Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE Arca, Inc.; Notice of Filing of Proposed Rule Change Amending Rule 6.87 in Part and Adding a New Section To Address Errors That Involve Complex Orders, 12117-12119 [2013-03966]
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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 35 / Thursday, February 21, 2013 / Notices
Section 19(b)(2) of the Act 7 provides
that, within 45 days of the publication
of notice of the filing of a proposed rule
change—or within such longer period
up to 90 days (i) as the Commission may
designate if it finds the longer period to
be appropriate and publishes its reasons
for so finding or (ii) as to which the selfregulatory organization consents—the
Commission shall either approve the
proposed rule change, disapprove the
proposed rule change, or institute
proceedings to determine whether the
proposed rule change should be
disapproved. The 45th day for this filing
is February 14, 2013. The Commission
is extending this 45-day period.
The Commission finds that it is
appropriate to designate a longer period
within which to take action on the
proposed rule change so that the
Commission has sufficient time to
consider the proposed rule change and
the comments received. The proposed
rule change would, among other things,
add new Rule 5950 to establish the
Market Quality Program and exempt the
Market Quality Program from NASDAQ
Rule 2460 (Payment for Market Making).
Accordingly, the Commission,
pursuant to Section 19(b)(2) of the Act,8
designates March 31, 2013, as the date
by which the Commission should either
approve or disapprove or institute
proceedings to determine whether to
disapprove the proposed rule change
(File Number SR–NASDAQ–2012–137).
For the Commission, by the Division of
Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated
authority.9
Kevin M. O’Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013–03964 Filed 2–20–13; 8:45 am]
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BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
proposed rule change, and because it does not
materially affect the substance of the proposed rule
change, Amendment No. 3 does not require notice
and comment. All terms relating to the MQP that
are referred to, but not defined in, this Notice of
Designation of a Longer Period for Commission
Action are defined in the proposed rule change, as
amended.
7 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2).
8 Id.
9 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(31).
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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Release No. 34–68927; File No. SR–
NYSEARCA–2013–15]
12117
A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Purpose of, and the
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule
Change
1. Purpose
Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE
Arca, Inc.; Notice of Filing of Proposed
Rule Change Amending Rule 6.87 in
Part and Adding a New Section To
Address Errors That Involve Complex
Orders
The Exchange is proposing to amend
certain existing provisions of Rule 6.87
(‘‘Obvious Error Rule’’).4 In addition,
the Exchange is proposing to add new
language to Rule 6.87 specific to how
errors involving Complex Orders will be
addressed.
February 14, 2013.
Proposed Amendments to Existing
Provisions of Rule 6.87
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) 1 of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the
‘‘Act’’) 2 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,3
notice is hereby given that, on February
1, 2013, NYSE Arca, Inc. (the
‘‘Exchange’’ or ‘‘NYSE Arca’’) 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 selfregulatory organization. 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
Rule 6.87 in part and add a new section
to address errors that involve Complex
Orders. The text of the proposed rule
change is available on the Exchange’s
Web site at www.nyse.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
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
U.S.C.78s(b)(1).
U.S.C. 78a.
3 17 CFR 240.19b–4.
2 15
PO 00000
Frm 00087
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
The Exchange adopted the Obvious
Error Rule to handle situations where an
order receives an erroneous execution,
such as receiving a price that is higher
or lower than the Theoretical Price by
a specified amount.5 The Exchange is
proposing several amendments to the
Obvious Error Rule. First, the Exchange
is proposing to change the portion of the
rule that addresses errors in series with
zero or no bid. Specifically, the
Exchange proposes replacing reference
to ‘‘series quoted no bid on the
Exchange’’ with ‘‘series where the
NBBO bid is zero.’’ This is being done
to ensure consistency in the language
with other aspects of the existing rule
that reference NBBO for determination
of whether a transaction is deemed
eligible for obvious error treatment. The
Exchange believes the NBBO provides
greater accuracy in determining the
value or valueless of an option because
it takes into account interest from all
market participants and not just those
active on the Exchange. The Exchange
also believes that ensuring consistency
throughout the rule text is important to
help avoid investor confusion.
