Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE Arca, Inc.; Notice of Filing of Proposed Rule Change Relating to Listing and Trading of Shares of the SPDR® DoubleLine Total Return Tactical ETF Under NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600, 572-582 [2014-30894]
Download as PDF
572
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2015 / Notices
filing. However, Rule 19b–4(f)(6)(iii) 13
permits the Commission to 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
because the clarification of the right to
indemnification may enhance the ability
of the relevant officers of ICE to carry
out their responsibilities as such,
including their responsibilities under
the Exchange Act, without delay.
Therefore, the Commission hereby
waives the operative delay and
designates the proposed rule change
operative upon filing.14
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 shall institute proceedings
to determine whether the proposed rule
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:
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
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–
NYSE–2014–67 on the subject line.
Paper Comments
• Send paper comments in triplicate
to Brent J. Fields, Secretary, Securities
and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street
NE., Washington, DC 20549–1090.
All submissions should refer to File
Number SR–NYSE–2014–67. 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
13 17
CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6)(iii).
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).
14 For
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:38 Jan 05, 2015
Jkt 235001
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–NYSE–
2014–67, and should be submitted on or
before January 27, 2015.
For the Commission, by the Division of
Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated
authority.15
Brent J. Fields,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014–30898 Filed 1–5–15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Release No. 34–73958; File No. SR–
NYSEArca–2014–143]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE
Arca, Inc.; Notice of Filing of Proposed
Rule Change Relating to Listing and
Trading of Shares of the SPDR®
DoubleLine Total Return Tactical ETF
Under NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600
December 30, 2014.
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 December
17, 2014, NYSE Arca, Inc. (the
‘‘Exchange’’ or ‘‘NYSE Arca’’) filed with
the Securities and Exchange
Commission (the ‘‘Commission’’) the
proposed rule change as described in
15 17
CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).
U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
2 15 U.S.C. 78a.
3 17 CFR 240.19b–4.
1 15
PO 00000
Frm 00092
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
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 Substance of
the Proposed Rule Change
The Exchange proposes to list and
trade shares of the SPDR® DoubleLine
Total Return Tactical ETF under NYSE
Arca Equities Rule 8.600 (‘‘Managed
Fund Shares’’). 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
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule
Change
1. Purpose
The Exchange proposes to list and
trade shares (’’Shares’’) of the following
under NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600,
which governs the listing and trading of
Managed Fund Shares: 4 SPDR®
DoubleLine Total Return Tactical ETF
(‘‘Fund’’).5 The Shares will be offered by
4 A Managed Fund Share is a security that
represents an interest in an investment company
registered under the Investment Company Act of
1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a–1) (‘‘1940 Act’’) organized as
an open-end investment company or similar entity
that invests in a portfolio of securities selected by
its investment adviser consistent with its
investment objectives and policies. In contrast, an
open-end investment company that issues
Investment Company Units, listed and traded on
the Exchange under NYSE Arca Equities Rule
5.2(j)(3), seeks to provide investment results that
correspond generally to the price and yield
performance of a specific foreign or domestic stock
index, fixed income securities index or combination
thereof.
5 The Commission has previously approved
listing and trading on the Exchange of a number of
actively managed funds under Rule 8.600. See, e.g.,
Securities Exchange Act Release Nos. 57801 (May
8, 2008), 73 FR 27878 (May 14, 2008) (SR–
NYSEArca–2008–31) (order approving Exchange
listing and trading of twelve actively-managed
E:\FR\FM\06JAN1.SGM
06JAN1
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2015 / Notices
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
SSgA Active ETF Trust (the ‘‘Trust’’),
which is organized as a Massachusetts
business trust and is registered with the
Commission as an open-end
management investment company.6
SSgA Funds Management, Inc. will
serve as the investment adviser to the
Fund (the ‘‘Adviser’’ or ‘‘SSgA FM’’).
DoubleLine Capital L.P. will be the
Fund’s sub-adviser (‘‘Sub-Adviser’’).
State Street Global Markets, LLC (the
‘‘Distributor’’) will be the principal
underwriter and distributor of the
Fund’s Shares. State Street Bank and
Trust Company (the ‘‘Administrator’’,
‘‘Custodian’’ or ‘‘Transfer Agent’’) will
serve as administrator, custodian and
transfer agent for the Fund.
Commentary .06 to Rule 8.600
provides that, if the investment adviser
to the investment company issuing
Managed Fund Shares is affiliated with
a broker-dealer, such investment adviser
shall erect a ‘‘fire wall’’ between the
investment adviser and the brokerdealer with respect to access to
information concerning the composition
and/or changes to such investment
company portfolio. In addition,
Commentary .06 further requires that
personnel who make decisions on the
open-end fund’s portfolio composition
must be subject to procedures designed
to prevent the use and dissemination of
material nonpublic information
regarding the open-end fund’s
portfolio.7 Commentary .06 to Rule
funds of the WisdomTree Trust); 62502 (July 15,
2010), 75 FR 42471 (July 21, 2010) (SR–NYSEArca–
2010–57) (order approving listing and trading of
AdviserShares WCM/BNY Mellon Focused Growth
ADR ETF); 63076 (October 12, 2010), 75 FR 63874
(October 18, 2010) (SR–NYSEArca–2010–79) (order
approving listing and trading of Cambria Global
Tactical ETF); 71540 (February 12, 2014), 79 FR
9515 (February 19, 2014) (SR–NYSEArca–2013–
138) (order approving listing and trading of shares
of the iShares Enhanced International Large-Cap
ETF and iShares Enhanced International Small-Cap
ETF).
6 The Trust is registered under the 1940 Act. On
May 30, 2014, the Trust filed with the Commission
an amendment to its registration statement on Form
N–1A under the Securities Act of 1933 (‘‘Securities
Act’’) (15 U.S.C. 77a), and under the 1940 Act
relating to the Fund (File Nos. 333–173276 and
811–22542) (‘‘Registration Statement’’). The
description of the operation of the Trust and the
Fund herein is based, in part, on the Registration
Statement. In addition, the Commission has issued
an order granting certain exemptive relief to the
Trust under the 1940 Act. See Investment Company
Act Release No. 29524 (December 13, 2010) (File
No. 812–13487) (‘‘Exemptive Order’’).
