Self-Regulatory Organizations; Chicago Board Options Exchange, Incorporated; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed Rule Change To Amend the Fees Schedule, 51381-51383 [2014-20468]
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 167 / Thursday, August 28, 2014 / Notices
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Release No. 34–72903; File No. SR–CBOE–
2014–065]
Self-Regulatory Organizations;
Chicago Board Options Exchange,
Incorporated; Notice of Filing and
Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed
Rule Change To Amend the Fees
Schedule
August 22, 2014.
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 August
12, 2014, 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 the Substance
of the Proposed Rule Change
The Exchange proposes to amend its
Fees Schedule. The text of the proposed
rule change is available on the
Exchange’s Web site (https://
www.cboe.com/AboutCBOE/
CBOELegalRegulatoryHome.aspx), at
the Exchange’s Office of the Secretary,
and at the Commission’s Public
Reference Room.
pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD 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
Exchange 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 these
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 aspects of such
statements.
A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule
Change
1. Purpose
The Exchange proposes to amend its
Fees Schedule. First, the Exchange
1 15
2 17
U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
CFR 240.19b–4.
VerDate Mar<15>2010
14:14 Aug 27, 2014
proposes to delete from Footnote 5 of
the Fees Schedule the sentence ‘‘If a
market-maker executes an order for an
account in which the market-maker is
not a registered participant as reflected
in the TPH Department records, the
market-maker will be assessed a floor
brokerage fee.’’ Exchange Rule 8.9
currently prohibits a Market-Maker from
executing an order for an account in
which the market-maker is not a
registered participant.3 As such, the
Exchange does not wish to have a
statement in its Fees Schedule assessing
a fee for such activity, as this would
seem to imply that such activity is
permitted.
Next, the Exchange proposes to
amend the Floor Brokerage Fees table.
Currently, the Floor Brokerage Fees
table sets forth the fees per contract for
the following products: (i) ‘‘OEX, SPX
and SPXpm Index Options; (ii), ‘‘SROs’’
and (iii) ‘‘VIX, VXST and Volatility
Index Options.’’ Additionally, the Floor
Brokerage Fees table groups together
like products and differentiates between
fees for ‘‘Non-Crossed Orders’’ and
‘‘Crossed Orders.’’ Although OEX, an
American-Style Exercise S&P 100 Index
option, is explicitly referenced in the
Floor Brokerage Fees table, XEO, the
European-Style Exercise S&P 100 Index
option, is not separately spelled out in
the Floor Brokerage Fees table. The
Exchange is proposing to make clear in
the text of the Fees Schedule that XEO
is a product in which floor brokerage
fees apply. The Exchange notes that the
only difference between OEX and XEO
options is the manner in which the
respective contracts are exercised (i.e.
American-style versus European-style).
The Exchange believes the proposed
addition of rule text will provide greater
clarity for customers and will allow
market participants to better understand
how fees are applied.
Next, the Exchange proposes to
amend Footnote 7 of the Fees Schedule.
Footnote 7 of the current Fees Schedule
provides ‘‘After three months, all fees as
assessed by the Exchange are considered
final by the Exchange.’’ The purpose of
this statement is to encourage Trading
Permit Holders (‘‘TPHs’’) to promptly
review their Exchange invoices so that
any disputed charges can be addressed
in a timely manner. The Exchange notes
that the footnote is not intended to
preclude the Exchange from assessing
fees more than three months after they
were incurred. Indeed, the Exchange is
required to enforce compliance by its
TPHs and persons associated with its
TPHs the rules of the Exchange,
3 See
Jkt 232001
PO 00000
CBOE Rule 8.9.
Frm 00087
Fmt 4703
including its Fees Schedule.4 As such,
the Exchange must ensure that it
assesses the fees set forth in its Fees
Schedule so long as the fee(s) were
required to be paid pursuant to the
CBOE Fees Schedule in effect at the
time the fees were incurred, even if the
Exchange must assess the fees more
than three months after they have been
incurred. The Exchange believes it
would be beneficial to make this clear
in the Fees Schedule and provide
further clarifying language regarding the
finality of fees. Specifically, the
Exchange seeks to amend Footnote 7 to
state ‘‘Any potential billing errors
relating to fees assessed by CBOE must
be brought to the attention of CBOE’s
Accounting Department within three
months from the invoice date. All fees
assessed shall be deemed final and nonrefundable after three months from the
invoice date. The Exchange is not
precluded from assessing fees more than
three months after they were incurred if
those fees were required to be paid
pursuant to the CBOE Fees Schedule in
effect at the time the fees were
incurred.’’ The Exchange notes that this
has always been the case, and the
clarification is simply reflecting how the
current language of the CBOE Fees
Schedule applies. The Exchange also
notes that its practice is to assess fees in
a timely manner at the time such fees
are incurred. However, the Exchange
requires the ability to assess any fee
upon discovering an error regardless of
how much time has passed since the fee
was incurred.