Second, the Exchange proposes to
amend the times in which certain OTP
Holders are required to notify the
4 See
Exchange Rule 6.87.
e.g. Securities Exchange Act Release Nos.
34–48538 (September 25, 2003), 68 FR 56858
(October 2, 2003) (PCX–2002–01); 49718 (May 17,
2004), 69 FR 29611 (May 24, 2004) (PCX–2004–08);
51723 (May 20, 2005), 70 FR 30988 (May 31, 2005)
(PCX–2005–52); 52008 (July 11, 2005), 70 FR 41069
(July 15, 2005) (PCX–2005–78); 53221 (February 3,
2006), 71 FR 6811 (February 9, 2006) (PCX–2005–
102); 55330 (February 21, 2007), 72 FR 9052
(February 28, 2007) (NYSEArca–2007–06); 57103
(January 4, 2008), 73 FR 1903 (January 10, 2008)
(NYSEArca–2007–115); 57653 (April 11, 2008), 73
FR 20996 (April 17, 2008) (NYSEArca–2008–41);
58717 (October 2, 2008), 73 FR 60386 (October 10,
2008) (NYSEArca–2008–106); 59556 (March 11,
2009), 74 FR 11396 (March 17, 2009) (NYSEArca–
2009–17); 61393 (January 21, 2010), 75 FR 4887
(January 29, 2010) (NYSEArca–2010–03); 62019
(April 30, 2010), 75 FR 25889 (May 10, 2010)
(NYSEArca–2010–16); 62052 (May 6, 2010), 75 FR
26832 (May 12, 2010) (NYSEArca–2010–38); 65504
(October 6, 2011), 76 FR 63980 (October 14, 2011)
(NYSEArca–2011–71).
5 See
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Exchange in order to have transactions
reviewed under Rule 6.87. Specifically
the Exchange is proposing to extend the
time Market Makers have to notify the
Exchange of a potential error from five
minutes to ten minutes. The Exchange
believes that the change is appropriate
given the increase in the number of
options series, as well as the number of
exchanges in operation today. Market
Makers providing liquidity on multiple
exchanges potentially need to call and
speak with someone at each of the nine
exchanges to have transactions
reviewed. As such, the existing five
minute time limit makes this
impractical if not impossible and
therefore it is appropriate to extend the
time limit to ten minutes. The Exchange
notes that at least one other exchange
already provides Market Makers with
more than five minutes to request a
review under their obvious error rules.6
In addition, the Exchange is
proposing to extend the time OTP
Holders acting as agent for Customer
orders have to notify the Exchange of a
potential error from twenty minutes to
thirty minutes. The Exchange believes
that extending the time limit for
Customer orders is warranted due to the
degree in which many Customers are
removed from the operation of the
execution. For a Customer order, the
brokerage firm with which the customer
has an account may not actually be the
routing or execution broker for the
Customer’s options trades. It is fairly
common for brokerage firms to route
their Customer order flow through a
different Broker Dealer that employs a
router that weighs various best
execution factors in arriving at a routing
decision. In such situations, Customers
who receive a fill they want reviewed
under the obvious error rule must first
call their brokerage firm, who will in
turn contact the broker-dealer that
routed the order to the Exchange for
execution. OTP Holders have indicated
to the Exchange that Customers may
need more than 20 minutes for their
requests for review to reach the
Exchange. Other market participants,
such as Firms, non-member Market
Makers, and Professional Customers
tend to route their own order flow
directly to the Exchange and are not as
far removed from the actual execution.
Hence the Exchange believes it is
appropriate to extend the time to
request a review for OTP Holders acting
as agent for Customer orders given these
facts.7
6 See
CBOE Rule 6.25(b)(1).
7 While the Exchange acknowledges that
extending the time a party can notify the Exchange
of a potential error can increase uncertainty
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Proposed Amendments To Address
Complex Orders
The Exchange also proposes adding
new language to address Complex
Orders in the context of Rule 6.87.
Presently, the Obvious Error Rule is
silent on how Complex Orders are
handled under the bust and adjust
provisions of the rule. The Exchange
wants to include language that will give
participants some degree of certainty
regarding what they should expect
when legs of a Complex Order are
eligible for obvious error treatment.