7 An investment adviser to an open-end fund is
required to be registered under the Investment
Advisers Act of 1940 (the ‘‘Advisers Act’’). As a
result, the Adviser and Sub-Adviser and their
related personnel are subject to the provisions of
Rule 204A–1 under the Advisers Act relating to
codes of ethics. This Rule requires investment
advisers to adopt a code of ethics that reflects the
fiduciary nature of the relationship to clients as
well as compliance with other applicable securities
laws. Accordingly, procedures designed to prevent
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:38 Jan 05, 2015
Jkt 235001
8.600 is similar to Commentary .03(a)(i)
and (iii) to NYSE Arca Equities Rule
5.2(j)(3); however, Commentary .06 in
connection with the establishment of a
‘‘fire wall’’ between the investment
adviser and the broker-dealer reflects
the applicable open-end fund’s
portfolio, not an underlying benchmark
index, as is the case with index-based
funds. The Adviser and Sub-Adviser are
not registered as a broker-dealer but the
Adviser is affiliated with a broker-dealer
and has implemented a ‘‘fire wall’’ with
respect to such broker-dealer regarding
access to information concerning the
composition and/or changes to the
Fund’s portfolio. The Sub-Adviser is not
affiliated with a broker-dealer. In the
event (a) the Adviser or Sub-Adviser
becomes registered as a broker-dealer or
newly affiliated with a broker-dealer, or
(b) any new adviser or sub-adviser is a
registered broker-dealer or becomes
affiliated with a broker-dealer, it will
implement a fire wall with respect to its
relevant personnel or broker-dealer
affiliate regarding access to information
concerning the composition and/or
changes to the portfolio, and will be
subject to procedures designed to
prevent the use and dissemination of
material non-public information
regarding such portfolio.
SPDR® DoubleLine Total Return
Tactical ETF
Principal Investments
According to the Registration
Statement, the investment objective of
the Fund will be to maximize total
return. Under normal circumstances,8
the Fund will invest all of its assets in
the SSgA DoubleLine Total Return
Tactical Portfolio (the ‘‘Portfolio’’), a
the communication and misuse of non-public
information by an investment adviser must be
consistent with Rule 204A–1 under the Advisers
Act. In addition, Rule 206(4)–7 under the Advisers
Act makes it unlawful for an investment adviser to
provide investment advice to clients unless such
investment adviser has (i) adopted and
implemented written policies and procedures
reasonably designed to prevent violation, by the
investment adviser and its supervised persons, of
the Advisers Act and the Commission rules adopted
thereunder; (ii) implemented, at a minimum, an
annual review regarding the adequacy of the
policies and procedures established pursuant to
subparagraph (i) above and the effectiveness of their
implementation; and (iii) designated an individual
(who is a supervised person) responsible for
administering the policies and procedures adopted
under subparagraph (i) above.
8 The term ‘‘under normal circumstances’’
includes, but is not limited to, the absence of
extreme volatility or trading halts in the fixed
income markets or the financial markets generally;
operational issues causing dissemination of
inaccurate market information; or force majeure
type events such as systems failure, natural or manmade disaster, act of God, armed conflict, act of
terrorism, riot or labor disruption or any similar
intervening circumstance.
PO 00000
Frm 00093
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
573
separate series of the SSgA Master Trust
with an identical investment objective
as the Fund. As a result, the Fund will
invest indirectly in all of the securities
and assets owned by the Portfolio.9
Under normal circumstances, the
Portfolio will invest at least 80% of its
net assets in a diversified portfolio of
fixed income securities of any credit
quality, as described further below.10
Fixed income securities in which the
Portfolio principally will invest include
the following, as discussed further
below: Securities issued or guaranteed
by the U.S. government or its agencies,
instrumentalities or sponsored
corporations; inflation protected public
obligations of the U.S. Treasury
(commonly known as ‘‘TIPS’’); agency
and non-agency residential mortgagebacked securities (‘‘RMBS’’); agency and
non-agency commercial mortgagebacked securities (‘‘CMBS’’); agency and
non-agency asset-backed securities
9 The Fund is intended to be managed in a
‘‘master-feeder’’ structure, under which the Fund
invests substantially all of its assets in a
corresponding Portfolio (i.e., a ‘‘master fund’’),
which is a separate mutual fund registered under
the 1940 Act that has an identical investment
objective. As a result, the Fund (i.e., a ‘‘feeder
fund’’) has an indirect interest in all of the
securities and assets owned by the Portfolio.
Because of this indirect interest, the Fund’s
investment returns should be the same as those of
the Portfolio, adjusted for the expenses of the Fund.
In extraordinary instances, the Fund reserves the
right to make direct investments in securities and
other assets. The Adviser and Sub-Adviser will
manage the investments of the Portfolio. Under the
master-feeder arrangement, and pursuant to the
Investment Advisory Agreement between the
Adviser and the Trust, investment advisory fees
charged at the Portfolio level are deducted from the
advisory fees charged at the Fund level. This
arrangement avoids a ‘‘layering’’ of fees, i.e., the
Fund’s total annual operating expenses would be no
higher as a result of investing in a master-feeder
arrangement than they would be if the Fund
pursued its investment objective directly. In
addition, the Fund may discontinue investing
through the master-feeder arrangement and pursue
its investment objective directly if the Fund’s Board
of Trustees (‘‘Board’’) determines that doing so
would be in the best interests of shareholders.
10 Generally, as used in this proposed rule
change, the terms debt security, debt obligation,
bond, fixed income instrument and fixed income
security are used interchangeably. These terms
should be considered to include any evidence of
indebtedness, including, by way of example, a
security or instrument having one or more of the
following characteristics: A security or instrument
issued at a discount to its face value, a security or
instrument that pays interest at a fixed, floating, or
variable rate, or a security or instrument with a
stated principal amount that requires repayment of
some or all of that principal amount to the holder
of the security. These terms are interpreted broadly
to include any instrument or security evidencing
what is commonly referred to as an IOU rather than
evidencing the corporate ownership of equity
unless that equity represents an indirect or
derivative interest in one or more debt securities.
For this purpose, the terms also include
instruments that are intended to provide one or
more of the characteristics of a direct investment in
one or more debt securities.
E:\FR\FM\06JAN1.SGM
06JAN1
574
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2015 / Notices
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
(‘‘ABS’’); 11 domestic corporate bonds;
fixed income securities issued by
foreign corporations and foreign
governments including emerging
markets; bank loans (primarily senior
loans, including loan participations or
assignments whose loan syndication
exceeds $300 million), municipal bonds
and other securities (such as perpetual
bonds) bearing fixed interest rates of any
maturity.
The Portfolio intends to invest at least
20% of its net assets in mortgage-backed
securities of any maturity or type
guaranteed by, or secured by collateral
that is guaranteed by, the United States
Government, its agencies,
instrumentalities or sponsored
corporations, or in privately issued
mortgage-backed securities rated at the
time of investment Aa3 or higher by
Moody’s Investor Service, Inc.
(‘‘Moody’s’’) or AA- or higher by
Standard & Poor’s Rating Service
(‘‘S&P’’) or the equivalent by any other
nationally recognized statistical rating
organization (‘‘NRSRO’’) or in unrated
securities that are determined by the
Adviser to be of comparable quality.
The Portfolio may invest up to 20%
of its net assets in the aggregate in nonagency RMBS, CMBS and ABS.
The Sub-Adviser will actively manage
the Portfolio’s asset class exposure using
a top-down approach based on analysis
of sector fundamentals. The SubAdviser will rotate Portfolio assets
among sectors in various markets to
attempt to maximize return. Individual
securities within asset classes will be
selected using a bottom up approach.
