[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 85 (Thursday, May 2, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25770-25771]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-10351]
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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-69453; File No. SR-OPRA-2012-07]
Options Price Reporting Authority; Order Approving an Amendment
to the Plan for Reporting of Consolidated Options Last Sale Reports and
Quotation Information To Amend Section 3.5 of the OPRA Plan
April 25, 2013.
I. Introduction
On December 21, 2012, the Options Price Reporting Authority
(``OPRA'') submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission
(``Commission''), pursuant to Section 11A of the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934 (``Act'') \1\ and Rule 608 thereunder,\2\ an amendment to
the Plan for Reporting of Consolidated Options Last Sale Reports and
Quotation Information (``OPRA Plan'').\3\ The proposed OPRA Plan
[[Page 25771]]
amendment would revise a provision that describes certain circumstances
in which a national securities exchange must cease to be a Member of
OPRA. The proposed OPRA Plan amendment was published for comment in the
Federal Register on January 22, 2013.\4\ The Commission received no
comment letters in response to the Notice.
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\1\ 15 U.S.C. 78k-1.
\2\ 17 CFR 242.608.
\3\ The OPRA Plan is a national market system plan approved by
the Commission pursuant to Section 11A of the Act and Rule 608
thereunder. See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 17638 (March 18,
1981), 22 SE.C. Docket 484 (March 31, 1981). The full text of the
OPRA Plan is available at http://www.opradata.com.
The OPRA Plan provides for the collection and dissemination of
last sale and quotation information on options that are traded on
the participant exchanges. The eleven participants to the OPRA Plan
are BATS Exchange, Inc., BOX Options Exchange, LLC, Chicago Board
Options Exchange, Incorporated, C2 Options Exchange, Incorporated,
International Securities Exchange, LLC, Miami International
Securities Exchange, LLC, NASDAQ OMX BX, Inc., NASDAQ OMX PHLX LLC,
NASDAQ Stock Market LLC, NYSE MKT LLC, and NYSE Arca, Inc.
\4\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 68655 (January 15,
2013), 78 FR 4505 (``Notice'').
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This order approves the proposed OPRA Plan amendment.
II. Description of the Proposal
The purpose of the proposed OPRA Plan amendment is to revise
certain language contained in Section 3.5 of the OPRA Plan. Section 3.5
currently provides, in part, as follows: ``The membership status [in
OPRA] of a Member shall terminate effective as of . . . the last day of
the calendar quarter in which the Member has ceased maintaining a
market for the trading of securities option contracts.'' \5\ Under the
current language, a Member that ceases to maintain a market for the
trading of securities option contracts late in a calendar quarter would
have little or no time in which to resume maintaining such a market if
it wanted to remain a Member of OPRA.
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\5\ OPRA is organized as a limited liability company, and the
OPRA Plan is the Limited Liability Company Agreement of OPRA. The
OPRA Plan therefore uses the vocabulary typically used in Limited
Liability Company Agreements, and therefore refers to the national
security exchanges that are participants in OPRA as ``Members,'' and
to their participation in OPRA as ``membership.''
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OPRA proposes to amend Section 3.5 so that a national securities
exchange that ceases to maintain a market for the trading of options
may remain a Member of OPRA for an additional calendar quarter after
the quarter in which it stops maintaining a market in options.
III. Discussion
After careful review, the Commission finds that the proposed OPRA
Plan amendment is consistent with the requirements of the Act and the
rules and regulations thereunder.\6\ Specifically, the Commission finds
that the proposed OPRA Plan amendment is consistent with Section 11A of
the Act \7\ and Rule 608 thereunder \8\ in that it is appropriate in
the public interest, for the protection of investors and the
maintenance of fair and orderly markets, and to remove impediments to,
and perfect the mechanism of, a national market system. The proposed
change to Section 3.5 of the OPRA Plan is designed to allow additional
time within which an existing OPRA Member may maintain its membership
in OPRA if the Member stops maintaining a market in securities.
Specifically, the amendment would provide an exchange that temporarily
ceases to maintain a market for the trading of options with additional
flexibility with respect to the date by which it must resume
maintaining a market for the trading of options or lose its membership
status in OPRA. The Commission believes that OPRA's proposal is
consistent with Section 11A of the Act \9\ and Rule 608 thereunder.\10\
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\6\ In approving this proposed OPRA Plan Amendment, the
Commission has considered its impact on efficiency, competition, and
capital formation. 15 U.S.C. 78c(f).
\7\ 15 U.S.C. 78k-1.
\8\ 17 CFR 242.608.
\9\ 15 U.S.C. 78k-1.
\10\ 17 CFR 242.608.
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IV. Conclusion
It is therefore ordered, pursuant to Section 11A of the Act,\11\
and Rule 608 thereunder,\12\ that the proposed OPRA Plan amendment (SR-
OPRA-2012-07) be, and it hereby is, approved.
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\11\ 15 U.S.C. 78k-1.
\12\ 17 CFR 242.608.
For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\13\
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\13\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(29).
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Kevin M. O'Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013-10351 Filed 5-1-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P