Self-Regulatory Organizations; the NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Make Minor Modifications To Pricing Incentive Programs Under NASDAQ's Schedule of Fees and Credits Applicable To Trading on the NASDAQ Options Market, 59740-59743 [2013-23539]

Download as PDF 59740 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 188 / Friday, September 27, 2013 / Notices market is not open the entire trading day will result in an effective reduction of fees or increase in rebates such that the total cost of trading on PHLX should decline. This is evidence that a proposed rule change is pro-competitive rather than anti-competitive. pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement on Comments on the Proposed Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others No written comments were either solicited or received. III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for Commission Action Because the foregoing proposed rule change does not: (i) Significantly affect the protection of investors or the public interest; (ii) impose any significant burden on competition; and (iii) become operative for 30 days from the date on which it was filed, or such shorter time as the Commission may designate, it has become effective pursuant to Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act 11 and subparagraph (f)(6) of Rule 19b–4 thereunder.12 A proposed rule change filed under Rule 19b–4(f)(6) 13 normally does not become operative prior to 30 days after the date of the filing. However, pursuant to Rule 19b–4(f)(6)(iii),14 the Commission may designate a shorter time if such action is consistent with the protection of investors and the public interest. The Exchange has asked the Commission to waive the 30-day operative delay so that the proposal may become operative immediately upon filing. The Commission believes that waiving the 30-day operative delay is consistent with the protection of investors and the public interest. Waiver will allow the Exchange to immediately implement the proposed change, thereby reducing the potential for confusion among member organizations and the public about how the Exchange will calculate thresholds related to billing for activity on the Exchange during August 2013. Therefore, the Commission hereby waives the 30-day operative delay and designates the proposal operative upon filing.15 At any time within 60 days of the filing of such proposed rule change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule change if 11 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A). CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6). 13 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6). 14 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6)(iii). 15 For purposes only of waiving the 30-day operative delay, the Commission has considered the proposed rule’s impact on efficiency, competition, and capital formation. See 15 U.S.C. 78c(f). 12 17 VerDate Mar<15>2010 14:21 Sep 26, 2013 Jkt 229001 it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. If the Commission takes such action, the Commission shall institute proceedings under Section 19(b)(2)(B) 16 of the Act to determine whether the proposed rule change should be approved or disapproved. IV. Solicitation of Comments Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods: Electronic Comments • Use the Commission’s Internet comment form (https://www.sec.gov/ rules/sro.shtml); or • Send an email to rule-comments@ sec.gov. Please include File Number SR– PHLX–2013–93 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–PHLX–2013–93. 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 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 offices of the Exchange. All comments received will be posted without change; the Commission does not edit personal identifying information from submissions. You should submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. All submissions should refer to File Number SR–PHLX– 2013–93, and should be submitted on or before October 18, 2013. For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated authority.17 Kevin M. O’Neill, Deputy Secretary. [FR Doc. 2013–23540 Filed 9–26–13; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 8011–01–P SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION [Release No. 34–70470; File No. SR– NASDAQ–2013–117] Self-Regulatory Organizations; the NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Make Minor Modifications To Pricing Incentive Programs Under NASDAQ’s Schedule of Fees and Credits Applicable To Trading on the NASDAQ Options Market September 23, 2013. Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (‘‘Act’’),1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2 notice is hereby given that on September 9, 2013, The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC (‘‘NASDAQ’’ or the ‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (‘‘Commission’’) a proposed rule change as described in Items I and II 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 the Substance of the Proposed Rule Change NASDAQ is proposing to make minor modifications to pricing incentive programs under NASDAQ’s schedule of fees and credits applicable to trading on the NASDAQ Options Market (‘‘NOM’’). Specifically, NASDAQ is proposing to exclude from volume-based pricing calculations any trading day on which NOM is closed for trading due to early closing or a market-wide trading halt. This exclusion exists today for the 17 17 16 15 PO 00000 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). U.S.C. 78s(b)(1). 