Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE Arca, Inc.; Order Granting Approval of Proposed Rule Change To List and Trade the WisdomTree Global Real Return Fund, 35062-35066 [2011-14849]
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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 115 / Wednesday, June 15, 2011 / Notices
procedures designed to assure that
purchases of securities in Affiliated
Underwritings are in the best interest of
shareholders of the Fund.
12. Each Fund will maintain and
preserve permanently in an easily
accessible place a written copy of the
procedures described in the preceding
condition, and any modifications to
such procedures, and will maintain and
preserve for a period of not less than six
years from the end of the fiscal year in
which any purchase in an Affiliated
Underwriting occurred, the first two
years in an easily accessible place, a
written record of each purchase of
securities in Affiliated Underwritings,
once an investment by an Investing
Fund in the securities of the Fund
exceeds the limit of section
12(d)(1)(A)(i) of the Act, setting forth
from whom the securities were
acquired, the identity of the
underwriting syndicate’s members, the
terms of the purchase, and the
information or materials upon which
the Board’s determinations were made.
13. Before investing in a Fund in
excess of the limits in section
12(d)(1)(A), each Investing Fund and the
Fund will execute an Investing Fund
Participation Agreement stating,
without limitation, that their respective
boards of directors or trustees and their
investment advisers or Trustee and
Sponsor, as applicable, understand the
terms and conditions of the order, and
agree to fulfill their responsibilities
under the order. At the time of its
investment in Shares of a Fund in
excess of the limit in section
12(d)(1)(A)(i), an Investing Fund will
notify the Fund of the investment. At
such time, the Investing Fund will also
transmit to the Fund a list of the names
of each Investing Funds Affiliate and
Underwriting Affiliate. The Investing
Fund will notify the Fund of any
changes to the list of names as soon as
reasonably practicable after a change
occurs. The Fund and the Investing
Fund will maintain and preserve a copy
of the order, the Investing Fund
Participation Agreement, and the list
with any updated information for the
duration of the investment and for a
period of not less than six years
thereafter, the first two years in an
easily accessible place.
14. Before approving any advisory
contract under section 15 of the Act, the
board of directors or trustees of each
Investing Management Company,
including a majority of the disinterested
directors or trustees, will find that the
advisory fees charged under such
contract are based on services provided
that will be in addition to, rather than
duplicative of, the services provided
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under the advisory contract(s) of any
Fund in which the Investing
Management Company may invest.
These findings and their basis will be
recorded fully in the minute books of
the appropriate Investing Management
Company.
15. Any sales charges and/or service
fees charged with respect to shares of an
Investing Fund will not exceed the
limits applicable to a fund of funds as
set forth in Conduct Rule 2830 of the
NASD.
16. No Fund will acquire securities of
an investment company or company
relying on section 3(c)(1) or 3(c)(7) of
the Act in excess of the limits contained
in section 12(d)(1)(A) of the Act, except
to the extent permitted by exemptive
relief from the Commission permitting
the Fund to purchase shares of other
investment companies for short-term
cash management purposes.
For the Commission, by the Division of
Investment Management, under delegated
authority.
Cathy H. Ahn,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011–14843 Filed 6–14–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[File No. 500–1]
Apparel America, Inc. (n/k/a HSK
Industries, Inc.), Decora Industries,
Inc., Diversicon Holdings Corp.,
Flagship Global Health, Inc., Integrated
Transportation Network Group, Inc.,
and Premier Wealth Management, Inc.
(a/k/a Premiere Wealth Management,
Inc.); Order of Suspension of Trading
June 13, 2011.
It appears to the Securities and
Exchange Commission that there is a
lack of current and accurate information
concerning the securities of Apparel
America, Inc. (n/k/a HSK Industries,
Inc.) because it has not filed any
periodic reports since the period ended
January 31, 1998.
It appears to the Securities and
Exchange Commission that there is a
lack of current and accurate information
concerning the securities of Decora
Industries, Inc. because it has not filed
any periodic reports since the period
ended June 30, 2000.
It appears to the Securities and
Exchange Commission that there is a
lack of current and accurate information
concerning the securities of Diversicon
Holdings Corp. because it has not filed
any periodic reports since the period
ended December 31, 1998.
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It appears to the Securities and
Exchange Commission that there is a
lack of current and accurate information
concerning the securities of Flagship
Global Health, Inc. because it has not
filed any periodic reports since the
period ended March 31, 2008.
It appears to the Securities and
Exchange Commission that there is a
lack of current and accurate information
concerning the securities of Integrated
Transportation Network Group, Inc.
because it has not filed any periodic
reports since the period ended
September 30, 1999.
It appears to the Securities and
Exchange Commission that there is a
lack of current and accurate information
concerning the securities of Premier
Wealth Management, Inc. (a/k/a
Premiere Wealth Management, Inc.)
because it has not filed any periodic
reports since the period ended
September 30, 2007.
The Commission is of the opinion that
the public interest and the protection of
investors require a suspension of trading
in the securities of the above-listed
companies. Therefore, it is ordered,
pursuant to Section 12(k) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, that
trading in the securities of the abovelisted companies is suspended for the
period from 9:30 a.m. EDT on June 13,
2011, through 11:59 p.m. EDT on June
24, 2011.
By the Commission.
Jill M. Peterson,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011–14986 Filed 6–13–11; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Release No. 34–64643; File No. SR–
NYSEArca–2011–21]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE
Arca, Inc.; Order Granting Approval of
Proposed Rule Change To List and
Trade the WisdomTree Global Real
Return Fund
June 10, 2011.
I. Introduction
On April 20, 2011, NYSE Arca, Inc.
(‘‘Exchange’’ or ‘‘NYSE Arca’’) filed
with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (‘‘Commission’’), pursuant
to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 (‘‘Act’’) 1 and Rule
19b–4 thereunder,2 a proposed rule
change to list and trade the shares
(‘‘Shares’’) of the WisdomTree Global
1 15
2 17
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U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
CFR 240.19b–4.
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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 115 / Wednesday, June 15, 2011 / Notices
Real Return Fund (‘‘Fund’’) under NYSE
Arca Equities Rule 8.600.3 The proposed
rule change was published for comment
in the Federal Register on May 10,
2011.4 The Commission received no
comments on the proposed rule change.