Under normal circumstances, the SubAdviser will use a controlled risk
approach in managing the Portfolio’s
investments. The techniques of this
approach attempt to control the
principal risk components of the fixed
income markets and include
consideration of security selection
within a given sector; relative
performance of the various market
sectors; the shape of the yield curve;
and fluctuations in the overall level of
interest rates.
The Portfolio may invest in corporate
bonds.12 The investment return of
11 The term asset-backed securities is used by the
Fund to describe securities backed by installment
contracts, credit-card receivables or other assets but
does not include either residential or commercial
mortgage-backed securities. Both asset-backed and
commercial mortgage-backed securities represent
interests in ‘‘pools’’ of assets in which payments of
both interest and principal on the securities are
made on a regular basis. Asset-backed securities
also include institutionally traded senior floating
rate debt obligations issued by asset-backed pools
and other issues, and interests therein.
12 The Adviser expects that, under normal
circumstances, the Fund will generally seek to
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:38 Jan 05, 2015
Jkt 235001
corporate bonds reflects interest on the
bond and changes in the market value
of the bond. The market value of a
corporate bond may be affected by the
credit rating of the corporation, the
corporation’s performance and
perceptions of the corporation in the
market place. Such corporate bonds may
be investment grade or may be below
investment grade.
The Portfolio may invest in sovereign
debt. Sovereign debt obligations are
issued or guaranteed by foreign
governments or their agencies.
Sovereign debt may be in the form of
conventional securities or other types of
debt instruments such as loans or loan
participations. Sovereign debt
obligations may be either investment
grade or below investment grade.
The Portfolio may invest up to 25%
of its net assets in corporate high yield
securities (commonly known as ‘‘junk
bonds’’). Under normal circumstances,
the combined total of corporate,
sovereign, non-agency and all other debt
rated below investment grade will not
exceed 40% of the Fund’s net assets.
The Sub-Adviser will strive to allocate
below investment grade securities
broadly by industry and issuer in an
attempt to reduce the impact of negative
events on an industry or issuer. Below
investment grade securities are
instruments that are rated BB+ or lower
by S&P or Fitch Inc. or Ba1 or lower by
Moody’s or, if unrated by a NRSRO, of
comparable quality in the opinion of the
Sub-Adviser.
The Portfolio may invest up to 15%
of its net assets in securities
denominated in foreign currencies, and
may invest beyond this limit in U.S.
dollar-denominated securities of foreign
issuers. The Portfolio may invest up to
25% of its net assets in securities and
instruments that are economically tied
to emerging market countries.
The Sub-Adviser also will monitor the
duration of the securities held by the
Portfolio to seek to mitigate exposure to
interest rate risk.13 Under normal
circumstances, the Sub-Adviser will
seek to maintain an investment portfolio
with a weighted average effective
duration of no less than 1 year and no
more than 8 years. The duration of the
portfolio may vary materially from its
target, from time to time.
The Portfolio may invest in U.S.
Government obligations. U.S.
invest in corporate bond issuances that have at least
$100,000,000 par amount outstanding in developed
countries and at least $200,000,000 par amount
outstanding in emerging market countries.
13 Duration is a measure used to determine the
sensitivity of a security’s price to changes in
interest rates. The longer a security’s duration, the
more sensitive it will be to changes in interest rates.
PO 00000
Frm 00094
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Government obligations are a type of
bond. U.S. Government obligations
include securities issued or guaranteed
as to principal and interest by the U.S.
Government, its agencies or
instrumentalities.
The Portfolio may invest in TIPS of
the U.S. Treasury, as well as TIPS of
major governments and emerging
market countries, excluding the United
States. TIPS are a type of security issued
by a government that are designed to
provide inflation protection to investors.
The Portfolio may invest a substantial
portion of its assets in U.S. agency
mortgage pass-through securities. The
term ‘‘U.S. agency mortgage passthrough security’’ refers to a category of
pass-through securities backed by pools
of mortgages and issued by one of
several U.S. Government-sponsored
enterprises: Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae or
Freddie Mac.
The Portfolio will seek to obtain
exposure to U.S. agency mortgage passthrough securities primarily through the
use of ‘‘to-be-announced’’ or ‘‘TBA
transactions.’’ ‘‘TBA’’ refers to a
commonly used mechanism for the
forward settlement of U.S. agency
mortgage pass-through securities, and
not to a separate type of mortgagebacked security. Most transactions in
mortgage pass-through securities occur
through the use of TBA transactions.14
The Portfolio may invest in bank
loans, which include floating rate loans.
Bank loan interests may be acquired
from U.S. or foreign commercial banks,
insurance companies, finance
companies or other financial
institutions that have made loans or are
members of a lending syndicate or from
other holders of loan interests. Bank
loans typically pay interest at rates
which are re-determined periodically on
the basis of a floating base lending rate
(such as the London Inter-Bank Offered
Rate) plus a premium. Bank loans are
typically of below investment grade
quality. Bank loans generally (but not
always) hold the most senior position in
the capital structure of a borrower and
are often secured with collateral. The
Portfolio may invest in both secured and
unsecured loans.
The Portfolio may invest in
collateralized loan obligations (‘‘CLOs’’).
A CLO is a financing company
(generally called a Special Purpose
14 TBA transactions generally are conducted in
accordance with widely-accepted guidelines which
establish commonly observed terms and conditions
for execution, settlement and delivery. In a TBA
transaction, the buyer and seller decide on general
trade parameters, such as agency, settlement date,
par amount, and price. The actual pools delivered
generally are determined two days prior to
settlement date.
E:\FR\FM\06JAN1.SGM
06JAN1
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2015 / Notices
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Vehicle or ‘‘SPV’’), created to
reapportion the risk and return
characteristics of a pool of assets. While
the assets underlying CLOs are typically
bank loans, the assets may also include
(i) unsecured loans, (ii) other debt
securities that are rated below
investment grade, (iii) debt tranches of
other CLOs, and (iv) equity securities
incidental to investments in bank loans.
When investing in CLOs, the Portfolio
will not invest in equity tranches, which
are the lowest tranche. However, the
Portfolio may invest in lower debt
tranches of CLOs, which typically
experience a lower recovery, greater risk
of loss, or deferral or non-payment of
interest than more senior debt tranches
of the CLO. In addition, the Portfolio
intends to invest in CLOs consisting
primarily of individual bank loans of
borrowers and not repackaged CLO
obligations from other high risk pools.
The underlying bank loans purchased
by CLOs are generally performing at the
time of purchase but may become nonperforming, distressed or defaulted.
CLOs with underlying assets of nonperforming, distressed or defaulted
loans are not contemplated to comprise
a significant portion of the Portfolio’s
investments in CLOs.