2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. U.S.C. 78s(b)(2)(B). Frm 00094 Fmt 4703 1 15 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\27SEN1.SGM 27SEN1 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 188 / Friday, September 27, 2013 / Notices trading of [sic] on NASDAQ’s equities trading facility.3 The text of the proposed rule change is available at https:// nasdaq.cchwallstreet.com, at NASDAQ’s principal office, 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, NASDAQ 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. Tier 1 .......... Tier 2 .......... Tier 3 .......... Tier 4 .......... Tier 5 .......... Tier 6 .......... Tier 7 .......... Tier 8 .......... A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement of the Purpose of, and Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change 1. Purpose NASDAQ Options Rule Chapter XV, Section 2 contains a number of pricing incentive programs that are designed to encourage member participation in NOM by increasing rebates or reducing fees for firms that trade on NOM in increasingly higher volumes. NASDAQ has determined for purposes of calculating Monthly Volume Tiers under Chapter XV, Section 2, any day that the market is not open for the entire trading day should be excluded from such calculation. This formulation would exclude, for example, days on which the market closes early for holiday observances. It would also exclude days where NOM declares a trading halt in all securities correspondingly lower, but the denominator for the threshold calculations (e.g., the number of trading days) would not be decreased. This would result in an effective cost increase. Monthly volume Tier 1 ............ Tier 2 ............ Tier 3 ............ pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES Tier 4 ............ $0.25 $0.40 $0.43 $0.45 $0.42 $0.45 $0.47 $0.48 The proposed rule change would also apply to the monthly volume tiers NOM uses to determine the Rebate to Add Liquidity: Rebate to add liquidity Participant adds NOM Market Maker liquidity in Penny Pilot Options of up to 39,999 contracts per day in a month. Participant adds NOM Market Maker liquidity in Penny Pilot Options of 40,000 to 69,999 contracts per day in a month. Participant adds NOM Market Maker liquidity in Penny Pilot Options of 70,000 to 99,999 contracts per day in a month. Participant adds NOM Market Maker liquidity in Penny Pilot Options of 100,000 or more contracts per day in a month. 3 NASDAQ is not proposing to exclude trading on the day of the Russell Reconstitution from the calculation of volume-based pricing for the trading VerDate Mar<15>2010 or honors a market-wide halt initiated by another market. This would apply to the market-wide trading halt of approximately three hours on August 22, 2013, which NOM plans to exclude from Monthly Volume Tiers for the month of August. The proposed rule change will impacted [sic] billing rates for all eight Monthly Volume Tiers by which NOM determines the rebate per share for firms that add Customer and/or Professional liquidity based on increasing percentages of total industry customer equity and ETF option average daily volume (‘‘ADV’’) contracts per day in a month (Tiers 1 through 4). It would also apply to the calculation of Average Daily Volume for a specific member (Tiers 5 through 8). The rebates range from $0.25 to $0.48 per contract: Participant adds Customer and/or Professional liquidity of up to 0.20% of total industry customer equity and ETF option average daily volume (‘‘ADV’’) contracts per day in a month. Participant adds Customer and/or Professional liquidity of 0.21% to 0.30% of total industry customer equity and ETF option ADV contracts per day in a month. Participant adds Customer and/or Professional liquidity of 0.31% to 0.49% of total industry customer equity and ETF option ADV contracts per day in a month. Participant adds Customer and/or Professional liquidity of 0.5% or more of total industry customer equity and ETF option ADV contracts per day in a month. Participant adds (1) Customer and/or Professional liquidity of 25,000 or more contracts per day in a month, (2) the Participant has certified for the Investor Support Program set forth in Rule 7014, and (3) the Participant executed at least one order on NASDAQ’s equity market. Participant has Total Volume of 115,000 or more contracts per day in a month, of which 25,000 or more contracts per day in a month must be Customer and/or Professional liquidity. Participant has Total Volume of 150,000 or more contracts per day in a month, of which 50,000 or more contracts per day in a month must be Customer and/or Professional liquidity. Participant (1) has Total Volume of 325,000 or more contracts per day in a month, or (2) Participant has Total Volume of 200,000 or more contracts per day in a month, of which 70,000 or more contracts per day in a month must be Customer and/or Professional liquidity or (3) adds Customer and/or Professional liquidity of 1.00% or more of national customer volume in multiply-listed equity and ETF options classes in a month. If the Exchange did not exclude aberrant low volume days when calculating ADV for the month, as a result of the decreased trading volume, the numerator for the calculation (e.g., trading volume) would be 59741 14:21 Sep 26, 2013 Jkt 229001 $0.25. $0.30. $0.32. $0.32 or $0.38 in the following symbols BAC, GLD, IWM, QQQ and VXX or $0.40 in SPY. of options. The Russell Reconstitution has little or no impact on options trading because the options market does not operate a closing cross such as PO 00000 Frm 00095 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 occurs on the equities market. Thus, there is little or no impact on the volume of options trades. E:\FR\FM\27SEN1.SGM 27SEN1 59742 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 188 / Friday, September 27, 2013 / Notices The proposal does not apply to other transaction fees or rebates in Section 2, or to other fees on the pricing schedule outside of Section 2. Absent the authority to exclude days that the market is not open for the entire trading day, members will experience an effective increase in fees or decrease in rebates. The artificially low volumes of trading on such days reduce the average daily activity of NOM members both daily and monthly. Accordingly, excluding such days from the monthly calculation will diminish the likelihood of an effective increase in the cost of trading on NOM, a result that is unintended and undesirable to NOM and to NOM members. pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES 2. Statutory Basis NASDAQ believes that the proposed rule change is consistent with the provisions of Section 6 of the Act,4 in general, and with Sections 6(b)(4) and 6(b)(5) of the Act,5 in particular, in that it provides for the equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees and other charges among members and issuers and other persons using any facility or system which