The Exchange next proposes to make
an amendment to the CBOE Command
Connectivity Charges table. Currently,
the Exchange charges TPHs a $500 per
month Network Access Port fee for 1
gigabit (‘‘1 Gbps’’) network access
connectivity and $3,000 per month for
10 Gbps network connectivity. The
Network Access Ports provide direct
access to CBOE Command.
Additionally, in order to be able to
connect to the Exchange’s disaster
recovery systems in case of a disaster,
the Exchange offers a Disaster Recovery
Network Access Port in Chicago for a
$250 per month fee. The Exchange
currently offers only a 1 Gbps Disaster
Recovery Network Access Port
connection. Network Access Ports are
used to receive unicast (i.e., orders and
quotes) and multicast (i.e., market data)
traffic. The Exchange notes that a 1
Gbps port may receive both unicast and
multicast traffic, whereas a 10 Gbps port
may only receive either multicast or
unicast traffic. The Exchange seeks to
clarify that the Network Access Port fee
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U.S.C. 78f(b)(1).
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 167 / Thursday, August 28, 2014 / Notices
is assessed separately for unicast and
multicast connectivity. Accordingly, if a
TPH has 1 Gbps connectivity and
receives both unicast and multicast
traffic through a single port, the TPH
would be charged $1,000 dollars per
month (i.e., $500 per month for unicast
connectivity and $500 per month for
multicast connectivity). Similarly, if a
TPH has one 1 Gbps Network Access
Port for unicast connectivity only and
another 1 Gbps Network Access Port for
multicast connectivity only, the TPH
would be charged $1,000 dollars per
month (i.e. $500 per month for each
port). Additionally, if a TPH has a single
1 Gbps Disaster Recovery Network
Access Port and receives both unicast
and multicast traffic through the single
port, the TPH would be charged $500
dollars per month (i.e., $250 per month
for unicast connectivity and $250 per
month for multicast connectivity).
Similarly, if a TPH has one 1 Gbps
Disaster Recovery Network Access Port
for unicast connectivity only and
another 1 Gbps Disaster Recovery
Network Access Port for multicast
connectivity only, the TPH would be
charged $500 dollars per month (i.e.
$250 per month for each port). As noted
above, a single 10 Gbps Network Access
Port cannot receive both unicast and
multicast traffic. Accordingly, if a TPH
wants a 10 Gbps connection, in order to
receive both traffic types the TPH would
need to purchase two 10 Gbps Network
Access Ports (i.e., one to be used for
multicast connectivity and one to be
used for unicast activity) and would
therefore be charged $6,000 per month
(i.e., $3,000 per month for each port)
Lastly, the Exchange proposes to
make a clarification to the ‘‘Notes’’
section of the Clearing Trading Permit
Holder Position Re-Assignment Rebate
Program (‘‘Rebate Program’’). By way of
background, the Rebate Program allows
the Exchange to rebate assessed
transaction fees to a Clearing Trading
Permit Holder (‘‘CTPH’’) who, as a
result of a trade adjustment on any
business day following the original
trade, re-assigns a position established
by the initial trade to a different CTPH.
In such a circumstance, the Exchange
will rebate, for the party for whom the
position is being re-assigned, that
party’s transaction fees from the original
transaction as well as the transaction in
which the position is re-assigned.
Because the Exchange may not always
be able to automatically identify these
situations, in order to receive a rebate,
the Exchange requires a written request
with all supporting documentation
(trade detail regarding both the original
and re-assigning trades) and a summary
VerDate Mar<15>2010
14:14 Aug 27, 2014
Jkt 232001
of the reasons for the re-assignment to
be submitted within 60 days after the
last day of the month in which the error
occurred. In SR–CBOE–2002–013 5 and
again in SR–CBOE–2013–058,6 the
Exchange describes a situation
involving a member’s clerk, or other
similar personnel, inputting the wrong
clearing firm code into the appropriate
form or program. As a result, the
Exchange noted that the trade would be
cleared through the wrong clearing firm
and, in order to correct the situation,
corrective transactions would be entered
to reverse the error trades and then new
trades would be submitted to reflect the
original intentions of the parties.