Non-Principal Investments
While the Adviser and Sub-Adviser,
under normal circumstances, will invest
at least 80% of the Portfolio’s net assets
in fixed income securities as described
above, the Adviser and Sub-Adviser
may invest up to 20% of the Portfolio’s
net assets in other securities and
financial instruments, as described
below.
According to the Registration
Statement, in certain situations or
market conditions, the Fund may (either
directly or through the corresponding
Portfolio) temporarily depart from its
normal investment policies and
strategies provided that the alternative
is consistent with the Fund’s investment
objective and is in the best interest of
the Fund. For example, the Fund may
hold a higher than normal proportion of
its assets in cash in times of extreme
market stress.
The Fund may (either directly or
through its investments in its
corresponding Portfolio) invest in the
following types of investments: Money
market instruments, such as repurchase
agreements, money market funds
(including money market funds
managed by the Adviser), and
commercial paper.
The Portfolio may invest in preferred
securities traded on an exchange or
over-the-counter (‘‘OTC’’). Preferred
securities pay fixed or adjustable rate
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:38 Jan 05, 2015
Jkt 235001
dividends to investors, and have
‘‘preference’’ over common stock in the
payment of dividends and the
liquidation of a company’s assets.
The Portfolio may invest in
convertible securities traded on an
exchange or OTC. Convertible securities
are bonds, debentures, notes, preferred
stocks or other securities that may be
converted or exchanged (by the holder
or by the issuer) into shares of the
underlying common stock (or cash or
securities of equivalent value) at a stated
exchange ratio.
The Portfolio may conduct foreign
currency transactions on a spot (i.e.,
cash) or forward basis (i.e., by entering
into forward contracts to purchase or
sell foreign currencies).
The Portfolio may invest in foreign
corporate and sovereign bonds
originating from issuers in emerging
market countries. An ‘‘emerging market
country’’ is a country that, at the time
the Fund invests in the related fixed
income instruments, is classified as an
emerging or developing economy by any
supranational organization such as the
International Bank of Reconstruction
and Development or any affiliate thereof
(the ‘‘World Bank’’) or the United
Nations, or related entities, or is
considered an emerging market country
for purposes of constructing a major
emerging market securities index.
The Portfolio may invest in
‘‘Restricted Securities’’. Restricted
Securities are securities that are not
registered under the Securities Act, but
which can be offered and sold to
‘‘qualified institutional buyers’’ under
Rule 144A under the Securities Act.15
The Portfolio may invest in exchange
traded products (‘‘ETPs’’), which
include exchange traded funds (‘‘ETFs’’)
registered under the 1940 Act; exchange
traded commodity trusts; and exchange
traded notes (‘‘ETNs’’). The Adviser may
receive management or other fees from
the ETPs (‘‘Affiliated ETPs’’) in which
the Portfolio or Fund may invest, as
well as a management fee for managing
the Fund.16
15 See
note 21 and accompanying text, infra.
purposes of this filing, ETPs include
Investment Company Units (as described in NYSE
Arca Equities Rule 5.2(j)(3)); Index-Linked
Securities (as described in NYSE Arca Equities Rule
5.2(j)(6)); Portfolio Depositary Receipts (as
described in NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.100); Trust
Issued Receipts (as described in NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 8.200); Commodity-Based Trust
Shares (as described in NYSE Arca Equities Rule
8.201); Currency Trust Shares (as described in
NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.202); Commodity Index
Trust Shares (as described in NYSE Arca Equities
Rule 8.203); and Managed Fund Shares (as
described in NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600). The
Portfolio may invest in certain ETPs that pay fees
to the Adviser and its affiliates for management,
marketing or other services. The ETPs all will be
16 For
PO 00000
Frm 00095
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
575
The Portfolio may invest up to 20%
of its net assets in one or more ETPs that
are qualified publicly traded
partnerships (‘‘QPTPs’’) and whose
principal activities are the buying and
selling of commodities or options,
futures, or forwards with respect to
commodities. Income from QPTPs is
generally qualifying income. A QPTP is
an entity that is treated as a partnership
for federal income tax purposes, subject
to certain requirements. If such an ETP
fails to qualify as a QPTP, the income
generated from the Portfolio’s
investment in the QPTP may not be
qualifying income.17
The Portfolio may purchase exchangetraded common stocks and exchangetraded preferred securities of foreign
corporations. The Fund’s investments in
common stock of foreign corporations
may also be in the form of American
Depositary Receipts (‘‘ADRs’’), Global
Depositary Receipts (‘‘GDRs’’) and
European Depositary Receipts (‘‘EDRs’’)
(collectively ‘‘Depositary Receipts’’).18
The Portfolio may invest in the
securities of other investment
companies, including affiliated funds,
money market funds and closed-end
funds, subject to applicable limitations
under Section 12(d)(1) of the 1940 Act.
listed and traded in the U.S. on national securities
exchanges. While the Fund may invest in inverse
ETPs, the Fund will not invest in leveraged or
inverse leveraged ETPs (e.g., 2X or 3X).
17 Income from QPTPs is generally qualifying
income. Examples of such entities are the
PowerShares DB Energy Fund, PowerShares DB Oil
Fund, PowerShares DB Precious Metals Fund,
PowerShares DB Gold Fund, PowerShares DB Silver
Fund, PowerShares DB Base Metals Fund, and
PowerShares DB Agriculture Fund, which are listed
and traded on the Exchange pursuant to NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 8.200.
18 Depositary Receipts are receipts, typically
issued by a bank or trust company, which evidence
ownership of underlying securities issued by a
foreign corporation. For ADRs, the depository is
typically a U.S. financial institution and the
underlying securities are issued by a foreign issuer.
For other Depositary Receipts, the depository may
be a foreign or a U.S. entity, and the underlying
securities may have a foreign or a U.S. issuer.
Depositary Receipts will not necessarily be
denominated in the same currency as their
underlying securities. Generally, ADRs, in
registered form, are designed for use in the U.S.
securities market, and EDRs, in bearer form, are
designated for use in European securities markets.
GDRs are tradable both in the United States and in
Europe and are designed for use throughout the
world. The Fund may invest in sponsored or
unsponsored ADRs; however, not more than 10%
of the net assets of the Fund will be invested in
unsponsored ADRs. With the exception of
unsponsored ADRs, all equity securities (i.e.,
common stocks, Depositary Receipts, certain
preferred securities, ETPs and certain other
exchange-traded investment company securities) in
which the Portfolio or Fund may invest will trade
on markets that are members of the Intermarket
Surveillance Group (‘‘ISG’’) or that have entered
into a comprehensive surveillance agreement with
the Exchange.