NASDAQ operates or controls, and is not designed to permit unfair discrimination between customers, issuers, brokers, or dealers. NASDAQ believes that the proposed change to eliminate from the calculation days on which the market is not open the entire trading day is reasonable because it preserves NASDAQ’s full intent behind adopting volume-based pricing. The proposed change is equitable and non-discriminatory because it applies equally to all members and to all volume tiers. In the event that NASDAQ identifies a disparate impact on one or another volume tier in the future, NASDAQ may determine to modify that volume tier via an additional proposed rule change. B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement on Burden on Competition NASDAQ does not believe that the proposed rule change will result in any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate in furtherance of the purposes of the Act, as amended. NASDAQ notes that it operates in a highly competitive market in which market participants can readily favor competing venues if they deem fee levels at a particular venue to be excessive, or rebate opportunities available at other venues to be more favorable. In such an environment, NASDAQ must continually adjust its fees to remain competitive with other exchanges and with alternative trading systems that have been exempted from compliance with the statutory standards applicable to exchanges. Because competitors are free to modify their own fees in response, and because market participants may readily adjust their order routing practices, NASDAQ believes that the degree to which fee changes in this market may impose any burden on competition is extremely limited. In this instance, the proposed rule change should not impact competition because it merely preserves the full intent of NASDAQ’s already-filed prices. Moreover, the proposed rule change regarding days on which the market is not open the entire trading day will result in an effective reduction of fees or increase in rebates such that the total cost of trading on NOM should decline. This is evidence that a proposed rule change is pro-competitive rather than anti-competitive. C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement on Comments on the Proposed Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others Written comments were neither solicited nor received. III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for Commission Action Because the foregoing proposed rule change does not: (i) Significantly affect the protection of investors or the public interest; (ii) impose any significant burden on competition; and (iii) become operative for 30 days from the date on which it was filed, or such shorter time as the Commission may designate, it has become effective pursuant to Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act 6 and subparagraph (f)(6) of Rule 19b–4 thereunder.7 A proposed rule change filed under Rule 19b–4(f)(6) 8 normally does not become operative prior to 30 days after the date of the filing. However, pursuant to Rule 19b–4(f)(6)(iii),9 the Commission may designate a shorter time if such action is consistent with the protection of investors and the public interest. The Exchange has asked the Commission to waive the 30-day operative delay so that the proposal may become operative immediately upon filing. The Commission believes that waiving the 30-day operative delay is consistent with the protection of investors and the public interest. 6 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A). CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6). 8 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6). 9 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6)(iii). 7 17 4 15 5 15 U.S.C. 78f. U.S.C. 78f(b)(4) and (5). VerDate Mar<15>2010 14:21 Sep 26, 2013 Jkt 229001 PO 00000 Frm 00096 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 NASDAQ wishes to exclude August 22, 2013, from the calculation of volumebased pricing for August of 2013. Waiver will allow the Exchange to immediately implement the proposed rule change, thereby reducing the potential for confusion among member organizations and the public about how the Exchange will calculate volumebased pricing for August of 2013. Therefore, the Commission hereby waives the 30-day operative delay and designates the proposal operative upon filing.10 At any time within 60 days of the filing of such proposed rule change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule change if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. If the Commission takes such action, the Commission shall institute proceedings under Section 19(b)(2)(B) 11 of the Act to determine whether the proposed rule change should be approved or disapproved. IV. Solicitation of Comments Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods: Electronic Comments • Use the Commission’s Internet comment form (https://www.sec.gov/ rules/sro.shtml); or • Send an email to rule-comments@ sec.gov. Please include File Number SR– NASDAQ–2013–117 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–NASDAQ–2013–117. 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 10 For purposes only of waiving the 30-day operative delay, the Commission has considered the proposed rule’s impact on efficiency, competition, and capital formation. See 15 U.S.C. 78c(f). 11 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2)(B). E:\FR\FM\27SEN1.SGM 27SEN1 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 188 / Friday, September 27, 2013 / Notices 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 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 offices of the Exchange. All comments received will be posted without change; the Commission does not edit personal identifying information from submissions. You should submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. All submissions should refer to File Number SR– NASDAQ–2013–117, and should be submitted on or before October 18, 2013. For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated authority.12 Kevin M. O’Neill, Deputy Secretary. [FR Doc. 2013–23539 Filed 9–26–13; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE P DEPARTMENT OF STATE [Public Notice 8486] Bureau of Consular Affairs; Registration for the Diversity Immigrant (DV–2015) Visa Program Department of State. Notice. AGENCY: ACTION: This public notice provides information on how to apply for the DV–2015 Program and is issued pursuant to 22 CFR 42.33(b)(3), implementing sections 201(a)(3), 201(e), 203(c), and 204(a)(1)(I) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended, (8 U.S.C. 1151, 1153, and 1154(a)(1)(I)). SUMMARY: pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES Instructions for the 2015 Diversity Immigrant Visa Program (DV–2015) Program Overview The congressionally mandated Diversity Immigrant Visa Program is administered annually by the Department of State. Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) provides for a class of immigrants 12 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). VerDate Mar<15>2010 14:21 Sep 26, 2013 Jkt 229001 known as ‘‘diversity immigrants,’’ from countries with historically low rates of immigration to the United States. For fiscal year 2015, 50,000 diversity visas (DVs) will be available. There is no cost to register for the DV Program. Applicants who are selected in the lottery (‘‘selectees’’) must meet simple, but strict, eligibility requirements in order to qualify for a diversity visa. Selectees are chosen through a randomized computer drawing. Diversity visas are distributed among six geographic regions and no single country may receive more than seven percent of the available DVs in any one year. For DV–2015, natives of the following countries are not eligible to apply, because more than 50,000 natives of these countries immigrated to the United States in the previous five years: BANGLADESH, BRAZIL, CANADA, CHINA (mainland-born), COLOMBIA, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, ECUADOR, EL SALVADOR, HAITI, INDIA, JAMAICA, MEXICO, NIGERIA, PAKISTAN, PERU, PHILIPPINES, SOUTH KOREA, UNITED KINGDOM (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and VIETNAM. Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR and Taiwan are eligible. Changes in eligibility this year: For DV–2015, natives of Nigeria are no longer eligible. Eligibility Requirement #1: Individuals born in countries (listed below) whose natives qualify may be eligible to enter. If you were not born in an eligible country, there are two other ways you might be able to qualify. • Was your spouse born in a country whose natives are eligible? If yes, you can claim your spouse’s country of birth—provided that both you and your spouse are named on the selected entry, are issued diversity visas, and enter the United States simultaneously. • Were you born in a country whose natives are ineligible, but in which neither of your parents was born or legally resident at the time of your birth? If yes, you may claim nativity in one of your parents’ countries of birth if it is a country whose natives are eligible for the DV–2015 program. For more details on what this means, see the Frequently Asked Questions. Requirement #2: In addition, to meet the education/work experience requirement of the DV program, you must have either: • A high school education or its equivalent, defined as successful completion of a 12-year course of elementary and secondary education; PO 00000 Frm 00097 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 59743 or • Two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation requiring at least two years of training or experience to perform. The U.S. Department of Labor’s O*Net Online database will be used to determine qualifying work experience. For more information about qualifying work experience for the principal DV applicant, see the Frequently Asked Questions. Do not submit an entry to the DV program unless you meet both of these requirements. Entry Period Entries for the DV–2015 DV program must be submitted electronically at www.dvlottery.state.gov between noon, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) (GMT–4), Tuesday, October 1, 2013, and noon, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) (GMT–4), Saturday, November 2, 2013. Do not wait until the last week of the registration period to enter, as heavy demand may result in Web site delays. No late entries or paper entries will be accepted. The law allows only one entry by or for each person during each registration period. The Department of State uses sophisticated technology to detect multiple entries. If you submit more than one entry you will be disqualified. Completing Your Electronic Entry for the DV–2014 Program Submit your Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form (E–DV Entry Form or DS– 5501), online at www.dvlottery.state.gov. Incomplete entries will be disqualified. There is no cost to register for the DV Program. You are strongly encouraged to complete the entry form yourself, without a ‘‘Visa Consultant,’’ ‘‘Visa Agent,’’ or other facilitator who offers to help. If somebody else helps you, you should be present when your entry is prepared so that you can provide the correct answers to the questions and retain the confirmation page and your unique confirmation number. It is extremely important that you retain your confirmation page and unique confirmation number. Without this information, you will not be able to access the online system that will inform you of the status of your entry. Think carefully if someone else offers to keep this information for you. See the Frequently Asked Questions for more information about Diversity Visa scams. After you submit a complete entry, you will see a confirmation screen containing your name and a unique confirmation number. Print this confirmation screen for your records. E:\FR\FM\27SEN1.SGM 27SEN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 188 (Friday, September 27, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 59740-59743]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-23539]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-70470; File No. SR-NASDAQ-2013-117]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; the NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; 
Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To 
Make Minor Modifications To Pricing Incentive Programs Under NASDAQ's 
Schedule of Fees and Credits Applicable To Trading on the NASDAQ 
Options Market