Without the keypunch error rebate
program, the clearing firm whose code
was erroneously entered would have to
pay Exchange transaction fees for any
transactions necessary to reverse the
initial trade (despite not having been a
party to such trade). The Exchange
proposes to clarify that it is the
‘‘executing’’ CTPH that would be
rebated, as opposed to a CTPH that
received a trade via a Clearing Member
Trade Agreement (CMTA).7 The
Exchange believes the proposed
clarification to the Notes section of the
Rebate Program will provide greater
clarity for market participants and
reduce potential confusion.
2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes the proposed
rule change is consistent with the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the
‘‘Act’’) and the rules and regulations
thereunder applicable to the Exchange
and, in particular, the requirements of
Section 6(b) of the Act.8 Specifically,
the Exchange believes the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Section
6(b)(5) 9 requirements that the rules of
an exchange 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 regulating, clearing, settling,
processing information with respect to,
and facilitation transactions in
5 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 34–
45675 (March 29, 2002), 67 FR 16480 (April 5,
2002) (SR–CBOE–2002–013).
6 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 34–
69760 (June 13, 2013), 78 FR 36805 (June 19, 2013)
(SR–CBOE–2013–058).
7 Under a CMTA agreement, an Options Clearing
Corporation clearing member (‘‘carrying clearing
member’’) authorizes another clearing member
(‘‘executing clearing member’’) to give up the name
of the carrying clearing member with respect to any
trade executed on a specific exchange (i.e., the reassignment of a trade to a different Clearing firm
occurs post-trade at the OCC).
8 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
9 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
PO 00000
Frm 00088
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
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
Exchange also believes the proposed
rule change is consistent with Section
6(b)(4) of the Act,10 which provides that
Exchange rules may provide for the
equitable allocation of reasonable dues,
fees, and other charges among its
Trading Permit Holders.
In particular, the Exchange believes
that the proposed clarifications to the
Fees Schedule will make the Fees
Schedule easier to read and alleviate
potential confusion. The alleviation of
potential confusion will remove
impediments to and perfect the
mechanism of a free and open market
and a national market system, and, in
general, protect investors and the public
interest. Specifically, the Exchange
believes that the proposed change to
delete the sentence in Footnote 5 will
alleviate any potential confusion
regarding whether such activity is
permitted. The Exchange believes that
the amendments to Footnote 7 provides
further clarification as to the finality of
assessed fees and prevents potential
confusion as to whether or not the
Exchange may assess fees more than
three months after they were incurred.
The Exchange believes the
amendment to the Floor Brokerage fees
table will promote just and equitable
principles of trade by clarifying to
Trading Permit Holders that floor
brokerage fees apply to the EuropeanStyle Exercise S&P 100 Index option
(XEO) as well as the American-Style
Exercise S&P 100 Index option (OEX),
thereby eliminating potential confusion
and removing impediments to and
perfecting the mechanism of a free and
open market and a national market
system. Providing a clearer
representation of fees in the Exchange
Fees Schedule will remove any
confusion that may exist as to which
products may be subject to certain fees.
The Exchange believes it is reasonable,
equitable and not unfairly
discriminatory to apply the same floor
brokerage fees to XEO options as
currently applied to OEX options,
because both are S&P 100 Index options.
As noted above, the only difference
between the two options is the manner
in which the options are exercised (i.e.
American-style versus European-style).
The Exchange also believes that the
proposed change to specify that separate
Network Access Fees are assessed for
unicast and multicast connectivity also
alleviates potential confusion regarding
10 15
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U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).