E:\FR\FM\06JAN1.SGM
06JAN1
576
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2015 / Notices
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
The Portfolio may invest in municipal
securities, which are securities issued
by states, municipalities and other
political subdivisions, agencies,
authorities and instrumentalities of
states and multi-state agencies or
authorities. The municipal securities
which the Portfolio may purchase
include general obligation bonds and
limited obligation bonds (or revenue
bonds), including industrial
development bonds issued pursuant to
former federal tax law. General
obligation bonds are obligations
involving the credit of an issuer
possessing taxing power and are payable
from such issuer’s general revenues and
not from any particular source. Limited
obligation bonds are payable only from
the revenues derived from a particular
facility or class of facilities or, in some
cases, from the proceeds of a special
excise or other specific revenue source.
Also included within the general
category of municipal securities are
municipal leases, certificates of
participation in such lease obligations
or installment purchase contract
obligations.
The Portfolio may invest up to 20%
of its assets in derivatives, including
exchange-traded futures on Treasuries
or Eurodollars; U.S. exchange-traded or
OTC put and call options contracts and
OTC or exchange-traded swap
agreements 19 (including interest rate
swaps, total return swaps, excess return
swaps, and credit default swaps). The
Portfolio will segregate cash and/or
appropriate liquid assets if required to
do so by Commission or Commodity
Futures Trading Commission (‘‘CFTC’’)
regulation or interpretation.
In the case of a credit default swap
(‘‘CDS’’), the contract gives one party
(the buyer) the right to recoup the
economic value of a decline in the value
of debt securities of the reference issuer
if the credit event (a downgrade or
default) occurs. This value is obtained
by delivering a debt security of the
reference issuer to the party in return for
a previously agreed payment from the
other party (frequently, the par value of
the debt security).20
CDSs may require initial premium
(discount) payments as well as periodic
payments (receipts) related to the
interest leg of the swap or to the default
19 Swap agreements are contracts between parties
in which one party agrees to make periodic
payments to the other party based on the change in
market value or level of a specified rate, index or
asset. In return, the other party agrees to make
payments to the first party based on the return of
a different specified rate, index or asset.
20 The Portfolio will enter into CDS agreements
only with counterparties that meet certain
standards of creditworthiness.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:38 Jan 05, 2015
Jkt 235001
of a reference obligation. The Portfolio
will segregate assets necessary to meet
any accrued payment obligations when
it is the buyer of CDSs. In cases where
the Portfolio is a seller of a CDS, if the
CDS is physically settled, the Portfolio
will be required to segregate the full
notional amount of the CDS. Such
segregation will not limit the Portfolio’s
exposure to loss.
The Portfolio may invest in variable
and floating rate securities. Variable rate
securities are instruments issued or
guaranteed by entities such as (1) the
U.S. Government, or an agency or
instrumentality thereof, (2)
corporations, (3) financial institutions,
(4) insurance companies or (5) trusts
that have a rate of interest subject to
adjustment at regular intervals but less
frequently than annually. A variable rate
security provides for the automatic
establishment of a new interest rate on
set dates. Variable rate obligations
whose interest is readjusted no less
frequently than annually will be
deemed to have a maturity equal to the
period remaining until the next
readjustment of the interest rate. The
Portfolio may also purchase floating rate
securities. A floating rate security
provides for the automatic adjustment of
its interest rate whenever a specified
interest rate changes. Interest rates on
these securities are ordinarily tied to,
and are a percentage of, a widely
recognized interest rate, such as the
yield on 90-day U.S. Treasury bills or
the prime rate of a specified bank. These
rates may change as often as twice daily.
The Portfolio may invest in
repurchase agreements with commercial
banks, brokers or dealers to generate
income from its excess cash balances
and to invest securities lending cash
collateral. A repurchase agreement is an
agreement under which a fund acquires
a financial instrument (e.g., a security
issued by the U.S. Government or an
agency thereof, a banker’s acceptance or
a certificate of deposit) from a seller,
subject to resale to the seller at an
agreed upon price and date (normally,
the next business day).
The Portfolio may enter into reverse
repurchase agreements, which involve
the sale of securities with an agreement
to repurchase the securities at an
agreed-upon price, date and interest
payment and have the characteristics of
borrowing. The Portfolio’s exposure to
reverse repurchase agreements will be
covered by securities having a value
equal to or greater than such
commitments. Under the 1940 Act,
reverse repurchase agreements are
considered borrowings. Although there
is no limit on the percentage of Fund
assets that can be used in connection
PO 00000
Frm 00096
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
with reverse repurchase agreements, the
Portfolio does not expect to engage,
under normal circumstances, in reverse
repurchase agreements with respect to
more than 331⁄3% of its net assets.
The Portfolio may invest in short-term
instruments, including money market
instruments, (including money market
funds advised by the Adviser),
repurchase agreements, cash and cash
equivalents, on an ongoing basis to
provide liquidity or for other reasons.
Money market instruments are generally
short-term investments that may include
but are not limited to: (i) Shares of
money market funds (including those
advised by the Adviser); (ii) obligations
issued or guaranteed by the U.S.
government, its agencies or
instrumentalities (including
government-sponsored enterprises); (iii)
negotiable certificates of deposit
(‘‘CDs’’), bankers’ acceptances, fixed
time deposits and other obligations of
U.S. and foreign banks (including
foreign branches) and similar
institutions; (iv) commercial paper rated
at the date of purchase ‘‘Prime-1’’ by
Moody’s or ‘‘A–1’’ by S&P, or if unrated,
of comparable quality as determined by
the Adviser; (v) non-convertible
corporate debt securities (e.g., bonds
and debentures) with remaining
maturities at the date of purchase of not
more than 397 days and that satisfy the
rating requirements set forth in Rule
2a–7 under the 1940 Act; and (vi) shortterm U.S. dollar-denominated
obligations of foreign banks (including
U.S. branches) that, in the opinion of
the Adviser, are of comparable quality
to obligations of U.S. banks which may
be purchased by the Portfolio. Any of
these instruments may be purchased on
a current or a forward-settled basis.
Time deposits are non-negotiable
deposits maintained in banking
institutions for specified periods of time
at stated interest rates. Bankers’
acceptances are time drafts drawn on
commercial banks by borrowers, usually
in connection with international
transactions.