September 23, 2013.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act''),\1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given that 
on September 9, 2013, The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC (``NASDAQ'' or the 
``Exchange'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission 
(``Commission'') a proposed rule change as described in Items I and II 
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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
    \2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of the 
Substance of the Proposed Rule Change

    NASDAQ is proposing to make minor modifications to pricing 
incentive programs under NASDAQ's schedule of fees and credits 
applicable to trading on the NASDAQ Options Market (``NOM''). 
Specifically, NASDAQ is proposing to exclude from volume-based pricing 
calculations any trading day on which NOM is closed for trading due to 
early closing or a market-wide trading halt. This exclusion exists 
today for the

[[Page 59741]]

trading of [sic] on NASDAQ's equities trading facility.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ NASDAQ is not proposing to exclude trading on the day of the 
Russell Reconstitution from the calculation of volume-based pricing 
for the trading of options. The Russell Reconstitution has little or 
no impact on options trading because the options market does not 
operate a closing cross such as occurs on the equities market. Thus, 
there is little or no impact on the volume of options trades.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The text of the proposed rule change is available at https://nasdaq.cchwallstreet.com, at NASDAQ's principal office, 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, NASDAQ 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 
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

1. Purpose
    NASDAQ Options Rule Chapter XV, Section 2 contains a number of 
pricing incentive programs that are designed to encourage member 
participation in NOM by increasing rebates or reducing fees for firms 
that trade on NOM in increasingly higher volumes.
    NASDAQ has determined for purposes of calculating Monthly Volume 
Tiers under Chapter XV, Section 2, any day that the market is not open 
for the entire trading day should be excluded from such calculation. 
This formulation would exclude, for example, days on which the market 
closes early for holiday observances. It would also exclude days where 
NOM declares a trading halt in all securities or honors a market-wide 
halt initiated by another market. This would apply to the market-wide 
trading halt of approximately three hours on August 22, 2013, which NOM 
plans to exclude from Monthly Volume Tiers for the month of August.
    The proposed rule change will impacted [sic] billing rates for all 
eight Monthly Volume Tiers by which NOM determines the rebate per share 
for firms that add Customer and/or Professional liquidity based on 
increasing percentages of total industry customer equity and ETF option 
average daily volume (``ADV'') contracts per day in a month (Tiers 1 
through 4). It would also apply to the calculation of Average Daily 
Volume for a specific member (Tiers 5 through 8). The rebates range 
from $0.25 to $0.48 per contract:

 
 
 
Tier 1...................  Participant adds Customer and/          $0.25
                            or Professional liquidity of
                            up to 0.20% of total
                            industry customer equity and
                            ETF option average daily
                            volume (``ADV'') contracts
                            per day in a month.
Tier 2...................  Participant adds Customer and/          $0.40
                            or Professional liquidity of
                            0.21% to 0.30% of total
                            industry customer equity and
                            ETF option ADV contracts per
                            day in a month.
Tier 3...................  Participant adds Customer and/          $0.43
                            or Professional liquidity of
                            0.31% to 0.49% of total
                            industry customer equity and
                            ETF option ADV contracts per
                            day in a month.
Tier 4...................  Participant adds Customer and/          $0.45
                            or Professional liquidity of
                            0.5% or more of total
                            industry customer equity and
                            ETF option ADV contracts per
                            day in a month.
Tier 5...................  Participant adds (1) Customer           $0.42
                            and/or Professional
                            liquidity of 25,000 or more
                            contracts per day in a
                            month, (2) the Participant
                            has certified for the
                            Investor Support Program set
                            forth in Rule 7014, and (3)
                            the Participant executed at
                            least one order on NASDAQ's
                            equity market.
Tier 6...................  Participant has Total Volume            $0.45
                            of 115,000 or more contracts
                            per day in a month, of which
                            25,000 or more contracts per
                            day in a month must be
                            Customer and/or Professional
                            liquidity.
Tier 7...................  Participant has Total Volume            $0.47
                            of 150,000 or more contracts
                            per day in a month, of which
                            50,000 or more contracts per
                            day in a month must be
                            Customer and/or Professional
                            liquidity.
Tier 8...................  Participant (1) has Total               $0.48
                            Volume of 325,000 or more
                            contracts per day in a
                            month, or (2) Participant
                            has Total Volume of 200,000
                            or more contracts per day in
                            a month, of which 70,000 or
                            more contracts per day in a
                            month must be Customer and/
                            or Professional liquidity or
                            (3) adds Customer and/or
                            Professional liquidity of
                            1.00% or more of national
                            customer volume in multiply-
                            listed equity and ETF
                            options classes in a month.
 

If the Exchange did not exclude aberrant low volume days when 
calculating ADV for the month, as a result of the decreased trading 
volume, the numerator for the calculation (e.g., trading volume) would 
be correspondingly lower, but the denominator for the threshold 
calculations (e.g., the number of trading days) would not be decreased. 
This would result in an effective cost increase.
    The proposed rule change would also apply to the monthly volume 
tiers NOM uses to determine the Rebate to Add Liquidity:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
   Monthly  volume                               Rebate to add liquidity
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tier 1..............  Participant adds NOM      $0.25.
                       Market Maker liquidity
                       in Penny Pilot Options
                       of up to 39,999
                       contracts per day in a
                       month.
Tier 2..............  Participant adds NOM      $0.30.
                       Market Maker liquidity
                       in Penny Pilot Options
                       of 40,000 to 69,999
                       contracts per day in a
                       month.
Tier 3..............  Participant adds NOM      $0.32.
                       Market Maker liquidity
                       in Penny Pilot Options
                       of 70,000 to 99,999
                       contracts per day in a
                       month.
Tier 4..............  Participant adds NOM      $0.32 or $0.38 in the
                       Market Maker liquidity    following symbols BAC,
                       in Penny Pilot Options    GLD, IWM, QQQ and VXX
                       of 100,000 or more        or $0.40 in SPY.
                       contracts per day in a
                       month.
------------------------------------------------------------------------


[[Page 59742]]

The proposal does not apply to other transaction fees or rebates in 
Section 2, or to other fees on the pricing schedule outside of Section 
2.
    Absent the authority to exclude days that the market is not open 
for the entire trading day, members will experience an effective 
increase in fees or decrease in rebates. The artificially low volumes 
of trading on such days reduce the average daily activity of NOM 
members both daily and monthly. Accordingly, excluding such days from 
the monthly calculation will diminish the likelihood of an effective 
increase in the cost of trading on NOM, a result that is unintended and 
undesirable to NOM and to NOM members.
2. Statutory Basis
    NASDAQ believes that the proposed rule change is consistent with 
the provisions of Section 6 of the Act,\4\ in general, and with 
Sections 6(b)(4) and 6(b)(5) of the Act,\5\ in particular, in that it 
provides for the equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees and 
other charges among members and issuers and other persons using any 
facility or system which NASDAQ operates or controls, and is not 
designed to permit unfair discrimination between customers, issuers, 
brokers, or dealers.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