28AUN1
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 167 / Thursday, August 28, 2014 / Notices
how the Network Access Fee is
assessed, thereby removing
impediments to and perfecting the
mechanism of a free and open market
and a national market system, and, in
general, protect investors and the public
interest. The Exchange believes the
proposed rule change is reasonable
because the amount assessed for unicast
connectivity and multicast connectivity
to TPHs using 1 Gbps Network Access
Port(s) is the same. Additionally, the
Exchange believes this change is
equitable and not unfairly
discriminatory because it will apply to
all TPHs who use a 1 Gbps Network
Access Port equally. The Exchange
notes that whether a TPH receives
unicast and multicast connectivity via a
single 1 Gbps Network Access Port, two
separate 1 Gbps Network Access Ports
or two separate 10 Gbps Network Access
Ports, in each instance, the TPH would
be charged for each type of access
regardless of how many physical ports
they use.
Lastly, the Exchange believes it will
be beneficial to market participants to
make it explicitly clear that it is the
‘‘executing’’ CTPH that would be
rebated under the Clearing Trading
Permit Holder Position Re-Assignment
Rebate Program. The Exchange believes
this proposed rule change reduces
confusion as to which CTPHs are
entitled to a rebate under the Rebate
Program, thereby removing
impediments to and perfecting the
mechanism of a free and open market
and a national market system, and, in
general, protect investors and the public
interest.
B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement on Burden on Competition
The Exchange does not believe that
the proposed rule change will impose
any burden on competition that is not
necessary or appropriate in furtherance
of the purposes of the Act. The
proposed changes to alleviate confusion
are not intended for competitive reasons
and only apply to CBOE.
pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement on Comments on the
Proposed Rule Change Received From
Members, Participants, or Others
The Exchange neither solicited nor
received comments on the proposed
rule change.
III. Date of Effectiveness of the
Proposed Rule Change and Timing for
Commission Action
The foregoing rule change has become
effective pursuant to Section 19(b)(3)(A)
VerDate Mar<15>2010
14:14 Aug 27, 2014
Jkt 232001
of the Act 11 and paragraph (f) of Rule
19b–4 12 thereunder. At any time within
60 days of the filing of the 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 will institute proceedings
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–
CBOE–2014–065 on the subject line.
Paper Comments
• Send paper comments in triplicate
to Secretary, Securities and Exchange
Commission, 100 F Street NE.,
Washington, DC 20549–1090.
All submissions should refer to File
Number SR–CBOE–2014–065. 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
11 15
12 17
PO 00000
U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
CFR. 240.19b–4(f).
Frm 00089
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
51383
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
available publicly. All submissions
should refer to File Number SR–CBOE–
2014–065 and should be submitted on
or before September 18, 2014.
For the Commission, by the Division of
Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated
authority.13
Kevin M. O’Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014–20468 Filed 8–27–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Release No. 34–72899; File No. SR–
NASDAQ–2014–067]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; The
NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; Order
Granting Approval of Proposed Rule
Change To Rule 5305 To Eliminate the
Automatic Transfer of Companies
From The NASDAQ Global Market to
The NASDAQ Global Select Market
August 22, 2014.
I. Introduction
On June 25, 2014, The NASDAQ
Stock Market LLC (‘‘NASDAQ’’ or
‘‘Exchange’’) 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
amend its rules in order to eliminate the
Exchange’s automatic annual review
and transfer of qualified companies
from The NASDAQ Global Market to
The NASDAQ Global Select Market. The
proposed rule change was published for
comment in the Federal Register on July
10, 2014.3 The Commission received no
comment letters regarding the proposed
rule change. This order approves the
proposed rule change.
II. Description of the Proposal
NASDAQ consists of three listing
tiers: The NASDAQ Global Select
Market (‘‘Global Select’’ or ‘‘Global
Select Market’’), The NASDAQ Global
Market (‘‘Global Market’’), and The
NASDAQ Capital Market (‘‘Capital
13 17
CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).
U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
2 17 CFR 240.19b–4.
3 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 72538
(July 3, 2014), 79 FR 39446 (‘‘Notice’’).
1 15
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 167 (Thursday, August 28, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51381-51383]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-20468]
[[Page 51381]]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-72903; File No. SR-CBOE-2014-065]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; Chicago Board Options Exchange,
Incorporated; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of a
Proposed Rule Change To Amend the Fees Schedule
August 22, 2014.
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 August 12, 2014, 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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\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
The Exchange proposes to amend its Fees Schedule. The text of the
proposed rule change is available on the Exchange's Web site (https://www.cboe.com/AboutCBOE/CBOELegalRegulatoryHome.aspx), at the Exchange's
Office of the Secretary, 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 Exchange 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 these 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 aspects of such
statements.