Investment Restrictions
The Fund may hold up to an aggregate
amount of 15% of its net assets in
illiquid assets (calculated at the time of
investment), including Rule 144A
Restricted Securities deemed illiquid by
the Adviser, consistent with
Commission guidance, and repurchase
agreements having maturities longer
than seven days.21 The Fund will
21 The Board has delegated the responsibility for
determining the liquidity of Rule 144A Restricted
Securities that the Portfolio may invest in to the
Adviser. In reaching liquidity decisions, the
E:\FR\FM\06JAN1.SGM
06JAN1
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2015 / Notices
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
monitor its portfolio liquidity on an
ongoing basis to determine whether, in
light of current circumstances, an
adequate level of liquidity is being
maintained, and will consider taking
appropriate steps in order to maintain
adequate liquidity if, through a change
in values, net assets, or other
circumstances, more than 15% of the
Fund’s net assets are held in illiquid
assets. Illiquid assets include securities
subject to contractual or other
restrictions on resale and other
instruments that lack readily available
markets as determined in accordance
with Commission staff guidance.22
According to the Registration
Statement, the Portfolio and Fund will
each be classified as a non-diversified
investment company under the 1940
Act. A ‘‘non-diversified’’ classification
means that the Portfolio or Fund is not
limited by the 1940 Act with regard to
the percentage of its assets that may be
invested in the securities of a single
issuer. This means that the Portfolio or
Fund may invest a greater portion of its
assets in the securities of a single issuer
than a diversified fund.23
The Portfolio and Fund do not intend
to concentrate their investments in any
particular industry. The Portfolio and
Fund look to the Global Industry
Classification Standard Level 3
(Industries) in making industry
determinations.24
Adviser may consider the following factors: The
frequency of trades and quotes for the security; the
number of dealers wishing to purchase or sell the
security and the number of other potential
purchasers; dealer undertakings to make a market
in the security; and the nature of the security and
the nature of the marketplace in which it trades
(e.g., the time needed to dispose of the security, the
method of soliciting offers and the mechanics of
transfer).
22 The Commission has stated that long-standing
Commission guidelines have required open-end
funds to hold no more than 15% of their net assets
in illiquid securities and other illiquid assets. See
Investment Company Act Release No. 28193 (March
11, 2008), 73 FR 14618 (March 18, 2008), footnote
34. See also, Investment Company Act Release No.
5847 (October 21, 1969), 35 FR 19989 (December
31, 1970) (Statement Regarding ‘‘Restricted
Securities’’); Investment Company Act Release No.
18612 (March 12, 1992), 57 FR 9828 (March 20,
1992) (Revisions of Guidelines to Form N–1A). A
fund’s portfolio security is illiquid if it cannot be
disposed of in the ordinary course of business
within seven days at approximately the value
ascribed to it by the fund. See Investment Company
Act Release No. 14983 (March 12, 1986), 51 FR
9773 (March 21, 1986) (adopting amendments to
Rule 2a–7 under the 1940 Act); Investment
Company Act Release No. 17452 (April 23, 1990),
55 FR 17933 (April 30, 1990) (adopting Rule 144A
under the Securities Act).
23 The diversification standard is set forth in
Section 5(b)(1) of the 1940 Act.
24 See Form N–1A, Item 9. The Commission has
taken the position that a fund is concentrated if it
invests more than 25% of the value of its total
assets in any one industry. See, e.g., Investment
Company Act Release No. 9011 (October 30, 1975),
40 FR 54241 (November 21, 1975).
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:38 Jan 05, 2015
Jkt 235001
The Portfolio and Fund intend to
maintain the required level of
diversification and otherwise conduct
their operations so as to qualify as a
‘‘regulated investment company’’ for
purposes of the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986.25
The Fund’s investments will be
consistent with its investment objective
and will not be used to enhance
leverage.
Net Asset Value
The Fund will calculate net asset
value (‘‘NAV’’) using the NAV of the
Portfolio. To the extent that the Fund
invests in instruments other than those
in the Portfolio, the Fund will calculate
its NAV based on all assets.
NAV per Share for the Fund will be
computed by dividing the value of the
net assets of the Portfolio (i.e., the value
of its total assets less total liabilities) by
the total number of Shares outstanding.
Expenses and fees, including the
management fees, will be accrued daily
and taken into account for purposes of
determining NAV. The NAV of the
Portfolio will be calculated by the
Custodian and determined as of the
close of the regular trading session on
the New York Stock Exchange (‘‘NYSE’’)
(ordinarily 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) on
each day that such exchange is open.
Fixed-income assets will generally be
valued as of the announced closing time
for trading in fixed-income instruments
in a particular market or exchange. Any
assets or liabilities denominated in
currencies other than the U.S. dollar
will be converted into U.S. dollars at
market rates on the date of valuation
(generally as of 4:00 p.m. London time)
as quoted by one or more sources.
In calculating the Portfolio’s NAV per
Share, the Portfolio’s investments will
generally be valued using market
valuations. A market valuation generally
means a valuation (i) obtained from an
exchange, a pricing service, or a major
market maker (or dealer), (ii) based on
a price quotation or other equivalent
indication of value supplied by an
exchange, a pricing service, or a major
market maker (or dealer), or (iii) based
on amortized cost. In the case of shares
of other funds that are not traded on an
exchange, a market valuation means
such fund’s published NAV per share.
The Adviser may use various pricing
services, or discontinue the use of any
pricing service, as approved by the
Board of the SSgA Master Trust from
time to time. A price obtained from a
pricing service based on such pricing
service’s valuation matrix may be
considered a market valuation.
25 26
PO 00000
U.S.C. 851.
Frm 00097
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
577
Common stocks and other exchangetraded equity securities (including
shares of preferred securities,
convertible securities, ETPs, and
QPTPs) generally will be valued at the
last reported sale price or the official
closing price on that exchange where
the stock is primarily traded on the day
that the valuation is made. Foreign
equities and exchange-listed Depositary
Receipts will be valued at the last sale
or official closing price on the relevant
exchange on the valuation date. If,
however, neither the last sales price nor
the official closing price is available,
each of these securities will be valued
at either the last reported sale price or
official closing price as of the close of
regular trading of the principal market
on which the security is listed.
Unsponsored ADRs, which are traded in
the OTC market, will be valued at the
last reported sale price from the OTC
Bulletin Board or OTC Link LLC on the
valuation date. OTC-traded preferred
securities and OTC-traded convertible
securities will be valued based on price
quotations obtained from a brokerdealer who makes markets in such
securities or other equivalent
indications of value provided by a thirdparty pricing service.
Securities of investment companies
(other than ETFs registered under the
1940 Act), including affiliated funds,
money market funds and closed-end
funds, will be valued at NAV.
Rule 144A Restricted Securities,
repurchase agreements and reverse
repurchase agreements will generally be
valued at bid prices received from
independent pricing services as of the
announced closing time for trading in
such instruments. Spot currency
transactions will generally be valued at
mid prices received from an
independent pricing service converted
into U.S. dollars at current market rates
on the date of valuation. Foreign
currency forwards normally will be
valued on the basis of quotes obtained
from broker-dealers or third party
pricing services.
According to the Adviser, fixed
income securities, including U.S.
Government obligations; TIPS; U.S.registered, dollar-denominated bonds of
foreign corporations, governments,
agencies and supra-national entities;
sovereign debt; corporate bonds; ABS,
RMBS, and CMBS (either agency or nonagency); CLOs; TBA transactions;
municipal securities; inverse floaters
and bank loans; and short-term
instruments will generally be valued at
bid prices received from independent
pricing services as of the announced
closing time for trading in fixed-income
instruments in the respective market or
E:\FR\FM\06JAN1.SGM
06JAN1
578
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2015 / Notices
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
exchange. In determining the value of a
fixed income investment, pricing
services determine valuations for
normal institutional-size trading units of
such securities using valuation models
or matrix pricing, which incorporates
yield and/or price with respect to bonds
that are considered comparable in
characteristics such as rating, interest
rate and maturity date and quotations
from securities dealers to determine
current value.