    NASDAQ believes that the proposed change to eliminate from the 
calculation days on which the market is not open the entire trading day 
is reasonable because it preserves NASDAQ's full intent behind adopting 
volume-based pricing. The proposed change is equitable and non-
discriminatory because it applies equally to all members and to all 
volume tiers. In the event that NASDAQ identifies a disparate impact on 
one or another volume tier in the future, NASDAQ may determine to 
modify that volume tier via an additional proposed rule change.

B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition

    NASDAQ does not believe that the proposed rule change will result 
in any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate in 
furtherance of the purposes of the Act, as amended. NASDAQ notes that 
it operates in a highly competitive market in which market participants 
can readily favor competing venues if they deem fee levels at a 
particular venue to be excessive, or rebate opportunities available at 
other venues to be more favorable. In such an environment, NASDAQ must 
continually adjust its fees to remain competitive with other exchanges 
and with alternative trading systems that have been exempted from 
compliance with the statutory standards applicable to exchanges. 
Because competitors are free to modify their own fees in response, and 
because market participants may readily adjust their order routing 
practices, NASDAQ believes that the degree to which fee changes in this 
market may impose any burden on competition is extremely limited.
    In this instance, the proposed rule change should not impact 
competition because it merely preserves the full intent of NASDAQ's 
already-filed prices. Moreover, the proposed rule change regarding days 
on which the market is not open the entire trading day will result in 
an effective reduction of fees or increase in rebates such that the 
total cost of trading on NOM should decline. This is evidence that a 
proposed rule change is pro-competitive rather than anti-competitive.

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

    Written comments were neither solicited nor received.

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

    Because the foregoing proposed rule change does not: (i) 
Significantly affect the protection of investors or the public 
interest; (ii) impose any significant burden on competition; and (iii) 
become operative for 30 days from the date on which it was filed, or 
such shorter time as the Commission may designate, it has become 
effective pursuant to Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act \6\ and 
subparagraph (f)(6) of Rule 19b-4 thereunder.\7\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \6\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \7\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    A proposed rule change filed under Rule 19b-4(f)(6) \8\ normally 
does not become operative prior to 30 days after the date of the 
filing. However, pursuant to Rule 19b-4(f)(6)(iii),\9\ the Commission 
may designate a shorter time if such action is consistent with the 
protection of investors and the public interest. The Exchange has asked 
the Commission to waive the 30-day operative delay so that the proposal 
may become operative immediately upon filing.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \8\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6).
    \9\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6)(iii).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Commission believes that waiving the 30-day operative delay is 
consistent with the protection of investors and the public interest. 
NASDAQ wishes to exclude August 22, 2013, from the calculation of 
volume-based pricing for August of 2013. Waiver will allow the Exchange 
to immediately implement the proposed rule change, thereby reducing the 
potential for confusion among member organizations and the public about 
how the Exchange will calculate volume-based pricing for August of 
2013. Therefore, the Commission hereby waives the 30-day operative 
delay and designates the proposal operative upon filing.\10\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \10\ For purposes only of waiving the 30-day operative delay, 
the Commission has considered the proposed rule's impact on 
efficiency, competition, and capital formation. See 15 U.S.C. 
78c(f).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    At any time within 60 days of the filing of such proposed rule 
change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule 
change if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or 
appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or 
otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. If the Commission 
takes such action, the Commission shall institute proceedings under 
Section 19(b)(2)(B) \11\ of the Act to determine whether the proposed 
rule change should be approved or disapproved.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \11\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2)(B).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

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-NASDAQ-2013-117 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-NASDAQ-2013-117. 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

[[Page 59743]]

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 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 offices of the Exchange. All 
comments received will be posted without change; the Commission does 
not edit personal identifying information from submissions. You should 
submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. All 
submissions should refer to File Number SR-NASDAQ-2013-117, and should 
be submitted on or before October 18, 2013.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\12\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \12\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kevin M. O'Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013-23539 Filed 9-26-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P
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