This order grants approval of the
proposed rule change.
jlentini on DSK4TPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
II. Description of the Proposed Rule
Change
The Exchange proposes to list and
trade the Shares pursuant to NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 8.600. The Fund will be
an actively managed exchange-traded
fund that is registered with the
Commission as an investment
company.5 The Shares will be offered by
the WisdomTree Trust (‘‘Trust’’), a
Delaware statutory trust established on
December 15, 2005. WisdomTree Asset
Management, Inc. (‘‘Adviser’’), which
will be the investment adviser to the
Fund, is not affiliated with any brokerdealer. Mellon Capital Management
Corporation (‘‘Sub-Adviser’’), which
will serve as the sub-adviser for the
Fund,6 is affiliated with multiple
broker-dealers and, accordingly, has
implemented a ‘‘fire wall’’ with respect
to such broker-dealers regarding access
to information concerning the
composition and/or changes to the
Fund’s portfolio.7 The Bank of New
3 The Fund was formerly known as the
‘‘WisdomTree Real Return Fund.’’ See Securities
Exchange Act Release No. 61697 (March 12, 2010),
75 FR 13616 (March 22, 2010) (SR–NYSEArca–
2010–04) (approving the listing and trading of the
WisdomTree Real Return Fund) (‘‘March 12, 2010
Order’’). The Fund Shares have not yet been listed
and have not commenced trading on the Exchange
because the Fund seeks to make certain changes to
its investment strategy that are not reflected in the
March 12, 2010 Order. The Exchange seeks to
propose the listing and trading of Shares of the
Fund based on this new investment strategy.
4 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 64411
(May 5, 2011), 76 FR 27127 (‘‘Notice’’).
5 See Post Effective Amendment No. 43 to the
Registration Statement on Form N–1A for the Trust
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
on February 4, 2011 (File Nos. 333–132380 and
811–21864) (‘‘Registration Statement’’). In addition,
the Commission has issued an order granting
certain exemptive relief to the Trust under the
Investment Company Act of 1940 (‘‘1940 Act’’). See
Investment Company Act Release No. 28471
(October 27, 2008) (File No. 812–13458). In
compliance with Commentary .04 to NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 8.600, the Trust’s application for
exemptive relief under the 1940 Act states that the
Fund will comply with the Federal securities laws
in accepting securities for deposits and satisfying
redemptions with redemption securities, including
that the securities accepted for deposits and the
securities used to satisfy redemption requests are
sold in transactions that would be exempt from
registration under the Securities Act of 1933.
6 The Sub-Adviser will be responsible for the dayto-day management of the Fund and, as such, will
typically make all decisions with respect to
portfolio holdings. The Adviser will have ongoing
oversight responsibility.
7 See Commentary .06 to NYSE Arca Equities
Rule 8.600. The Exchange represents that, in the
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York Mellon will be the administrator,
custodian, and transfer agent for the
Fund, and ALPS Distributors, Inc. will
serve as the distributor for the Fund.
The Fund will seek total returns that
exceed the rate of inflation over longterm investment horizons. To achieve
its objective, the Fund will invest in
Fixed Income Securities 8 and other
instruments designed to provide
protection against inflation. The Fund
will be actively managed and will have
targeted exposure to commodities and
commodity strategies. Using this
approach, the Fund will seek to provide
investors with both inflation protection
and income.
The Fund intends to invest at least
70% of its net assets in Fixed Income
Securities tied to U.S. inflation rates,
such as U.S. Treasury Inflation
Protected Securities (‘‘TIPS’’), as well as
inflation-linked Fixed Income Securities
tied to non-U.S. inflation rates. The
Fund’s investments outside the United
States will focus on inflation-linked
securities from countries that are
leading exporters of global commodities,
such as Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile,
and South Africa. The Fund will not
invest more than 35% of its net assets
in Fixed Income Securities of issuers in
emerging markets. The Fund may invest
in Fixed Income Securities that are not
linked to inflation, such as U.S. or nonU.S. government bonds, as well as Fixed
Income Securities that pay variable or
floating rates.
The Fund expects that it will have at
least 70% of its assets invested in
investment grade securities, and no
more than 30% of its assets invested in
non-investment grade securities.
Because the debt ratings of issuers will
change from time to time, the exact
percentage of the Fund’s investments in
investment grade and non-investment
grade Fixed Income Securities will
change from time-to-time in response to
economic events and changes to the
credit ratings of such issuers. Within the
non-investment grade category, some
issuers and instruments are considered
to be of lower credit quality and at
higher risk of default. In order to limit
its exposure to these more speculative
credits, the Fund will not invest more
than 10% of its assets in securities rated
BB or below by Moody’s, or
event (a) the Adviser or the Sub-Adviser becomes
newly affiliated with a broker-dealer, or (b) any new
adviser or sub-adviser becomes affiliated with a
broker-dealer, such adviser and/or sub-adviser will
implement a fire wall with respect to such brokerdealer regarding access to information concerning
the composition and/or changes to the portfolio.
8 For these purposes, Fixed Income Securities
include bonds, notes, or other debt obligations,
such as government or corporate bonds,
denominated in U.S. dollars or non-U.S. currencies.
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35063
equivalently rated by S&P or Fitch. The
Fund does not intend to invest in
unrated securities. However, it may do
so to a limited extent, such as where a
rated security becomes unrated, if such
security is determined by the Adviser
and Sub-Adviser to be of comparable
quality.9
While the Fund intends to focus its
investments in Fixed Income Securities
on bonds and other obligations of U.S.
and non-U.S. governments and agencies,
the Fund may invest up to 20% of its
net assets in corporate bonds.10 The
Fund may invest in securities with
effective or final maturities of any
length and will seek to keep the average
effective duration of its portfolio
between 2 and 8 years. The Fund’s
actual portfolio duration may be longer
or shorter depending on market
conditions.
The Fund intends to invest in Fixed
Income Securities of at least 13 nonaffiliated issuers. The Fund will not
concentrate 25% or more of the value of
its total assets (taken at market value at
the time of each investment) in any one
industry, as that term is used in the
1940 Act (except that this restriction
does not apply to obligations issued by
the U.S. government or any non-U.S.
government or their respective agencies
and instrumentalities, or governmentsponsored enterprises). Although the
Fund intends to invest in a variety of
securities and instruments, the Fund
will be considered non-diversified,
which means that it may invest more of
its assets in the securities of a smaller
number of issuers than if it were a
diversified Fund. In addition, the Fund
intends to qualify each year as a
regulated investment company under
Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986, as amended, and no
portfolio security held by the Fund
(other than U.S. government securities
and non-U.S. government securities)
will represent more than 30% of the
weight of the Fund, and the five highest
9 In determining whether a security is of
‘‘comparable quality,’’ the Adviser and Sub-Adviser
will consider, for example, whether the issuer of the
security has issued other rated securities.
10 The Fund will invest only in corporate bonds
that the Adviser or Sub-Adviser deems to be
sufficiently liquid. Generally, a corporate bond
must have $200 million or more par amount
outstanding and significant par value traded to be
considered as an eligible investment. However, the
Fund may invest up to 5% of its net assets in
corporate bonds with less than $200 million par
amount outstanding if (i) the Adviser or SubAdviser deems such security to be sufficiently
liquid based on its analysis of the market for such
security (based on, for example, broker-dealer
quotations or its analysis of the trading history of
the security or the trading history of other securities
issued by the issuer), and (ii) such investment is
deemed by the Adviser or Sub-Adviser to be in the
best interest of the Fund.