The Trust will generally value listed
futures and options at the settlement
price determined by the applicable
exchange. Non-exchange-traded
derivatives, including OTC-traded
options, swaps and forwards, will
normally be valued on the basis of
quotations or equivalent indication of
value supplied by a third-party pricing
service or major market makers or
dealers. The Fund’s OTC-traded
derivative instruments will generally be
valued at bid prices. Certain OTC-traded
derivative instruments, such as interest
rate swaps and credit default swaps,
will be valued at the mean price.
In the event that current market
valuations are not readily available or
such valuations do not reflect current
market value, the SSgA Master Trust’s
procedures require the Pricing and
Investment Committee (‘‘Committee’’) to
determine a security’s fair value if a
market price is not readily available, in
accordance with the 1940 Act.26 In
determining such value the Committee
may consider, among other things, (i)
price comparisons among multiple
sources, (ii) a review of corporate
actions and news events, and (iii) a
review of relevant financial indicators
(e.g., movement in interest rates, market
indices, and prices from the Portfolio’s
index provider). In these cases, the
Portfolio’s NAV may reflect certain
26 If a security’s market price is not readily
available or does not otherwise accurately reflect
the fair value of the security, the security will be
valued by another method that the Board believes
will better reflect fair value in accordance with the
Trust’s valuation policies and procedures and in
accordance with the 1940 Act. The Board has
delegated the process of valuing securities for
which market quotations are not readily available
or do not otherwise accurately reflect the fair value
of the security to the Committee. The Committee,
subject to oversight by the Board, may use fair value
pricing in a variety of circumstances, including but
not limited to, situations when trading in a security
has been suspended or halted. Accordingly, the
Portfolio’s NAV may reflect certain securities’ fair
values rather than their market prices. Fair value
pricing involves subjective judgments and it is
possible that the fair value determination for a
security is materially different than the value that
could be received on the sale of the security. The
Committee has implemented procedures designed
to prevent the use and dissemination of material,
non-public information regarding the Portfolio and
the Fund.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:38 Jan 05, 2015
Jkt 235001
portfolio securities’ fair values rather
than their market prices.
Creation and Redemption of Shares
The NAV of Shares of the Fund will
be determined once each business day,
normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time. The
Creation Unit size will be 50,000 Shares
per Creation Unit. The Trust will issue
and sell Shares of the Fund only in
Creation Units on a continuous basis,
without a sales load (but subject to
transaction fees), at their NAV per Share
next determined after receipt of an
order, on any business day, in proper
form.
The consideration for purchase of a
Creation Unit of the Fund generally will
consist of either (i) the in-kind deposit
of a designated portfolio of securities
held by the corresponding master fund
(the ‘‘Deposit Securities’’) per each
Creation Unit and the Cash Component
(defined below), computed as described
below, or (ii) the cash value of the
Deposit Securities (‘‘Deposit Cash’’) and
the ‘‘Cash Component,’’ computed as
described below. When accepting
purchases of Creation Units for cash, the
Fund may incur additional costs
associated with the acquisition of
Deposit Securities that would otherwise
be provided by an in-kind purchaser.
Together, the Deposit Securities or
Deposit Cash, as applicable, and the
Cash Component constitute the ‘‘Fund
Deposit,’’ which represents the
minimum initial and subsequent
investment amount for a Creation Unit
of the Fund. The ‘‘Cash Component’’ is
an amount equal to the difference
between the NAV of the Shares (per
Creation Unit) and the market value of
the Deposit Securities or Deposit Cash,
as applicable. If the Cash Component is
a positive number (i.e., the NAV per
Creation Unit exceeds the market value
of the Deposit Securities or Deposit
Cash, as applicable), the Cash
Component shall be such positive
amount. If the Cash Component is a
negative number (i.e., the NAV per
Creation Unit is less than the market
value of the Deposit Securities or
Deposit Cash, as applicable), the Cash
Component will be such negative
amount and the creator will be entitled
to receive cash in an amount equal to
the Cash Component. The Cash
Component serves the function of
compensating for any differences
between the NAV per Creation Unit and
the market value of the Deposit
Securities or Deposit Cash, as
applicable.
The Custodian, through the National
Securities Clearing Corporation
(‘‘NSCC’’), will make available on each
business day, immediately prior to the
PO 00000
Frm 00098
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
opening of business on the Exchange’s
Core Trading Session (9:30 a.m., Eastern
time), the list of the names and the
required amount of each Deposit
Security or the required amount of
Deposit Cash, as applicable, to be
included in the current Fund Deposit
(based on information at the end of the
previous business day) for the Fund.
Such Fund Deposit is subject to any
applicable adjustments as described in
the Registration Statement, in order to
effect purchases of Creation Units of the
Fund until such time as the nextannounced composition of the Deposit
Securities or the required amount of
Deposit Cash, as applicable, is made
available.
Shares may be redeemed only in
Creation Units at their NAV next
determined after receipt of a redemption
request in proper form by the Fund
through the Transfer Agent and only on
a business day.
With respect to the Fund, the
Custodian, through the NSCC, will make
available immediately prior to the
opening of business on the Exchange
(9:30 a.m. Eastern time) on each
business day, the list of the names and
share quantities of the Fund’s portfolio
securities that will be applicable
(subject to possible amendment or
correction) to redemption requests
received in proper form on that day
(‘‘Fund Securities’’). Fund Securities
received on redemption may not be
identical to Deposit Securities.
Redemption proceeds for a Creation
Unit will be paid either in-kind or in
cash or a combination thereof, as
determined by the Trust. With respect to
in-kind redemptions of the Fund,
redemption proceeds for a Creation Unit
will consist of Fund Securities as
announced by the Custodian on the
business day of the request for
redemption received in proper form
plus cash in an amount equal to the
difference between the NAV of the
Shares being redeemed, as next
determined after a receipt of a request
in proper form, and the value of the
Fund Securities (the ‘‘Cash Redemption
Amount’’), less a fixed redemption
transaction fee and any applicable
additional variable charge as set forth in
the Registration Statement. In the event
that the Fund Securities have a value
greater than the NAV of the Shares, a
compensating cash payment equal to the
differential will be required to be made
by or through an authorized participant
by the redeeming shareholder.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, at the
Trust’s discretion, an authorized
participant may receive the
corresponding cash value of the
securities in lieu of the in-kind
E:\FR\FM\06JAN1.SGM
06JAN1
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2015 / Notices
securities value representing one or
more Fund Securities.
The creation/redemption order cut-off
time for the Fund is expected to be 4:00
p.m. Eastern time. Creation/redemption
order cut-off times may be earlier on any
day that the Securities Industry and
Financial Markets Association
(‘‘SIFMA’’) (or applicable exchange or
market on which the Portfolio’s
investments are traded) announces an
early closing time. On days when the
Exchange closes earlier than normal, the
Fund may require orders for Creation
Units to be placed earlier in the day.