There are several scenarios in which
Complex Orders may be involved in a
transaction that is reviewed under the
Obvious Error Rule. Each of those
scenarios and the proposed approach
will be covered below:
Scenario 1: A Complex Order trades
with another Complex Order in the
Complex Order Book. Under this
scenario, should any leg(s) upon review
qualify for obvious error treatment
under the provisions of Rule 6.87, then
all legs of the Complex Order will be
busted unless both parties mutually
agree to an adjustment price.
The Exchange believes that this
approach is similar to rules of other
markets 8 and appropriate due to several
aspects unique to Complex Orders. In
particular, the Exchange notes that
Complex Orders often are used by
participants to enter positions known as
spreads that entail limited risk relative
to an outright naked sale of a put or call.
For example, buying 1 XYZ Dec 55 call
and selling 1 XYZ Dec 50 call has risk
limited to $5, less the premium received
for the spread. If the leg of the Complex
Order consisting of the long 1 XYZ Dec
55 call was eligible to be busted, the
OTP Holder would be left with a riskier,
naked short position in the single
remaining leg of the spread. Given this,
the Exchange has decided that the best
approach for dealing with Complex
Orders in the context of the Obvious
Error Rule will be to preserve the spread
whenever possible. Therefore, when a
trade eligible for obvious error treatment
has occurred that involves a Complex
Order trading with another Complex
Order in the COB, the Exchange believes
it is appropriate to bust all legs of the
trade involved unless both parties to the
trade mutually agree to an adjustment
price.
Scenario 2: A Complex Order trades
with another Complex Order in the
Complex Order Book where one leg
regarding the standing of a trade, it believes that
such uncertainty will be limited only to those
trades that are so outside of normal trading that
they might qualify for obvious error treatment.
8 See PHLX Rule 1092(c)(v).
PO 00000
Frm 00088
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
qualifies for the no-bid provision of
Rule 6.87(a)(6). If the only leg(s) of the
Complex Order that qualifies for
obvious error treatment is pursuant to
the no-bid provisions of Rule 6.87(a)(6),
then no legs of the Complex Order will
be busted (the trade stands as executed),
unless both parties to the trade mutually
agree otherwise.
The Exchange believes that busting
trades solely the result of a leg(s) of a
Complex Order executing in a no-bid
series could result in abuse. In
particular, by entering a spread priced
slightly away from the market, the
entering party can increase the chance
that one of the legs will qualify for nobid treatment upon execution. In such a
scenario, the entity entering the
Complex Order would have a window
of time (equal to the notification
provisions of the rule) to evaluate the
market before claiming relief under the
Obvious Error Rule (which would result
in the busting of all legs). In order to
prevent manipulation and a potential
increase in nullified trades, the
Exchange believes it is appropriate to
not permit obvious error treatment for
those situations where the only error
occurred in a no-bid series.
Scenario 3: A Complex Order trades
with individual orders or quotes in the
Consolidated Book. In such situations,
each executed leg will be reviewed
separately under Rule 6.87. As a result,
it is possible that after such a trade, only
one leg of a Complex Order may meet
the Obvious Error threshold (resulting
in a residual position of a single leg).
When a Complex Order receives
executions in the Consolidated Order
Book, it is likely to involve multiple
OTP Holders. Although the Exchange
prefers to avoid partial execution of a
Complex Order, it does not seek to
nullify a valid execution in the
Consolidated Order Book of an OTP
Holder who unknowingly interacted
with a leg of a Complex Order. While
this is not a change from how the
Exchange currently handles all Complex
Orders, language is being added to the
Obvious Error Rule for purposes of
clarification.
2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes that this
proposed rule change is consistent with
Section 6(b) of the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934 (‘‘Act’’),9 in general, and
furthers the objectives of Section 6(b)(5)
of the Act 10 in particular, in that it is
designed to prevent fraudulent and
manipulative acts and practices,
promote just and equitable principles of
9 15
U.S.C. 78f(b).
U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
10 15
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trade, 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.