A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
1. Purpose
The Exchange proposes to amend its Fees Schedule. First, the
Exchange proposes to delete from Footnote 5 of the Fees Schedule the
sentence ``If a market-maker executes an order for an account in which
the market-maker is not a registered participant as reflected in the
TPH Department records, the market-maker will be assessed a floor
brokerage fee.'' Exchange Rule 8.9 currently prohibits a Market-Maker
from executing an order for an account in which the market-maker is not
a registered participant.\3\ As such, the Exchange does not wish to
have a statement in its Fees Schedule assessing a fee for such
activity, as this would seem to imply that such activity is permitted.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ See CBOE Rule 8.9.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Next, the Exchange proposes to amend the Floor Brokerage Fees
table. Currently, the Floor Brokerage Fees table sets forth the fees
per contract for the following products: (i) ``OEX, SPX and SPXpm Index
Options; (ii), ``SROs'' and (iii) ``VIX, VXST and Volatility Index
Options.'' Additionally, the Floor Brokerage Fees table groups together
like products and differentiates between fees for ``Non-Crossed
Orders'' and ``Crossed Orders.'' Although OEX, an American-Style
Exercise S&P 100 Index option, is explicitly referenced in the Floor
Brokerage Fees table, XEO, the European-Style Exercise S&P 100 Index
option, is not separately spelled out in the Floor Brokerage Fees
table. The Exchange is proposing to make clear in the text of the Fees
Schedule that XEO is a product in which floor brokerage fees apply. The
Exchange notes that the only difference between OEX and XEO options is
the manner in which the respective contracts are exercised (i.e.
American-style versus European-style). The Exchange believes the
proposed addition of rule text will provide greater clarity for
customers and will allow market participants to better understand how
fees are applied.
Next, the Exchange proposes to amend Footnote 7 of the Fees
Schedule. Footnote 7 of the current Fees Schedule provides ``After
three months, all fees as assessed by the Exchange are considered final
by the Exchange.'' The purpose of this statement is to encourage
Trading Permit Holders (``TPHs'') to promptly review their Exchange
invoices so that any disputed charges can be addressed in a timely
manner. The Exchange notes that the footnote is not intended to
preclude the Exchange from assessing fees more than three months after
they were incurred. Indeed, the Exchange is required to enforce
compliance by its TPHs and persons associated with its TPHs the rules
of the Exchange, including its Fees Schedule.\4\ As such, the Exchange
must ensure that it assesses the fees set forth in its Fees Schedule so
long as the fee(s) were required to be paid pursuant to the CBOE Fees
Schedule in effect at the time the fees were incurred, even if the
Exchange must assess the fees more than three months after they have
been incurred. The Exchange believes it would be beneficial to make
this clear in the Fees Schedule and provide further clarifying language
regarding the finality of fees. Specifically, the Exchange seeks to
amend Footnote 7 to state ``Any potential billing errors relating to
fees assessed by CBOE must be brought to the attention of CBOE's
Accounting Department within three months from the invoice date. All
fees assessed shall be deemed final and non-refundable after three
months from the invoice date. The Exchange is not precluded from
assessing fees more than three months after they were incurred if those
fees were required to be paid pursuant to the CBOE Fees Schedule in
effect at the time the fees were incurred.'' The Exchange notes that
this has always been the case, and the clarification is simply
reflecting how the current language of the CBOE Fees Schedule applies.
The Exchange also notes that its practice is to assess fees in a timely
manner at the time such fees are incurred. However, the Exchange
requires the ability to assess any fee upon discovering an error
regardless of how much time has passed since the fee was incurred.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(1).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Exchange next proposes to make an amendment to the CBOE Command
Connectivity Charges table. Currently, the Exchange charges TPHs a $500
per month Network Access Port fee for 1 gigabit (``1 Gbps'') network
access connectivity and $3,000 per month for 10 Gbps network
connectivity. The Network Access Ports provide direct access to CBOE
Command. Additionally, in order to be able to connect to the Exchange's
disaster recovery systems in case of a disaster, the Exchange offers a
Disaster Recovery Network Access Port in Chicago for a $250 per month
fee. The Exchange currently offers only a 1 Gbps Disaster Recovery
Network Access Port connection. Network Access Ports are used to
receive unicast (i.e., orders and quotes) and multicast (i.e., market
data) traffic. The Exchange notes that a 1 Gbps port may receive both
unicast and multicast traffic, whereas a 10 Gbps port may only receive
either multicast or unicast traffic. The Exchange seeks to clarify that
the Network Access Port fee
[[Page 51382]]
is assessed separately for unicast and multicast connectivity.