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jlentini on DSK4TPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
weighted portfolio securities of the
Fund (other than U.S. government
securities and/or non-U.S. government
securities) will not in the aggregate
account for more than 65% of the
weight of the Fund.
The Fund intends to invest in Money
Market Securities 11 in order to help
manage cash flows in and out of the
Fund, such as in connection with
payment of dividends or expenses and
to satisfy margin requirements, to
provide collateral, or to otherwise back
investments in derivative instruments.
All Money Market Securities acquired
by the Fund will be rated investment
grade. The Fund does not intend to
invest in any unrated Money Market
Securities.
The Fund may use derivative
instruments as part of its investment
strategies. The Fund expects that no
more than 30% of the value of the
Fund’s net assets will be invested in
derivative instruments. Such
investments will be consistent with the
Fund’s investment objective and will
not be used to enhance leverage. The
Fund’s use of derivative instruments
will be collateralized or otherwise
backed by investments in short-term,
high-quality U.S. money market
securities. The Fund may engage in
foreign currency transactions and may
invest directly in foreign currencies in
the form of bank and financial
institution deposits, certificates of
deposit, and bankers acceptances
denominated in a specified non-U.S.
currency. The Fund also may enter into
forward currency contracts in order to
‘‘lock in’’ the exchange rate between the
currency it will deliver and the currency
it will receive for the duration of the
contract.12 In addition, the Fund may
invest in the securities of other
investment companies (including
money market funds and ETFs) and up
to an aggregate amount of 15% of its net
11 For these purposes, Money Market Securities
include: Short-term, high-quality obligations issued
or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury or the agencies
or instrumentalities of the U.S. government; shortterm, high-quality securities issued or guaranteed
by non-U.S. governments, agencies, and
instrumentalities; repurchase agreements backed by
U.S. government securities; money market mutual
funds; and deposits and other obligations of U.S.
and non-U.S. banks and financial institutions.
12 The Fund and the Subsidiary (as defined
herein) will invest only in currencies, and
instruments that provide exposure to such
currencies, that have significant foreign exchange
turnover and are included in the Bank for
International Settlements Triennial Central Bank
Survey, December 2007 (‘‘BIS Survey’’).
Specifically, the Fund and Subsidiary may invest in
currencies, and instruments that provide exposure
to such currencies, selected from the top 40
currencies (as measured by percentage share of
average daily turnover for the applicable month and
year) included in the BIS Survey.
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assets in illiquid securities, including
securities subject to contractual or other
restrictions on resale and other
instruments that lack readily available
markets.
The Fund intends to have targeted
exposure to commodities across a
number of sectors, such as energy,
precious metals, and agriculture,
primarily through its investments in a
wholly-owned subsidiary organized in
the Cayman Islands (‘‘Subsidiary’’). The
Subsidiary is wholly-owned and
controlled by the Fund, and its
investments will be consolidated into
the Fund’s financial statements. The
Fund’s investment in the Subsidiary
may not exceed 25% of the Fund’s total
assets at the end of each fiscal quarter.
The Subsidiary’s shares will be offered
only to the Fund, and the Fund will not
sell shares of the Subsidiary to other
investors. The Fund will not invest in
any non-U.S. equity securities (other
than shares of the Subsidiary). The
Subsidiary will comply with the 1940
Act and will have essentially the same
compliance policies and procedures as
the Fund, except that, unlike the Fund,
the Subsidiary may invest without
limitation in commodity-linked
investments.13 The Subsidiary will
otherwise operate in essentially the
same manner as the Fund. Because the
Subsidiary’s investments are
consolidated into the Fund’s, the Fund’s
combined holdings (including the
investments in the Subsidiary) must
comply with the 1940 Act.
13 The Subsidiary will achieve exposure to
commodities through investments in a combination
of listed commodity futures, commodity index
swaps, and structured notes that provide
commodity returns. The Subsidiary’s investments
will be subject to applicable requirements of the
Commodity Exchange Act and rules thereunder,
and to rules of the applicable U.S. futures
exchanges. The Subsidiary’s investments in
commodity futures contracts will be limited by the
application of position limits imposed by the
Commodity Futures Trading Commission and U.S.
futures exchanges intended to prevent undue
influence on prices by a single trader or group of
affiliated traders. The Adviser has represented that
the Subsidiary intends to invest only in listed
futures contracts that are heavily traded and are
based on some of the world’s most liquid and
actively-traded commodities. The Subsidiary
intends to invest in or have exposure to the
following listed futures contracts: Cocoa; coffee;
corn; cotton; light crude oil; gold; heating oil; high
grade copper; lean hogs; live cattle; natural gas;
silver; soybeans; sugar; unleaded gas; and wheat. In
addition, the Subsidiary intends to enter into overthe-counter swap transactions only with respect to
transactions based on the commodities described
herein or on major commodity indexes or
indicators, such as the S&P GSCI Total Return
Index, Dow Jones-UBS Commodity Returns Index or
the AFT Commodity Trends Indicator. The
Subsidiary also may invest in commodity-linked
notes, which will be limited to notes providing
exposure to the commodities described herein or
any commodity index.
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Additional information regarding the
Trust, the Fund, the Shares, the
investment objectives, strategies,
policies, and restrictions, risks, fees and
expenses, creation and redemption
procedures, portfolio holdings,
distributions and taxes, availability of
information, trading rules and halts, and
surveillance procedures, among other
things, can be found in the Registration
Statement and in the Notice, as
applicable.14
III. Discussion and Commission’s
Findings
After careful review, the Commission
finds that NYSE Arca’s proposal to list
and trade the Shares of the Fund is
consistent with the requirements of
Section 6 of the Act 15 and the rules and
regulations thereunder applicable to a
national securities exchange.16 In
particular, the Commission finds that
the proposed rule change is consistent
with Section 6(b)(5) of the Act,17 which
requires, among other things, that the
Exchange’s rules be designed to prevent
fraudulent and manipulative acts and
practices, to promote just and equitable
principles of trade, to foster cooperation
and coordination with persons engaged
in facilitating transactions in securities,
to remove impediments to and perfect
the mechanism of a free and open
market and a national market system,
and, in general, to protect investors and
the public interest. The Commission
notes that the Shares must comply with
the requirements of NYSE Arca Equities
Rule 8.600 to be listed and traded on the
Exchange.