In particular, the proposed rule
change relating to the handling of
transactions in series quoted no bid at
the NBBO will promote just and
equitable principles of trade by adding
more certainty and consistency to the
obvious error. The proposed rule change
to increase the time limit for both
Market Makers and OTP Holders acting
as agent for Customers to request a
review of a transaction under the
provisions of Rule 6.87 is designed to
protect investors and the public interest.
Granting Market Makers more time to
request a review of a trade for obvious
error treatment will ensure they are
comfortable they can meet the deadline.
This comfort level should allow Market
Makers to continue to aggressively
provide that liquidity in a transparent
and non-discriminatory manner to all
participants which is in the public
interest. Further, ensuring Customers
sufficient time to request a review for
trades is also consistent with investor
protection and furthering the public
interest as it allows those market
participants furthest removed from the
point of execution time to evaluate each
trade and have adequate time to notify
the Exchange of a potential error.
The Exchange believes that the
proposed rule changes that address the
handling of Complex Orders involved in
obvious errors are also consistent with
Section 6(b) of the Act, in general, and
furthers the objectives of Section 6(b)(5),
in particular, in that it is designed to
prevent fraudulent and manipulative
acts and practices, to promote just and
equitable principles of trade, and, in
general, to protect investors and the
public interest. Detailing how Complex
Orders involved in obvious errors will
be busted and/or adjusted is important
since it grants investors greater
certainty. Preventing a market
participant from busting trades solely
the result of a leg(s) of a Complex Order
executing in a no-bid series furthers the
protection of investors and the public
interest by preventing potential abuse.
In the Exchange’s view, the
determination of whether an ‘‘obvious
error’’ has occurred should be based on
specific and objective criteria and
subject to specific and objective
procedures. The Exchange believes that
the proposed rule change provides such
objective guidelines for the
determination of whether an obvious
price error has occurred.
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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. To the
contrary, the proposal further promotes
competition on the Exchange which
should lead to tighter, more efficient
markets to the benefit of market
participants including public investors
that engage in trading and hedging on
the Exchange, and thereby make the
Exchange a desirable market vis a vis
other options exchanges.
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
Within 45 days of the date of
publication of this notice in the Federal
Register or within such longer period (i)
as the Commission may designate up to
90 days of such date if it finds such
longer period to be appropriate and
publishes its reasons for so finding or
(ii) as to which the self-regulatory
organization consents, the Commission
will:
(A) By order approve or disapprove
the proposed rule change, or
(B) institute proceedings to determine
whether the proposed rule change
should be disapproved.
IV. Solicitation of Comments
12119
All submissions should refer to File
Number SR–NYSEARCA–2013–15. 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 (https://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 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–
NYSEARCA–2013–15 and should be
submitted on or before March 14, 2013.
For the Commission, by the Division of
Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated
authority.11
Kevin M. O’Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013–03966 Filed 2–20–13; 8:45 am]
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
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Release No. 34–68932; File No. SR–CBOE–
2013–021]
• Use the Commission’s Internet
comment form (https://www.sec.gov/
rules/sro.shtml); or
• Send an email to rulecomments@sec.gov. Please include File
Number SR–NYSEARCA–2013–15 on
the subject line.
Self-Regulatory Organizations;
Chicago Board Options Exchange,
Incorporated; Notice of Filing and
Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed
Rule Change To Amend the Text in the
Exchange Fees Schedule
Paper Comments
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the
‘‘Act’’),1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2
• Send paper comments in triplicate
to Elizabeth M. Murphy, Secretary,
Securities and Exchange Commission,
100 F Street NE., Washington, DC
20549–1090.
PO 00000
Frm 00089
Fmt 4703
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February 14, 2013.
11 17
CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).
U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
2 17 CFR 240.19b–4.
1 15
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 35 (Thursday, February 21, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12117-12119]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-03966]
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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-68927; File No. SR-NYSEARCA-2013-15]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE Arca, Inc.; Notice of Filing
of Proposed Rule Change Amending Rule 6.87 in Part and Adding a New
Section To Address Errors That Involve Complex Orders
February 14, 2013.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) \1\ of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934 (the ``Act'') \2\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\3\ notice is hereby
given that, on February 1, 2013, NYSE Arca, Inc. (the ``Exchange'' or
``NYSE Arca'') 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 self-regulatory
organization. The Commission is publishing this notice to solicit
comments on the proposed rule change from interested persons.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ 15 U.S.C.78s(b)(1).
