance, the proposed changes
                                                fee that will allow it to cover its costs                Options Market to require connectivity                 to the charges assessed for Order Entry
                                                and realize a profit, while avoiding an                  in excess of the fee cap.                              Ports, CTI Ports, BX Depth Ports, BX
                                                overall reduction in the number of                          The Exchange notes that it is not                   TOP Ports, and Order Entry DROP Ports
                                                subscribers. The Exchange also believes                  amending or applying a fee limitation to               under BX Options Market Rules Chapter
                                                that the proposed $7,500 fee cap is                      SQF Port Fees, which are also provided                 XV Section 3(b) do not impose a burden
                                                reasonable because, taken together with                  under BX Options Market Rules Chapter                  on competition because the Exchange’s
                                                the proposed fee increase, it will allow                 XV Section 3(b).17 The Exchange                        connectivity services are completely
                                                the Exchange to cover costs while                        believes that it is equitable and not                  voluntary and subject to extensive
                                                reducing the impact of the fees on                       unfairly discriminatory to increase the                competition both from other exchanges
                                                Options Participants that subscribe to a                 other port fees, as proposed herein, and               and from off-exchange venues. To the
                                                large number of ports. Because Options                   not increase the fee assessed for SQF                  extent that the changes are viewed
                                                Participants generally need an                           Port Fees because SQF Port Fees are                    unfavorably by Options Participants, the
                                                increasing number of ports as provided                   used by BX market makers in                            proposed fees increase and fee cap may
                                                under BX Options Market Rules Chapter                    connection with their market making                    result in the Exchange losing
                                                                                                                                                                subscribership and market participation,
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                                                XV Section 3(b) as their activity                        activities. Unlike other Options
                                                expands on the BX Options Market, the                    Participants, BX market makers add                     which would likely benefit other
                                                Exchange believes that without such a                    value to the market through continuous                 exchanges and trading venues.
                                                cap Options Participants may be                          quoting and a commitment of capital.                   Accordingly, the Exchange does not
                                                                                                         The Exchange believes that not applying                believe that the proposed changes will
                                                  14 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).                                   a limitation on fees to SQF Port Fees is               impair the ability of Options
                                                  15 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4) and (5).                                                                               Participants or competing order
                                                  16 See note 4, supra.                                    17 See   note 12, supra.                             execution venues to maintain their


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                                                                              Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 34 / Wednesday, February 22, 2017 / Notices                                                    11383