The Commission finds that the
proposal to list and trade the Shares on
the Exchange is consistent with Section
11A(a)(1)(C)(iii) of the Act,18 which sets
forth Congress’ finding that it is in the
public interest and appropriate for the
protection of investors and the
maintenance of fair and orderly markets
to assure the availability to brokers,
dealers, and investors of information
with respect to quotations for and
transactions in securities. Quotation and
last-sale information for the Shares will
be available via the Consolidated Tape
Association high-speed line, and the
Portfolio Indicative Value, as defined in
NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(c)(3),
will be updated and disseminated by
one or more major market data vendors
at least every 15 seconds during the
14 See
supra notes 4 and 5.
U.S.C. 78f.
16 In approving this proposed rule change, the
Commission has considered the proposed rule’s
impact on efficiency, competition, and capital
formation. See 15 U.S.C. 78c(f).
17 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
18 15 U.S.C. 78k–1(a)(1)(C)(iii).
15 15
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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 115 / Wednesday, June 15, 2011 / Notices
Core Trading Session. In addition, the
Trust will disclose on its Web site on
each business day before the
commencement of trading in Shares in
the Core Trading Session the Disclosed
Portfolio,19 as defined in NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 8.600(c)(2), that will form
the basis for the calculation of the net
asset value (‘‘NAV’’), which will be
determined at the end of each business
day.20 The Fund’s Web site will also
include additional quantitative
information updated on a daily basis
relating to NAV. Information regarding
the market price and trading volume of
the Shares will be continually available
on a real-time basis throughout the day
on brokers’ computer screens and other
electronic services, and the previous
day’s closing price and trading volume
information will be published daily in
the financial section of newspapers. In
addition, the intra-day, executable price
quotations and/or end-of-day prices on
futures contracts, commodities, and
other Fund investments are available
from major broker-dealer firms and/or
through subscription services, such as
Bloomberg and Thomson Reuters. The
Fund’s Web site will also include a form
of the prospectus, information relating
to NAV, and other quantitative and
trading information.
The Commission further believes that
the proposal is reasonably designed to
promote fair disclosure of information
that may be necessary to price the
Shares appropriately and to prevent
trading when a reasonable degree of
transparency cannot be assured. The
Commission notes that the Exchange
will obtain a representation from the
issuer that the NAV per share for the
Fund will be calculated daily and that
the NAV and the Disclosed Portfolio
will be made available to all market
participants at the same time.21 In
addition, the Exchange will halt trading
in the Shares under the specific
circumstances set forth in NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 8.600(d)(2)(D), and may
halt trading in the Shares to the extent
to which trading is not occurring in the
securities and/or the financial
instruments comprising the Disclosed
Portfolio of the Funds, or whether other
unusual conditions or circumstances
jlentini on DSK4TPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
19 The
Adviser will disclose for each portfolio
security or other financial instrument of the Fund
the following information: Ticker symbol (if
applicable), name or description of security or
financial instrument; number of shares or dollar
value of financial instruments held in the portfolio;
and percentage weighting of the security or
financial instrument in the portfolio.
20 The NAV of the Fund’s Shares generally will
be calculated once daily Monday through Friday as
of the close of regular trading on the New York
Stock Exchange, generally 4 p.m. Eastern time.
21 See NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(d)(1)(B).
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detrimental to the maintenance of a fair
and orderly market are present.22 The
Exchange represents that the SubAdviser is affiliated with multiple
broker-dealers and, accordingly, has
implemented a ‘‘fire wall’’ with respect
to such broker-dealers regarding access
to information concerning the
composition and/or changes to the
Fund’s portfolio.23 Further, the
Commission notes that the Reporting
Authority that provides the Disclosed
Portfolio must implement and maintain,
or be subject to, procedures designed to
prevent the use and dissemination of
material non-public information
regarding the actual components of the
portfolio.24
The Exchange represents that the
Shares are deemed to be equity
securities, thus rendering trading in the
Shares subject to the Exchange’s
existing rules governing the trading of
equity securities. In support of this
proposal, the Exchange has made
representations, including:
(1) The Shares will be subject to
NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(d),
which sets forth the initial and
continued listing criteria applicable to
Managed Fund Shares.
(2) The Exchange’s surveillance
procedures are adequate to properly
monitor Exchange trading of the Shares
in all trading sessions and to deter and
22 With respect to trading halts, the Exchange may
consider other relevant factors in exercising its
discretion to halt or suspend trading in the Shares
of the Funds. Trading in Shares of the Funds will
be halted if the circuit breaker parameters in NYSE
Arca Equities Rule 7.12 have been reached. Trading
also may be halted because of market conditions or
for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make
trading in the Shares inadvisable.
23 See supra note 7 and accompanying text. With
respect to the Fund, the Exchange represents that
the Adviser and Sub-Adviser and their related
personnel are subject to the provisions of Rule
204A–1 under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940
(‘‘Advisers Act’’) relating to codes of ethics. This
Rule requires investment advisers to adopt a code
of ethics that reflects the fiduciary nature of the
relationship to clients as well as compliance with
other applicable securities laws. Accordingly,
procedures designed to prevent the communication
and misuse of non-public information by an
investment adviser must be consistent with Rule
204A–1 under the Advisers Act. In addition, Rule
206(4)–7 under the Advisers Act makes it unlawful
for an investment adviser to provide investment
advice to clients unless such investment adviser has
(i) adopted and implemented written policies and
procedures reasonably designed to prevent
violation, by the investment adviser and its
supervised persons, of the Advisers Act and the
Commission rules adopted thereunder; (ii)
implemented, at a minimum, an annual review
regarding the adequacy of the policies and
procedures established pursuant to subparagraph (i)
above and the effectiveness of their
implementation; and (iii) designated an individual
(who is a supervised person) responsible for
administering the policies and procedures adopted
under subparagraph (i) above.
24 See NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(d)(2)(B)(ii).
PO 00000
Frm 00113
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
35065
detect violations of Exchange rules and
applicable Federal securities laws.
(3) Prior to the commencement of
trading, the Exchange will inform its
ETP Holders in an Information Bulletin
of the special characteristics and risks
associated with trading the Shares.
Specifically, the Information Bulletin
will discuss the following: (a) The
procedures for purchases and
redemptions of Shares and that Shares
are not individually redeemable; (b)
NYSE Arca Equities Rule 9.2(a), which
imposes a duty of due diligence on its
ETP Holders to learn the essential facts
relating to every customer prior to
trading the Shares; (c) the risks involved
in trading the Shares during the
Opening and Late Trading Sessions
when an updated Portfolio Indicative
Value will not be calculated or publicly
disseminated; (d) how information
regarding the Portfolio Indicative Value
is disseminated; (e) the requirement that
ETP Holders deliver a prospectus to
investors purchasing newly issued
Shares prior to or concurrently with the
confirmation of a transaction; and (f)
trading information.
(4) For initial and/or continued
listing, the Fund must be in compliance
with Rule 10A–3 under the Act.25
(5) The Fund will not invest in nonU.S. equity securities (other than shares
of the Subsidiary).