\2\ 15 U.S.C. 78a.
\3\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance
of the Proposed Rule Change
The Exchange proposes to amend Rule 6.87 in part and add a new
section to address errors that involve Complex Orders. The text of the
proposed rule change is available on the Exchange's Web site at
www.nyse.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 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 is proposing to amend certain existing provisions of
Rule 6.87 (``Obvious Error Rule'').\4\ In addition, the Exchange is
proposing to add new language to Rule 6.87 specific to how errors
involving Complex Orders will be addressed.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ See Exchange Rule 6.87.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Proposed Amendments to Existing Provisions of Rule 6.87
The Exchange adopted the Obvious Error Rule to handle situations
where an order receives an erroneous execution, such as receiving a
price that is higher or lower than the Theoretical Price by a specified
amount.\5\ The Exchange is proposing several amendments to the Obvious
Error Rule. First, the Exchange is proposing to change the portion of
the rule that addresses errors in series with zero or no bid.
Specifically, the Exchange proposes replacing reference to ``series
quoted no bid on the Exchange'' with ``series where the NBBO bid is
zero.'' This is being done to ensure consistency in the language with
other aspects of the existing rule that reference NBBO for
determination of whether a transaction is deemed eligible for obvious
error treatment. The Exchange believes the NBBO provides greater
accuracy in determining the value or valueless of an option because it
takes into account interest from all market participants and not just
those active on the Exchange. The Exchange also believes that ensuring
consistency throughout the rule text is important to help avoid
investor confusion.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\5\ See e.g. Securities Exchange Act Release Nos. 34-48538
(September 25, 2003), 68 FR 56858 (October 2, 2003) (PCX-2002-01);
49718 (May 17, 2004), 69 FR 29611 (May 24, 2004) (PCX-2004-08);
51723 (May 20, 2005), 70 FR 30988 (May 31, 2005) (PCX-2005-52);
52008 (July 11, 2005), 70 FR 41069 (July 15, 2005) (PCX-2005-78);
53221 (February 3, 2006), 71 FR 6811 (February 9, 2006) (PCX-2005-
102); 55330 (February 21, 2007), 72 FR 9052 (February 28, 2007)
(NYSEArca-2007-06); 57103 (January 4, 2008), 73 FR 1903 (January 10,
2008) (NYSEArca-2007-115); 57653 (April 11, 2008), 73 FR 20996
(April 17, 2008) (NYSEArca-2008-41); 58717 (October 2, 2008), 73 FR
60386 (October 10, 2008) (NYSEArca-2008-106); 59556 (March 11,
2009), 74 FR 11396 (March 17, 2009) (NYSEArca-2009-17); 61393
(January 21, 2010), 75 FR 4887 (January 29, 2010) (NYSEArca-2010-
03); 62019 (April 30, 2010), 75 FR 25889 (May 10, 2010) (NYSEArca-
2010-16); 62052 (May 6, 2010), 75 FR 26832 (May 12, 2010) (NYSEArca-
2010-38); 65504 (October 6, 2011), 76 FR 63980 (October 14, 2011)
(NYSEArca-2011-71).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Second, the Exchange proposes to amend the times in which certain
OTP Holders are required to notify the
[[Page 12118]]
Exchange in order to have transactions reviewed under Rule 6.87.