                                                competitive standing in the financial                      Commission, and all written                            about the face-amount certificate
                                                markets.                                                   communications relating to the                         company: Date and form of
                                                                                                           proposed rule change between the                       organization; controlling persons;
                                                C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
                                                                                                           Commission and any person, other than                  current business and contemplated
                                                Statement on Comments on the
                                                                                                           those that may be withheld from the                    changes to the company’s business;
                                                Proposed Rule Change Received From                         public in accordance with the                          investment, borrowing, and lending
                                                Members, Participants, or Others                           provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be                    policies, as well as other fundamental
                                                  No written comments were either                          available for Web site viewing and                     policies; securities issued by the
                                                solicited or received.                                     printing in the Commission’s Public                    company; investment adviser;
                                                III. Date of Effectiveness of the                          Reference Room, 100 F Street NE.,                      depositaries; management personnel;
                                                Proposed Rule Change and Timing for                        Washington, DC 20549 on official                       compensation paid to directors, officers,
                                                                                                           business days between the hours of                     and certain employees; and financial
                                                Commission Action
                                                                                                           10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Copies of the                 statements. The Commission uses the
                                                   The foregoing rule change has become                    filing also will be available for                      information provided in the collection
                                                effective pursuant to Section                              inspection and copying at the principal                of information to determine compliance
                                                19(b)(3)(A)(ii) of the Act.18                              office of the Exchange. All comments                   with Section 8(b) of the Investment
                                                   At any time within 60 days of the                       received will be posted without change;                Company Act of 1940.
                                                filing of the proposed rule change, the                    the Commission does not edit personal                     Form N–8B–4 and the burden of
                                                Commission summarily may                                   identifying information from                           compliance have not changed since the
                                                temporarily suspend such rule change if                    submissions. You should submit only                    last approval. Each registrant files Form
                                                it appears to the Commission that such                     information that you wish to make                      N–8B–4 for its initial filing and does not
                                                action is: (i) Necessary or appropriate in                 available publicly. All submissions                    file post-effective amendments to Form
                                                the public interest; (ii) for the protection               should refer to File Number SR–BX–                     N–8B–4.1 Commission staff estimates
                                                of investors; or (iii) otherwise in                        2017–009, and should be submitted on                   that no respondents will file Form N–
                                                furtherance of the purposes of the Act.                    or before March 15, 2017.                              8B–4 each year. There are currently only
                                                If the Commission takes such action, the                     For the Commission, by the Division of               four existing face-amount certificate
                                                Commission shall institute proceedings                     Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated             companies, and none have filed a Form
                                                to determine whether the proposed rule                     authority.19                                           N–8B–4 in many years. No new face-
                                                should be approved or disapproved.                         Eduardo A. Aleman,                                     amount certificate companies have been
                                                                                                           Assistant Secretary.                                   established since the last OMB
                                                IV. Solicitation of Comments
                                                                                                           [FR Doc. 2017–03461 Filed 2–21–17; 8:45 am]
                                                                                                                                                                  information collection approval for this
                                                  Interested persons are invited to                                                                               form, which occurred in 2014.
                                                                                                           BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
                                                submit written data, views, and                                                                                   Accordingly, the staff estimates that,
                                                arguments concerning the foregoing,                                                                               each year, no face-amount certificate
                                                including whether the proposed rule                                                                               companies will file Form N–8B–4, and
                                                                                                           SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
                                                change is consistent with the Act.                                                                                that the total burden for the information
                                                                                                           COMMISSION
                                                Comments may be submitted by any of                                                                               collection is zero hours. Although
                                                the following methods:                                     Proposed Collection; Comment                           Commission staff estimates that there is
                                                Electronic Comments                                        Request                                                no hour burden associated with Form
                                                                                                                                                                  N–8B–4, the staff is requesting a burden
                                                  • Use the Commission’s Internet                          Upon Written Request, Copies Available                 of one hour for administrative purposes.
                                                comment form (http://www.sec.gov/                           From: Securities and Exchange                         Estimates of the burden hours are made
                                                rules/sro.shtml); or                                        Commission, Office of FOIA Services,                  solely for the purposes of the PRA and
                                                  • Send an email to rule-                                  100 F Street NE., Washington, DC                      are not derived from a comprehensive or
                                                comments@sec.gov. Please include File                       20549–2736.                                           even a representative survey or study of
                                                Number SR–BX–2017–009 on the                               Extension:                                             the costs of SEC rules and forms.
                                                subject line.                                                Form N–8B–4; SEC File No. 270–180, OMB                  The information provided on Form
                                                                                                               Control No. 3235–0247.                             N–8B–4 is mandatory. The information
                                                Paper Comments
                                                                                                              Notice is hereby given that, pursuant               provided on Form N–8B–4 will not be
                                                  • Send paper comments in triplicate                      to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995                 kept confidential. An agency may not
                                                to Secretary, Securities and Exchange                      (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the Securities               conduct or sponsor, and a person is not
                                                Commission, 100 F Street NE.,                              and Exchange Commission                                required to respond to, a collection of
                                                Washington, DC 20549–1090.                                 (‘‘Commission’’) is soliciting comments                information unless it displays a
                                                All submissions should refer to File                       on the collection of information                       currently valid OMB control number.
                                                Number SR–BX–2017–009. This file                           summarized below. The Commission                          Written comments are invited on: (a)
                                                number should be included on the                           plans to submit this existing collection               Whether the proposed collection of
                                                subject line if email is used. To help the                 of information to the Office of                        information is necessary for the proper
                                                Commission process and review your                         Management and Budget (‘‘OMB’’) for                    performance of the functions of the
                                                comments more efficiently, please use                      extension and approval.                                agency, including whether the
                                                only one method. The Commission will                          Form N–8B–4 (17 CFR 274.14) is the                  information will have practical utility;
                                                post all comments on the Commission’s                      form used by face-amount certificate
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                                                Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/                     companies to comply with the filing and                   1 Pursuant to Section 30(b)(1) of the Act, each

                                                rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the                                                                                   respondent keeps its registration statement current
                                                                                                           disclosure requirements imposed by                     through the filing of periodic reports as required by
                                                submission, all subsequent                                 Section 8(b) of the Investment Company                 Section 13 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
                                                amendments, all written statements                         Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a–8(b)). Among                and the rules thereunder. Post-effective
                                                with respect to the proposed rule                          other items, Form N–8B–4 requires                      amendments are filed with the Commission on the
                                                                                                                                                                  face-amount certificate company’s Form S–1.
                                                change that are filed with the                             disclosure of the following information                Hence, respondents only file Form N–8B–4 for their
                                                                                                                                                                  initial registration statement and not for post-
                                                  18 15   U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(ii).                           19 17   CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).                         effective amendments.



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Document Created: 2017-02-22 00:08:18
Document Modified: 2017-02-22 00:08:18
CategoryRegulatory Information
CollectionFederal Register
sudoc ClassAE 2.7:
GS 4.107:
AE 2.106:
PublisherOffice of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration
SectionNotices
FR Citation82 FR 11381 

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