(6) The Fund’s investments in
derivative instruments will be
consistent with the Fund’s investment
objective and will not be used to
enhance leverage.
(7) A minimum of 100,000 Shares of
the Fund will be outstanding at the
commencement of trading on the
Exchange.
This approval order is based on the
Exchange’s representations.
For the foregoing reasons, the
Commission finds that the proposed
rule change is consistent with Section
6(b)(5) of the Act 26 and the rules and
regulations thereunder applicable to a
national securities exchange.
IV. Conclusion
It is therefore ordered, pursuant to
Section 19(b)(2) of the Act,27 that the
proposed rule change (SR–NYSEArca–
2011–21) be, and it hereby is, approved.
25 See
17 CFR 240.10A–3.
U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
27 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
28 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).
26 15
E:\FR\FM\15JNN1.SGM
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35066
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 115 / Wednesday, June 15, 2011 / Notices
For the Commission, by the Division of
Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated
authority.28
Cathy H. Ahn,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011–14849 Filed 6–14–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Release No. 34–64642; File No. SR–CBOE–
2011–052]
Self-Regulatory Organizations;
Chicago Board Options Exchange,
Incorporated; Notice of Filing and
Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed
Rule Change To Amend Linkage Fees
June 10, 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 June 1,
2011, the Chicago Board Options
Exchange, Incorporated (the ‘‘Exchange’’
or ‘‘CBOE’’) filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission (the
‘‘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.
I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Terms of Substance of
the Proposed Rule Change
The Exchange proposes to amend
Linkage fees. The text of the proposed
rule change is available on the
Exchange’s Web site (https://
www.cboe.org/legal), at the Exchange’s
Office of the Secretary, and at the
Commission.
jlentini on DSK4TPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
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.
1 15
2 17
U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
CFR 240.19b–4.
VerDate Mar<15>2010
16:42 Jun 14, 2011
Jkt 223001
A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Purpose of, and the
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule
Change
1. Purpose
On March 1, 2011, the Exchange
ceased passing through or otherwise
charging orders, including noncustomer orders, routed to other
exchanges in connection with the
Options Order Protection and Locked/
Crossed Market Plan (‘‘Linkage’’) that
were originally transmitted to the
Exchange from the trading floor through
an Exchange-sponsored terminal (e.g. a
Floor Broker Workstation).3 However,
the institution of this waiver had the
unintended consequence of brokersdealers submitting large-volume noncustomer orders to the Exchange that
CBOE ended up routing through the
Linkage system to other exchanges. The
Exchange was then forced to incur the
costs of this process without making up
for those costs in the collection of
transaction fees. Therefore, the
Exchange proposes to limit this Linkage
Fees exception to customer orders. As a
result, the $0.50 per contract Linkage
Fee under Section 20 of the Fees
Schedule, plus customary CBOE
execution charges, will apply to all noncustomer orders. Customer orders
originally transmitted to the Exchange
from the trading floor through an
Exchange-sponsored terminal (e.g. a
Floor Broker Workstation) will still be
exempt from such fees. This change is
consistent with the Exchange’s
philosophy regarding the handling of
non-customer Linkage orders, which is
that the Exchange should not be
responsible for covering non-customer
Linkage costs. The change will allow the
Exchange to equitably assess reasonable
fees incurred for processing such orders,
and permit the Exchange to recoup
administrative and other costs.
This fee change is to take effect as of
June 1, 2011.
2. Statutory Basis
The proposed rule change is
consistent with Section 6(b) of the Act,4
in general, and furthers the objectives of
Section 6(b)(4) 5 of the Act in particular,
in that it is designed to provide for the
equitable allocation of reasonable dues,
fees, and other charges among CBOE
Trading Permit Holders and other
persons using its facilities. The
Exchange believes limiting the
exception from Linkage Fees to
3 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 64057
(March 8, 2011), 76 FR 13690 (March 14, 2011) (SR–
CBOE–2011–019).
4 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
5 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).
PO 00000
Frm 00114
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
customer orders is equitable, reasonable
and not unfairly discriminatory because
non-customer (e.g., broker-dealer
proprietary) orders originate from
broker-dealers who are by and large
more sophisticated than public
customers and can readily control the
exchange to which their orders are
routed. While there may be some
sophisticated customers who are
capable of directing the exchange to
which their orders are routed, generally,
retail customers submit orders to their
brokerages but do not or cannot specify
the exchange to which a customer order
is sent. Therefore, non-customer order
flow can, in most cases, more easily
route directly to other markets if desired
and thus avoid Linkage Fees. This
includes the ability of broker-dealers to
sweep better-priced away markets in
connection with routing large orders to
CBOE’s floor for handling by floor
brokers. Moreover, the Commission has
a long history of permitting differential
treatment of customers and noncustomer investors.6 Therefore, it is
equitable to assess a reasonable fee to
cover the costs incurred for processing
non-customer Linkage orders while
continuing to exempt such customer
orders.
B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement on Burden on Competition
CBOE 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.
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 proposed rule change is
designated by the Exchange as
establishing or changing a due, fee, or
other charge, thereby qualifying for
effectiveness on filing pursuant to
Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act 7 and
6 See the Exchange Fees Schedule, which
provides for differential treatment of customer and
non-customer orders in at least 14 places, and has
been permitted by the Commission, and more
directly, the BATS Exchange, Inc. (‘‘BZX’’), BATS
Y–Exchange, Inc. (‘‘BYX’’), NASDAQ Options
Market (‘‘NOM’’) and NYSE Amex LLC (‘‘NYSE
Amex’’) Fee Schedules, which provide for different
pricing for the routing of customer and noncustomer orders through Linkage.
7 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
E:\FR\FM\15JNN1.SGM
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 115 (Wednesday, June 15, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35062-35066]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-14849]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-64643; File No. SR-NYSEArca-2011-21]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE Arca, Inc.; Order Granting
Approval of Proposed Rule Change To List and Trade the WisdomTree
Global Real Return Fund
June 10, 2011.
I. Introduction
On April 20, 2011, NYSE Arca, Inc. (``Exchange'' or ``NYSE Arca'')
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission''),
pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(``Act'') \1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ a proposed rule change to
list and trade the shares (``Shares'') of the WisdomTree Global
[[Page 35063]]
Real Return Fund (``Fund'') under NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600.\3\ The
proposed rule change was published for comment in the Federal Register
on May 10, 2011.\4\ The Commission received no comments on the proposed
rule change. This order grants approval of the proposed rule change.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
\2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
\3\ The Fund was formerly known as the ``WisdomTree Real Return
Fund.'' See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 61697 (March 12,
2010), 75 FR 13616 (March 22, 2010) (SR-NYSEArca-2010-04) (approving
the listing and trading of the WisdomTree Real Return Fund) (``March
12, 2010 Order''). The Fund Shares have not yet been listed and have
not commenced trading on the Exchange because the Fund seeks to make
certain changes to its investment strategy that are not reflected in
the March 12, 2010 Order. The Exchange seeks to propose the listing
and trading of Shares of the Fund based on this new investment
strategy.