Specifically the Exchange is proposing to extend the time Market Makers
have to notify the Exchange of a potential error from five minutes to
ten minutes. The Exchange believes that the change is appropriate given
the increase in the number of options series, as well as the number of
exchanges in operation today. Market Makers providing liquidity on
multiple exchanges potentially need to call and speak with someone at
each of the nine exchanges to have transactions reviewed. As such, the
existing five minute time limit makes this impractical if not
impossible and therefore it is appropriate to extend the time limit to
ten minutes. The Exchange notes that at least one other exchange
already provides Market Makers with more than five minutes to request a
review under their obvious error rules.\6\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\6\ See CBOE Rule 6.25(b)(1).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In addition, the Exchange is proposing to extend the time OTP
Holders acting as agent for Customer orders have to notify the Exchange
of a potential error from twenty minutes to thirty minutes. The
Exchange believes that extending the time limit for Customer orders is
warranted due to the degree in which many Customers are removed from
the operation of the execution. For a Customer order, the brokerage
firm with which the customer has an account may not actually be the
routing or execution broker for the Customer's options trades. It is
fairly common for brokerage firms to route their Customer order flow
through a different Broker Dealer that employs a router that weighs
various best execution factors in arriving at a routing decision. In
such situations, Customers who receive a fill they want reviewed under
the obvious error rule must first call their brokerage firm, who will
in turn contact the broker-dealer that routed the order to the Exchange
for execution. OTP Holders have indicated to the Exchange that
Customers may need more than 20 minutes for their requests for review
to reach the Exchange. Other market participants, such as Firms, non-
member Market Makers, and Professional Customers tend to route their
own order flow directly to the Exchange and are not as far removed from
the actual execution. Hence the Exchange believes it is appropriate to
extend the time to request a review for OTP Holders acting as agent for
Customer orders given these facts.\7\
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\7\ While the Exchange acknowledges that extending the time a
party can notify the Exchange of a potential error can increase
uncertainty regarding the standing of a trade, it believes that such
uncertainty will be limited only to those trades that are so outside
of normal trading that they might qualify for obvious error
treatment.
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Proposed Amendments To Address Complex Orders
The Exchange also proposes adding new language to address Complex
Orders in the context of Rule 6.87. Presently, the Obvious Error Rule
is silent on how Complex Orders are handled under the bust and adjust
provisions of the rule. The Exchange wants to include language that
will give participants some degree of certainty regarding what they
should expect when legs of a Complex Order are eligible for obvious
error treatment. There are several scenarios in which Complex Orders
may be involved in a transaction that is reviewed under the Obvious
Error Rule. Each of those scenarios and the proposed approach will be
covered below:
Scenario 1: A Complex Order trades with another Complex Order in
the Complex Order Book. Under this scenario, should any leg(s) upon
review qualify for obvious error treatment under the provisions of Rule
6.87, then all legs of the Complex Order will be busted unless both
parties mutually agree to an adjustment price.
The Exchange believes that this approach is similar to rules of
other markets \8\ and appropriate due to several aspects unique to
Complex Orders. In particular, the Exchange notes that Complex Orders
often are used by participants to enter positions known as spreads that
entail limited risk relative to an outright naked sale of a put or
call. For example, buying 1 XYZ Dec 55 call and selling 1 XYZ Dec 50
call has risk limited to $5, less the premium received for the spread.
If the leg of the Complex Order consisting of the long 1 XYZ Dec 55
call was eligible to be busted, the OTP Holder would be left with a
riskier, naked short position in the single remaining leg of the
spread. Given this, the Exchange has decided that the best approach for
dealing with Complex Orders in the context of the Obvious Error Rule
will be to preserve the spread whenever possible. Therefore, when a
trade eligible for obvious error treatment has occurred that involves a
Complex Order trading with another Complex Order in the COB, the
Exchange believes it is appropriate to bust all legs of the trade
involved unless both parties to the trade mutually agree to an
adjustment price.
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\8\ See PHLX Rule 1092(c)(v).
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Scenario 2: A Complex Order trades with another Complex Order in
the Complex Order Book where one leg qualifies for the no-bid provision
of Rule 6.87(a)(6). If the only leg(s) of the Complex Order that
qualifies for obvious error treatment is pursuant to the no-bid
provisions of Rule 6.87(a)(6), then no legs of the Complex Order will
be busted (the trade stands as executed), unless both parties to the
trade mutually agree otherwise.
The Exchange believes that busting trades solely the result of a
leg(s) of a Complex Order executing in a no-bid series could result in
abuse. In particular, by entering a spread priced slightly away from
the market, the entering party can increase the chance that one of the
legs will qualify for no-bid treatment upon execution. In such a
scenario, the entity entering the Complex Order would have a window of
time (equal to the notification provisions of the rule) to evaluate the
market before claiming relief under the Obvious Error Rule (which would
result in the busting of all legs). In order to prevent manipulation
and a potential increase in nullified trades, the Exchange believes it
is appropriate to not permit obvious error treatment for those
situations where the only error occurred in a no-bid series.