Accordingly, if a TPH has 1 Gbps connectivity and receives both unicast
and multicast traffic through a single port, the TPH would be charged
$1,000 dollars per month (i.e., $500 per month for unicast connectivity
and $500 per month for multicast connectivity). Similarly, if a TPH has
one 1 Gbps Network Access Port for unicast connectivity only and
another 1 Gbps Network Access Port for multicast connectivity only, the
TPH would be charged $1,000 dollars per month (i.e. $500 per month for
each port). Additionally, if a TPH has a single 1 Gbps Disaster
Recovery Network Access Port and receives both unicast and multicast
traffic through the single port, the TPH would be charged $500 dollars
per month (i.e., $250 per month for unicast connectivity and $250 per
month for multicast connectivity). Similarly, if a TPH has one 1 Gbps
Disaster Recovery Network Access Port for unicast connectivity only and
another 1 Gbps Disaster Recovery Network Access Port for multicast
connectivity only, the TPH would be charged $500 dollars per month
(i.e. $250 per month for each port). As noted above, a single 10 Gbps
Network Access Port cannot receive both unicast and multicast traffic.
Accordingly, if a TPH wants a 10 Gbps connection, in order to receive
both traffic types the TPH would need to purchase two 10 Gbps Network
Access Ports (i.e., one to be used for multicast connectivity and one
to be used for unicast activity) and would therefore be charged $6,000
per month (i.e., $3,000 per month for each port)
Lastly, the Exchange proposes to make a clarification to the
``Notes'' section of the Clearing Trading Permit Holder Position Re-
Assignment Rebate Program (``Rebate Program''). By way of background,
the Rebate Program allows the Exchange to rebate assessed transaction
fees to a Clearing Trading Permit Holder (``CTPH'') who, as a result of
a trade adjustment on any business day following the original trade,
re-assigns a position established by the initial trade to a different
CTPH. In such a circumstance, the Exchange will rebate, for the party
for whom the position is being re-assigned, that party's transaction
fees from the original transaction as well as the transaction in which
the position is re-assigned. Because the Exchange may not always be
able to automatically identify these situations, in order to receive a
rebate, the Exchange requires a written request with all supporting
documentation (trade detail regarding both the original and re-
assigning trades) and a summary of the reasons for the re-assignment to
be submitted within 60 days after the last day of the month in which
the error occurred. In SR-CBOE-2002-013 \5\ and again in SR-CBOE-2013-
058,\6\ the Exchange describes a situation involving a member's clerk,
or other similar personnel, inputting the wrong clearing firm code into
the appropriate form or program. As a result, the Exchange noted that
the trade would be cleared through the wrong clearing firm and, in
order to correct the situation, corrective transactions would be
entered to reverse the error trades and then new trades would be
submitted to reflect the original intentions of the parties. Without
the keypunch error rebate program, the clearing firm whose code was
erroneously entered would have to pay Exchange transaction fees for any
transactions necessary to reverse the initial trade (despite not having
been a party to such trade). The Exchange proposes to clarify that it
is the ``executing'' CTPH that would be rebated, as opposed to a CTPH
that received a trade via a Clearing Member Trade Agreement (CMTA).\7\
The Exchange believes the proposed clarification to the Notes section
of the Rebate Program will provide greater clarity for market
participants and reduce potential confusion.
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\5\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 34-45675 (March 29,
2002), 67 FR 16480 (April 5, 2002) (SR-CBOE-2002-013).
\6\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 34-69760 (June 13,
2013), 78 FR 36805 (June 19, 2013) (SR-CBOE-2013-058).
\7\ Under a CMTA agreement, an Options Clearing Corporation
clearing member (``carrying clearing member'') authorizes another
clearing member (``executing clearing member'') to give up the name
of the carrying clearing member with respect to any trade executed
on a specific exchange (i.e., the re-assignment of a trade to a
different Clearing firm occurs post-trade at the OCC).