\4\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 64411 (May 5, 2011),
76 FR 27127 (``Notice'').
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
II. Description of the Proposed Rule Change
The Exchange proposes to list and trade the Shares pursuant to NYSE
Arca Equities Rule 8.600. The Fund will be an actively managed
exchange-traded fund that is registered with the Commission as an
investment company.\5\ The Shares will be offered by the WisdomTree
Trust (``Trust''), a Delaware statutory trust established on December
15, 2005. WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc. (``Adviser''), which will
be the investment adviser to the Fund, is not affiliated with any
broker-dealer. Mellon Capital Management Corporation (``Sub-Adviser''),
which will serve as the sub-adviser for the Fund,\6\ is affiliated with
multiple broker-dealers and, accordingly, has implemented a ``fire
wall'' with respect to such broker-dealers regarding access to
information concerning the composition and/or changes to the Fund's
portfolio.\7\ The Bank of New York Mellon will be the administrator,
custodian, and transfer agent for the Fund, and ALPS Distributors, Inc.
will serve as the distributor for the Fund.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\5\ See Post Effective Amendment No. 43 to the Registration
Statement on Form N-1A for the Trust filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission on February 4, 2011 (File Nos. 333-132380 and
811-21864) (``Registration Statement''). In addition, the Commission
has issued an order granting certain exemptive relief to the Trust
under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (``1940 Act''). See
Investment Company Act Release No. 28471 (October 27, 2008) (File
No. 812-13458). In compliance with Commentary .04 to NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 8.600, the Trust's application for exemptive relief
under the 1940 Act states that the Fund will comply with the Federal
securities laws in accepting securities for deposits and satisfying
redemptions with redemption securities, including that the
securities accepted for deposits and the securities used to satisfy
redemption requests are sold in transactions that would be exempt
from registration under the Securities Act of 1933.
\6\ The Sub-Adviser will be responsible for the day-to-day
management of the Fund and, as such, will typically make all
decisions with respect to portfolio holdings. The Adviser will have
ongoing oversight responsibility.
\7\ See Commentary .06 to NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600. The
Exchange represents that, in the event (a) the Adviser or the Sub-
Adviser becomes newly affiliated with a broker-dealer, or (b) any
new adviser or sub-adviser becomes affiliated with a broker-dealer,
such adviser and/or sub-adviser will implement a fire wall with
respect to such broker-dealer regarding access to information
concerning the composition and/or changes to the portfolio.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Fund will seek total returns that exceed the rate of inflation
over long-term investment horizons. To achieve its objective, the Fund
will invest in Fixed Income Securities \8\ and other instruments
designed to provide protection against inflation. The Fund will be
actively managed and will have targeted exposure to commodities and
commodity strategies. Using this approach, the Fund will seek to
provide investors with both inflation protection and income.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\8\ For these purposes, Fixed Income Securities include bonds,
notes, or other debt obligations, such as government or corporate
bonds, denominated in U.S. dollars or non-U.S. currencies.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Fund intends to invest at least 70% of its net assets in Fixed
Income Securities tied to U.S. inflation rates, such as U.S. Treasury
Inflation Protected Securities (``TIPS''), as well as inflation-linked
Fixed Income Securities tied to non-U.S. inflation rates. The Fund's
investments outside the United States will focus on inflation-linked
securities from countries that are leading exporters of global
commodities, such as Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, and South
Africa. The Fund will not invest more than 35% of its net assets in
Fixed Income Securities of issuers in emerging markets. The Fund may
invest in Fixed Income Securities that are not linked to inflation,
such as U.S. or non-U.S. government bonds, as well as Fixed Income
Securities that pay variable or floating rates.
The Fund expects that it will have at least 70% of its assets
invested in investment grade securities, and no more than 30% of its
assets invested in non-investment grade securities. Because the debt
ratings of issuers will change from time to time, the exact percentage
of the Fund's investments in investment grade and non-investment grade
Fixed Income Securities will change from time-to-time in response to
economic events and changes to the credit ratings of such issuers.
Within the non-investment grade category, some issuers and instruments
are considered to be of lower credit quality and at higher risk of
default. In order to limit its exposure to these more speculative
credits, the Fund will not invest more than 10% of its assets in
securities rated BB or below by Moody's, or equivalently rated by S&P
or Fitch. The Fund does not intend to invest in unrated securities.
However, it may do so to a limited extent, such as where a rated
security becomes unrated, if such security is determined by the Adviser
and Sub-Adviser to be of comparable quality.\9\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\ In determining whether a security is of ``comparable
quality,'' the Adviser and Sub-Adviser will consider, for example,
whether the issuer of the security has issued other rated
securities.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
While the Fund intends to focus its investments in Fixed Income
Securities on bonds and other obligations of U.S. and non-U.S.
governments and agencies, the Fund may invest up to 20% of its net
assets in corporate bonds.\10\ The Fund may invest in securities with
effective or final maturities of any length and will seek to keep the
average effective duration of its portfolio between 2 and 8 years. The
Fund's actual portfolio duration may be longer or shorter depending on
market conditions.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\10\ The Fund will invest only in corporate bonds that the
Adviser or Sub-Adviser deems to be sufficiently liquid. Generally, a
corporate bond must have $200 million or more par amount outstanding
and significant par value traded to be considered as an eligible
investment. However, the Fund may invest up to 5% of its net assets
in corporate bonds with less than $200 million par amount
outstanding if (i) the Adviser or Sub-Adviser deems such security to
be sufficiently liquid based on its analysis of the market for such
security (based on, for example, broker-dealer quotations or its
analysis of the trading history of the security or the trading
history of other securities issued by the issuer), and (ii) such
investment is deemed by the Adviser or Sub-Adviser to be in the best
interest of the Fund.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Fund intends to invest in Fixed Income Securities of at least
13 non-affiliated issuers. The Fund will not concentrate 25% or more of
the value of its total assets (taken at market value at the time of
each investment) in any one industry, as that term is used in the 1940
Act (except that this restriction does not apply to obligations issued
by the U.S. government or any non-U.S. government or their respective
agencies and instrumentalities, or government-sponsored enterprises).
Although the Fund intends to invest in a variety of securities and
instruments, the Fund will be considered non-diversified, which means
that it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a smaller
number of issuers than if it were a diversified Fund. In addition, the
Fund intends to qualify each year as a regulated investment company
under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended,
and no portfolio security held by the Fund (other than U.S. government
securities and non-U.S. government securities) will represent more than
30% of the weight of the Fund, and the five highest
[[Page 35064]]
weighted portfolio securities of the Fund (other than U.S. government
securities and/or non-U.S. government securities) will not in the
aggregate account for more than 65% of the weight of the Fund.