Scenario 3: A Complex Order trades with individual orders or quotes
in the Consolidated Book. In such situations, each executed leg will be
reviewed separately under Rule 6.87. As a result, it is possible that
after such a trade, only one leg of a Complex Order may meet the
Obvious Error threshold (resulting in a residual position of a single
leg). When a Complex Order receives executions in the Consolidated
Order Book, it is likely to involve multiple OTP Holders. Although the
Exchange prefers to avoid partial execution of a Complex Order, it does
not seek to nullify a valid execution in the Consolidated Order Book of
an OTP Holder who unknowingly interacted with a leg of a Complex Order.
While this is not a change from how the Exchange currently handles all
Complex Orders, language is being added to the Obvious Error Rule for
purposes of clarification.
2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes that this proposed rule change is consistent
with Section 6(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (``Act''),\9\
in general, and furthers the objectives of Section 6(b)(5) of the Act
\10\ in particular, in that it is designed to prevent fraudulent and
manipulative acts and practices, promote just and equitable principles
of
[[Page 12119]]
trade, 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.
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\9\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
\10\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
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In particular, the proposed rule change relating to the handling of
transactions in series quoted no bid at the NBBO will promote just and
equitable principles of trade by adding more certainty and consistency
to the obvious error. The proposed rule change to increase the time
limit for both Market Makers and OTP Holders acting as agent for
Customers to request a review of a transaction under the provisions of
Rule 6.87 is designed to protect investors and the public interest.
Granting Market Makers more time to request a review of a trade for
obvious error treatment will ensure they are comfortable they can meet
the deadline. This comfort level should allow Market Makers to continue
to aggressively provide that liquidity in a transparent and non-
discriminatory manner to all participants which is in the public
interest. Further, ensuring Customers sufficient time to request a
review for trades is also consistent with investor protection and
furthering the public interest as it allows those market participants
furthest removed from the point of execution time to evaluate each
trade and have adequate time to notify the Exchange of a potential
error.
The Exchange believes that the proposed rule changes that address
the handling of Complex Orders involved in obvious errors are also
consistent with Section 6(b) of the Act, in general, and furthers the
objectives of Section 6(b)(5), in particular, in that it is designed to
prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices, to promote just
and equitable principles of trade, and, in general, to protect
investors and the public interest. Detailing how Complex Orders
involved in obvious errors will be busted and/or adjusted is important
since it grants investors greater certainty. Preventing a market
participant from busting trades solely the result of a leg(s) of a
Complex Order executing in a no-bid series furthers the protection of
investors and the public interest by preventing potential abuse. In the
Exchange's view, the determination of whether an ``obvious error'' has
occurred should be based on specific and objective criteria and subject
to specific and objective procedures. The Exchange believes that the
proposed rule change provides such objective guidelines for the
determination of whether an obvious price error has occurred.
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. To the contrary, the proposal
further promotes competition on the Exchange which should lead to
tighter, more efficient markets to the benefit of market participants
including public investors that engage in trading and hedging on the
Exchange, and thereby make the Exchange a desirable market vis a vis
other options exchanges.
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
Within 45 days of the date of publication of this notice in the
Federal Register or within such longer period (i) as the Commission may
designate up to 90 days of such date if it finds such longer period to
be appropriate and publishes its reasons for so finding or (ii) as to
which the self-regulatory organization consents, the Commission will:
(A) By order approve or disapprove the proposed rule change, or
(B) institute proceedings to determine whether the proposed rule
change should be 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 (https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
Send an email to rule-comments@sec.gov. Please include
File Number SR-NYSEARCA-2013-15 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-NYSEARCA-2013-15. 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 (https://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 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-NYSEARCA-2013-15 and should
be submitted on or before March 14, 2013.
For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\11\
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\11\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Kevin M. O'Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013-03966 Filed 2-20-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P