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2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes the proposed rule change is consistent with
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the ``Act'') and the rules and
regulations thereunder applicable to the Exchange and, in particular,
the requirements of Section 6(b) of the Act.\8\ Specifically, the
Exchange believes the proposed rule change is consistent with the
Section 6(b)(5) \9\ requirements that the rules of an exchange 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 regulating, clearing,
settling, processing information with respect to, and facilitation
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 Exchange
also believes the proposed rule change is consistent with Section
6(b)(4) of the Act,\10\ which provides that Exchange rules may provide
for the equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees, and other
charges among its Trading Permit Holders.
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\8\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
\9\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
\10\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).
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In particular, the Exchange believes that the proposed
clarifications to the Fees Schedule will make the Fees Schedule easier
to read and alleviate potential confusion. The alleviation of potential
confusion will remove impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a
free and open market and a national market system, and, in general,
protect investors and the public interest. Specifically, the Exchange
believes that the proposed change to delete the sentence in Footnote 5
will alleviate any potential confusion regarding whether such activity
is permitted. The Exchange believes that the amendments to Footnote 7
provides further clarification as to the finality of assessed fees and
prevents potential confusion as to whether or not the Exchange may
assess fees more than three months after they were incurred.
The Exchange believes the amendment to the Floor Brokerage fees
table will promote just and equitable principles of trade by clarifying
to Trading Permit Holders that floor brokerage fees apply to the
European-Style Exercise S&P 100 Index option (XEO) as well as the
American-Style Exercise S&P 100 Index option (OEX), thereby eliminating
potential confusion and removing impediments to and perfecting the
mechanism of a free and open market and a national market system.
Providing a clearer representation of fees in the Exchange Fees
Schedule will remove any confusion that may exist as to which products
may be subject to certain fees. The Exchange believes it is reasonable,
equitable and not unfairly discriminatory to apply the same floor
brokerage fees to XEO options as currently applied to OEX options,
because both are S&P 100 Index options. As noted above, the only
difference between the two options is the manner in which the options
are exercised (i.e. American-style versus European-style).
The Exchange also believes that the proposed change to specify that
separate Network Access Fees are assessed for unicast and multicast
connectivity also alleviates potential confusion regarding
[[Page 51383]]
how the Network Access Fee is assessed, thereby removing impediments to
and perfecting the mechanism of a free and open market and a national
market system, and, in general, protect investors and the public
interest. The Exchange believes the proposed rule change is reasonable
because the amount assessed for unicast connectivity and multicast
connectivity to TPHs using 1 Gbps Network Access Port(s) is the same.
Additionally, the Exchange believes this change is equitable and not
unfairly discriminatory because it will apply to all TPHs who use a 1
Gbps Network Access Port equally. The Exchange notes that whether a TPH
receives unicast and multicast connectivity via a single 1 Gbps Network
Access Port, two separate 1 Gbps Network Access Ports or two separate
10 Gbps Network Access Ports, in each instance, the TPH would be
charged for each type of access regardless of how many physical ports
they use.
Lastly, the Exchange believes it will be beneficial to market
participants to make it explicitly clear that it is the ``executing''
CTPH that would be rebated under the Clearing Trading Permit Holder
Position Re-Assignment Rebate Program. The Exchange believes this
proposed rule change reduces confusion as to which CTPHs are entitled
to a rebate under the Rebate Program, thereby removing impediments to
and perfecting the mechanism of a free and open market and a national
market system, and, in general, protect investors and the public
interest.
B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition
The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule change will
impose any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate
in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. The proposed changes to
alleviate confusion are not intended for competitive reasons and only
apply to CBOE.
C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others
The Exchange neither solicited nor received comments on the
proposed rule change.
III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for
Commission Action
The foregoing rule change has become effective pursuant to Section
19(b)(3)(A) of the Act \11\ and paragraph (f) of Rule 19b-4 \12\
thereunder. At any time within 60 days of the filing of the 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 will institute proceedings to
determine whether the proposed rule change should be approved or
disapproved.
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\11\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
\12\ 17 CFR. 240.19b-4(f).
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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-CBOE-2014-065 on the subject line.
Paper Comments
Send paper comments in triplicate to Secretary, Securities
and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street NE., Washington, DC 20549-1090.
All submissions should refer to File Number SR-CBOE-2014-065. 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 available publicly. All
submissions should refer to File Number SR-CBOE-2014-065 and should be
submitted on or before September 18, 2014.
For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\13\
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\13\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Kevin M. O'Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014-20468 Filed 8-27-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P