The Fund intends to invest in Money Market Securities \11\ in order
to help manage cash flows in and out of the Fund, such as in connection
with payment of dividends or expenses and to satisfy margin
requirements, to provide collateral, or to otherwise back investments
in derivative instruments. All Money Market Securities acquired by the
Fund will be rated investment grade. The Fund does not intend to invest
in any unrated Money Market Securities.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\11\ For these purposes, Money Market Securities include: Short-
term, high-quality obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S.
Treasury or the agencies or instrumentalities of the U.S.
government; short-term, high-quality securities issued or guaranteed
by non-U.S. governments, agencies, and instrumentalities; repurchase
agreements backed by U.S. government securities; money market mutual
funds; and deposits and other obligations of U.S. and non-U.S. banks
and financial institutions.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Fund may use derivative instruments as part of its investment
strategies. The Fund expects that no more than 30% of the value of the
Fund's net assets will be invested in derivative instruments. Such
investments will be consistent with the Fund's investment objective and
will not be used to enhance leverage. The Fund's use of derivative
instruments will be collateralized or otherwise backed by investments
in short-term, high-quality U.S. money market securities. The Fund may
engage in foreign currency transactions and may invest directly in
foreign currencies in the form of bank and financial institution
deposits, certificates of deposit, and bankers acceptances denominated
in a specified non-U.S. currency. The Fund also may enter into forward
currency contracts in order to ``lock in'' the exchange rate between
the currency it will deliver and the currency it will receive for the
duration of the contract.\12\ In addition, the Fund may invest in the
securities of other investment companies (including money market funds
and ETFs) and up to an aggregate amount of 15% of its net assets in
illiquid securities, including securities subject to contractual or
other restrictions on resale and other instruments that lack readily
available markets.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\12\ The Fund and the Subsidiary (as defined herein) will invest
only in currencies, and instruments that provide exposure to such
currencies, that have significant foreign exchange turnover and are
included in the Bank for International Settlements Triennial Central
Bank Survey, December 2007 (``BIS Survey''). Specifically, the Fund
and Subsidiary may invest in currencies, and instruments that
provide exposure to such currencies, selected from the top 40
currencies (as measured by percentage share of average daily
turnover for the applicable month and year) included in the BIS
Survey.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Fund intends to have targeted exposure to commodities across a
number of sectors, such as energy, precious metals, and agriculture,
primarily through its investments in a wholly-owned subsidiary
organized in the Cayman Islands (``Subsidiary''). The Subsidiary is
wholly-owned and controlled by the Fund, and its investments will be
consolidated into the Fund's financial statements. The Fund's
investment in the Subsidiary may not exceed 25% of the Fund's total
assets at the end of each fiscal quarter. The Subsidiary's shares will
be offered only to the Fund, and the Fund will not sell shares of the
Subsidiary to other investors. The Fund will not invest in any non-U.S.
equity securities (other than shares of the Subsidiary). The Subsidiary
will comply with the 1940 Act and will have essentially the same
compliance policies and procedures as the Fund, except that, unlike the
Fund, the Subsidiary may invest without limitation in commodity-linked
investments.\13\ The Subsidiary will otherwise operate in essentially
the same manner as the Fund. Because the Subsidiary's investments are
consolidated into the Fund's, the Fund's combined holdings (including
the investments in the Subsidiary) must comply with the 1940 Act.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\13\ The Subsidiary will achieve exposure to commodities through
investments in a combination of listed commodity futures, commodity
index swaps, and structured notes that provide commodity returns.
The Subsidiary's investments will be subject to applicable
requirements of the Commodity Exchange Act and rules thereunder, and
to rules of the applicable U.S. futures exchanges. The Subsidiary's
investments in commodity futures contracts will be limited by the
application of position limits imposed by the Commodity Futures
Trading Commission and U.S. futures exchanges intended to prevent
undue influence on prices by a single trader or group of affiliated
traders. The Adviser has represented that the Subsidiary intends to
invest only in listed futures contracts that are heavily traded and
are based on some of the world's most liquid and actively-traded
commodities. The Subsidiary intends to invest in or have exposure to
the following listed futures contracts: Cocoa; coffee; corn; cotton;
light crude oil; gold; heating oil; high grade copper; lean hogs;
live cattle; natural gas; silver; soybeans; sugar; unleaded gas; and
wheat. In addition, the Subsidiary intends to enter into over-the-
counter swap transactions only with respect to transactions based on
the commodities described herein or on major commodity indexes or
indicators, such as the S&P GSCI Total Return Index, Dow Jones-UBS
Commodity Returns Index or the AFT Commodity Trends Indicator. The
Subsidiary also may invest in commodity-linked notes, which will be
limited to notes providing exposure to the commodities described
herein or any commodity index.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Additional information regarding the Trust, the Fund, the Shares,
the investment objectives, strategies, policies, and restrictions,
risks, fees and expenses, creation and redemption procedures, portfolio
holdings, distributions and taxes, availability of information, trading
rules and halts, and surveillance procedures, among other things, can
be found in the Registration Statement and in the Notice, as
applicable.\14\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\14\ See supra notes 4 and 5.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
III. Discussion and Commission's Findings
After careful review, the Commission finds that NYSE Arca's
proposal to list and trade the Shares of the Fund is consistent with
the requirements of Section 6 of the Act \15\ and the rules and
regulations thereunder applicable to a national securities
exchange.\16\ In particular, the Commission finds that the proposed
rule change is consistent with Section 6(b)(5) of the Act,\17\ which
requires, among other things, that the Exchange's rules be designed to
prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices, to promote just
and equitable principles of trade, to foster cooperation and
coordination with persons engaged in facilitating transactions in
securities, to remove impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a
free and open market and a national market system, and, in general, to
protect investors and the public interest. The Commission notes that
the Shares must comply with the requirements of NYSE Arca Equities Rule
8.600 to be listed and traded on the Exchange.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\15\ 15 U.S.C. 78f.
\16\ In approving this proposed rule change, the Commission has
considered the proposed rule's impact on efficiency, competition,
and capital formation. See 15 U.S.C. 78c(f).
