[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 110 (Wednesday, June 8, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33390-33392]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-14036]
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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-64582; File No. SR-NYSE-2011-23]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; New York Stock Exchange LLC;
Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To
Amend the Exchange Price List
June 2, 2011.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(the ``Act'') \1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given
that, on May 26, 2011, New York Stock Exchange LLC (``NYSE'' or the
``Exchange'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the
``Commission'') the
[[Page 33391]]
proposed rule change as described in Items I, II, and III below, which
Items have been prepared by the self-regulatory organization. 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 modify the fees it charges for the
issuance of trading licenses that are required in order to effect
transactions on the floor of the Exchange or through any facility of
the Exchange. The Exchange proposes to amend its 2011 Price List
(``Price List'') to (i) Create a two-tiered pricing structure for the
annual fee, under which the fee would continue to be $40,000 per
license for the first two licenses held by a member organization but
would be reduced to $25,000 per license for any additional trading
licenses held by that member organization, (ii) provide a formula for
proration of the annual fee during a calendar month in which a trading
license has been in place for less than the full month, (iii) eliminate
the current $1,000 fee for approval of a new member, and (iv) eliminate
the $1,000 trading license transfer fee. The Exchange also proposes to
amend Exchange Rule 300 (Trading Licenses) to be consistent with these
changes and also to provide that the monthly installments of the annual
fee be payable in arrears at the end of each month. These changes will
become operational on June 1, 2011. The text of the proposed rule
change is available at the Exchange, the Commission's Public Reference
Room, http://www.sec.gov, and http://www.nyse.com.
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 self-regulatory organization
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 those 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 parts of such statements.
A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and the
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
1. Purpose
The Exchange proposes to modify the fees it charges for the
issuance of trading licenses that are required in order to effect
transactions on the floor of the Exchange or through any facility of
the Exchange. As currently provided in Exchange Rule 300 (Trading
Licenses), the price per trading license sold in each annual offering
of such licenses is established each year by the Exchange pursuant to a
rule filing submitted to the Commission, and that price is published in
the Exchange's Price List. The Exchange has previously established the
trading license fee for calendar year 2011 at $40,000 per license,
which is currently reflected in the Price List.
The Exchange proposes to modify the structure of its annual fee for
trading licenses by moving from a single price for all such licenses to
a two-tiered pricing structure. Under the proposal, the annual fee
would continue to be $40,000 per license for the first two trading
licenses held by a member organization but would be reduced to $25,000
per license for any additional trading licenses held by that member
organization. The price of each of these two tiers would continue to be
established each year by the Exchange pursuant to a rule filing
submitted to the Commission, with the tier prices being published in
the Price List.
Pursuant to Exchange Rule 300(e), a buyer of a trading license is
required to pay the Exchange the trading license fee in equal monthly
installments in advance over the period during which the trading
license is in effect. The Exchange proposes to change its billing
schedule so that the monthly installments are payable in arrears at the
end of each month.
In addition, Exchange Rule 300(d) provides that, following the
annual offering and at any time thereafter during the following
calendar year, the Exchange shall sell additional trading licenses
expiring at the end of the calendar year at the price set forth in the
Price List, but prorated to reflect the amount of time remaining in the
year. For any such additional trading license that is in place for 15
calendar days or less in a calendar month, the Exchange proposes that
the proration for that month will be computed based on a flat rate of
$100 per day with no tier pricing involved. For any such additional
trading license that is in place for 16 calendar days or more in a
calendar month, the Exchange proposes that the proration for that month
will be computed based on the number of days as applied to the full
annual fee for the license for the applicable tier.
Finally, the Exchange proposes to eliminate the current $1,000 fee
provided for on the Price List for approval of a new member because it
believes the annual fee adequately covers any costs related to such
approval. The Exchange further proposes to eliminate the $1,000 trading
license transfer fee provided for on the Price List. This fee has
become obsolete due to the fact that trading licenses are no longer
transferred; instead, they are purchased following expiration or
termination pursuant to Exchange Rule 300.
In addition to the proposed changes to the Price List, the Exchange
also proposes to amend Exchange Rule 300 to be consistent with these
changes.
These changes will become operational on June 1, 2011. Licenses
that are already in place will be billed monthly for the remainder of
the year at the new tier rates beginning on that date, but there will
be no retroactive adjustment for the period prior to June 1 for those
trading licenses that qualify for the new $25,000 tier price. For the
June 2011 billing, the Exchange will begin invoicing in arrears as
discussed above.
2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes that the proposed rule change is consistent
with the provisions of Section 6 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(the ``Act''),\3\ in general, and Section 6(b)(4) of the Act,\4\ in
particular, in that it is designed to provide for the equitable
allocation of reasonable dues, fees, and other charges among its
members and other persons using its facilities. The Exchange believes
that the proposal does not constitute an inequitable allocation of
fees, as all similarly situated member organizations will be subject to
the same fee structure and access to the Exchange's market is offered
on fair and non-discriminatory terms. Any member organization that
holds more than two trading licenses will be able to benefit from the
new $25,000 annual fee tier for the additional licenses. The ability to
pay monthly installments of the annual fee in arrears instead of in
advance, as presently required, should be beneficial to all member
organizations that hold trading licenses.
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\3\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
\4\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).
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[[Page 33392]]
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 that is not necessary or appropriate
in furtherance of the purposes of the Act.
C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others
No written comments were solicited or received with respect to the
proposed rule change.
III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for
Commission Action
The foregoing rule change is effective upon filing pursuant to
Section 19(b)(3)(A) \5\ of the Act and subparagraph (f)(2) of Rule 19b-
4 \6\ thereunder, because it establishes a due, fee, or other charge
imposed by the NYSE.
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\5\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
\6\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(2).
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At any time within 60 days of the filing of such proposed rule
change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule
change if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or
appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or
otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act.
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 e-mail to [email protected]. Please include
File Number SR-NYSE-2011-23 on the subject line.
Paper Comments
Send paper comments in triplicate to Elizabeth M. Murphy,
Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street, NE.,
Washington, DC 20549-1090.
All submissions should refer to File Number SR-NYSE-2011-23. This file
number should be included on the subject line if e-mail 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
a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of such 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 publicly available. All
submissions should refer to File Number SR-NYSE-2011-23 and should be
submitted on or before June 29, 2011.
For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\7\
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\7\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Cathy H. Ahn,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-14036 Filed 6-7-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P