\17\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Commission finds that the proposal to list and trade the Shares
on the Exchange is consistent with Section 11A(a)(1)(C)(iii) of the
Act,\18\ which sets forth Congress' finding that it is in the public
interest and appropriate for the protection of investors and the
maintenance of fair and orderly markets to assure the availability to
brokers, dealers, and investors of information with respect to
quotations for and transactions in securities. Quotation and last-sale
information for the Shares will be available via the Consolidated Tape
Association high-speed line, and the Portfolio Indicative Value, as
defined in NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(c)(3), will be updated and
disseminated by one or more major market data vendors at least every 15
seconds during the
[[Page 35065]]
Core Trading Session. In addition, the Trust will disclose on its Web
site on each business day before the commencement of trading in Shares
in the Core Trading Session the Disclosed Portfolio,\19\ as defined in
NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(c)(2), that will form the basis for the
calculation of the net asset value (``NAV''), which will be determined
at the end of each business day.\20\ The Fund's Web site will also
include additional quantitative information updated on a daily basis
relating to NAV. Information regarding the market price and trading
volume of the Shares will be continually available on a real-time basis
throughout the day on brokers' computer screens and other electronic
services, and the previous day's closing price and trading volume
information will be published daily in the financial section of
newspapers. In addition, the intra-day, executable price quotations
and/or end-of-day prices on futures contracts, commodities, and other
Fund investments are available from major broker-dealer firms and/or
through subscription services, such as Bloomberg and Thomson Reuters.
The Fund's Web site will also include a form of the prospectus,
information relating to NAV, and other quantitative and trading
information.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\18\ 15 U.S.C. 78k-1(a)(1)(C)(iii).
\19\ The Adviser will disclose for each portfolio security or
other financial instrument of the Fund the following information:
Ticker symbol (if applicable), name or description of security or
financial instrument; number of shares or dollar value of financial
instruments held in the portfolio; and percentage weighting of the
security or financial instrument in the portfolio.
\20\ The NAV of the Fund's Shares generally will be calculated
once daily Monday through Friday as of the close of regular trading
on the New York Stock Exchange, generally 4 p.m. Eastern time.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Commission further believes that the proposal is reasonably
designed to promote fair disclosure of information that may be
necessary to price the Shares appropriately and to prevent trading when
a reasonable degree of transparency cannot be assured. The Commission
notes that the Exchange will obtain a representation from the issuer
that the NAV per share for the Fund will be calculated daily and that
the NAV and the Disclosed Portfolio will be made available to all
market participants at the same time.\21\ In addition, the Exchange
will halt trading in the Shares under the specific circumstances set
forth in NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(d)(2)(D), and may halt trading
in the Shares to the extent to which trading is not occurring in the
securities and/or the financial instruments comprising the Disclosed
Portfolio of the Funds, or whether other unusual conditions or
circumstances detrimental to the maintenance of a fair and orderly
market are present.\22\ The Exchange represents that the Sub-Adviser is
affiliated with multiple broker-dealers and, accordingly, has
implemented a ``fire wall'' with respect to such broker-dealers
regarding access to information concerning the composition and/or
changes to the Fund's portfolio.\23\ Further, the Commission notes that
the Reporting Authority that provides the Disclosed Portfolio must
implement and maintain, or be subject to, procedures designed to
prevent the use and dissemination of material non-public information
regarding the actual components of the portfolio.\24\
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\21\ See NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(d)(1)(B).
\22\ With respect to trading halts, the Exchange may consider
other relevant factors in exercising its discretion to halt or
suspend trading in the Shares of the Funds. Trading in Shares of the
Funds will be halted if the circuit breaker parameters in NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 7.12 have been reached. Trading also may be halted
because of market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the
Exchange, make trading in the Shares inadvisable.
\23\ See supra note 7 and accompanying text. With respect to the
Fund, the Exchange represents that the Adviser and Sub-Adviser and
their related personnel are subject to the provisions of Rule 204A-1
under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (``Advisers Act'')
relating to codes of ethics. This Rule requires investment advisers
to adopt a code of ethics that reflects the fiduciary nature of the
relationship to clients as well as compliance with other applicable
securities laws. Accordingly, procedures designed to prevent the
communication and misuse of non-public information by an investment
adviser must be consistent with Rule 204A-1 under the Advisers Act.
In addition, Rule 206(4)-7 under the Advisers Act makes it unlawful
for an investment adviser to provide investment advice to clients
unless such investment adviser has (i) adopted and implemented
written policies and procedures reasonably designed to prevent
violation, by the investment adviser and its supervised persons, of
the Advisers Act and the Commission rules adopted thereunder; (ii)
implemented, at a minimum, an annual review regarding the adequacy
of the policies and procedures established pursuant to subparagraph
(i) above and the effectiveness of their implementation; and (iii)
designated an individual (who is a supervised person) responsible
for administering the policies and procedures adopted under
subparagraph (i) above.
\24\ See NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(d)(2)(B)(ii).
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The Exchange represents that the Shares are deemed to be equity
securities, thus rendering trading in the Shares subject to the
Exchange's existing rules governing the trading of equity securities.
In support of this proposal, the Exchange has made representations,
including:
(1) The Shares will be subject to NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(d),
which sets forth the initial and continued listing criteria applicable
to Managed Fund Shares.
(2) The Exchange's surveillance procedures are adequate to properly
monitor Exchange trading of the Shares in all trading sessions and to
deter and detect violations of Exchange rules and applicable Federal
securities laws.
(3) Prior to the commencement of trading, the Exchange will inform
its ETP Holders in an Information Bulletin of the special
characteristics and risks associated with trading the Shares.
Specifically, the Information Bulletin will discuss the following: (a)
The procedures for purchases and redemptions of Shares and that Shares
are not individually redeemable; (b) NYSE Arca Equities Rule 9.2(a),
which imposes a duty of due diligence on its ETP Holders to learn the
essential facts relating to every customer prior to trading the Shares;
(c) the risks involved in trading the Shares during the Opening and
Late Trading Sessions when an updated Portfolio Indicative Value will
not be calculated or publicly disseminated; (d) how information
regarding the Portfolio Indicative Value is disseminated; (e) the
requirement that ETP Holders deliver a prospectus to investors
purchasing newly issued Shares prior to or concurrently with the
confirmation of a transaction; and (f) trading information.
(4) For initial and/or continued listing, the Fund must be in
compliance with Rule 10A-3 under the Act.\25\
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\25\ See 17 CFR 240.10A-3.
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(5) The Fund will not invest in non-U.S. equity securities (other
than shares of the Subsidiary).
(6) The Fund's investments in derivative instruments will be
consistent with the Fund's investment objective and will not be used to
enhance leverage.
(7) A minimum of 100,000 Shares of the Fund will be outstanding at
the commencement of trading on the Exchange.
This approval order is based on the Exchange's representations.
For the foregoing reasons, the Commission finds that the proposed
rule change is consistent with Section 6(b)(5) of the Act \26\ and the
rules and regulations thereunder applicable to a national securities
exchange.
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\26\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
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IV. Conclusion
It is therefore ordered, pursuant to Section 19(b)(2) of the
Act,\27\ that the proposed rule change (SR-NYSEArca-2011-21) be, and it
hereby is, approved.
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\27\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
\28\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
[[Page 35066]]
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For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\28\
Cathy H. Ahn,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-14849 Filed 6-14-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P