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Availability of Information
The Fund’s Web site
(www.spdrs.com), which will be
publicly available prior to the public
offering of Shares, will include a form
of the prospectus for the Fund that may
be downloaded. The Fund’s Web site
will include additional quantitative
information updated on a daily basis,
including, for the Fund (1) daily trading
volume, the prior business day’s
reported closing price, NAV and midpoint of the bid/ask spread at the time
of calculation of such NAV (the ‘‘Bid/
Ask Price’’),27 and a calculation of the
premium and discount of the Bid/Ask
Price against the NAV, and (2) data in
chart format displaying the frequency
distribution of discounts and premiums
of the daily Bid/Ask Price against the
NAV, within appropriate ranges, for
each of the four previous calendar
quarters. On each business day, before
commencement of trading in Shares in
the Core Trading Session on the
Exchange, the Fund will disclose on its
Web site the Disclosed Portfolio as
defined in NYSE Arca Equities Rule
8.600(c)(2) that will form the basis for
the Fund’s calculation of NAV at the
end of the business day.28
The Fund’s disclosure of derivative
positions in the Disclosed Portfolio will
include information that market
participants can use to value these
positions intraday. On a daily basis, the
Fund will disclose on the Fund’s Web
site the following information regarding
each portfolio holding, as applicable to
the type of holding: Ticker symbol,
CUSIP number or other identifier, if
27 The Bid/Ask Price of the Fund will be
determined using the midpoint of the highest bid
and the lowest offer on the Exchange as of the time
of calculation of the Fund’s NAV. The records
relating to Bid/Ask Prices will be retained by the
Fund and its service providers.
28 Under accounting procedures followed by the
Fund, trades made on the prior business day (‘‘T’’)
will be booked and reflected in NAV on the current
business day (‘‘T + 1’’). Accordingly, the Fund will
be able to disclose at the beginning of the business
day the portfolio that will form the basis for the
NAV calculation at the end of the business day.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:38 Jan 05, 2015
Jkt 235001
any; a description of the holding
(including the type of holding, such as
the type of swap); the identity of the
security, commodity, index or other
asset or instrument underlying the
holding, if any; for options, the option
strike price; quantity held (as measured
by, for example, par value, notional
value or number of shares, contracts or
units); maturity date, if any; coupon
rate, if any; effective date, if any; market
value of the holding; and the percentage
weighting of the holding in the Fund’s
portfolio. The Web site information will
be publicly available at no charge.
In addition, a basket composition file,
which includes the security names and
quantities required to be delivered in
exchange for the Fund’s Shares, together
with estimates and actual cash
components, will be publicly
disseminated daily prior to the opening
of the NYSE via NSCC. The basket
represents one Creation Unit of the
Fund.
Investors can also obtain the Trust’s
Statement of Additional Information
(‘‘SAI’’), the Fund’s Shareholder
Reports, and the Trust’s Form N–CSR
and Form N–SAR, filed twice a year.
The Trust’s SAI and Shareholder
Reports are available free upon request
from the Trust, and those documents
and the Form N–CSR and Form N–SAR
may be viewed on-screen or
downloaded from the Commission’s
Web site at www.sec.gov. Information
regarding market price and trading
volume of the Shares will be continually
available on a real-time basis throughout
the day on brokers’ computer screens
and other electronic services.
Information regarding the previous
day’s closing price and trading volume
information for the Shares will be
published daily in the financial section
of newspapers. Quotation and last sale
information for the Shares will be
available via the Consolidated Tape
Association (‘‘CTA’’) high-speed line.
The intra-day, closing and settlement
prices of common stocks and other
exchange-traded equity securities
(including shares of Depositary
Receipts, preferred securities,
convertible securities, ETPs, and
QPTPs) will be readily available from
the national securities exchanges
trading such securities as well as
automated quotation systems, published
or other public sources, or on-line
information services such as Bloomberg
or Reuters. Intra-day and closing price
information for exchange-traded options
and futures will be available from the
applicable exchange and from major
market data vendors. In addition, price
information for U.S. exchange-traded
options is available from the Options
PO 00000
Frm 00099
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
579
Price Reporting Authority. Quotation
information from brokers and dealers or
pricing services will be available for
fixed income securities, including U.S.
Government obligations; TIPS; U.S.
registered, dollar-denominated bonds of
foreign corporations, governments,
agencies and supra-national entities;
sovereign debt; corporate bonds; assetbacked and commercial mortgagebacked securities; residential mortgage
backed securities (either agency or nonagency); CLOs; TBA transactions;
municipal securities; inverse floaters
and bank loans; and short-term
instruments. Price information
regarding OTC-traded derivative
instruments, including, options, swaps,
and spot and forward currency
transactions, as well as equity securities
traded in the OTC market, including
Rule 144A Restricted Securities, OTCtraded preferred securities and OTCtraded convertible securities, is
available from major market data
vendors.
Pricing information regarding each
asset class in which the Fund or
Portfolio will invest, including
investment company securities, Rule
144A Restricted Securities, repurchase
agreements and reverse repurchase
agreements will generally be available
through nationally recognized data
service providers through subscription
arrangements. In addition, the
Indicative Optimized Portfolio Value
(‘‘IOPV’’),29 which is the Portfolio
Indicative Value as defined in NYSE
Arca Equities Rule 8.600(c)(3), will be
widely disseminated at least every 15
seconds during the Exchange’s Core
Trading Session by one or more major
market data vendors.30 The
dissemination of the IOPV, together
with the Disclosed Portfolio, will allow
investors to determine the value of the
underlying portfolio of the Fund and of
the Portfolio on a daily basis and to
provide a close estimate of that value
throughout the trading day.
Additional information regarding the
Trust and the Shares, including
investment strategies, risks, creation and
redemption procedures, fees, portfolio
holdings disclosure policies,
distributions and taxes is included in
the Registration Statement. All terms
relating to the Fund that are referred to,
but not defined in, this proposed rule
29 Premiums and discounts between the IOPV and
the market price may occur. This should not be
viewed as a ‘‘real-time’’ update of the NAV per
Share of the Fund, which will be calculated only
once a day.
30 Currently, it is the Exchange’s understanding
that several major market data vendors display and/
or make widely available Portfolio Indicative
Values taken from CTA or other data feeds.
E:\FR\FM\06JAN1.SGM
06JAN1
580
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2015 / Notices
will be made available to all market
participants at the same time.
Trading Halts
With respect to trading halts, the
Exchange may consider all relevant
factors in exercising its discretion to
halt or suspend trading in the Shares of
the Fund.31 Trading in Shares of the
Fund will be halted if the circuit breaker
parameters in NYSE Arca Equities Rule
7.12 have been reached. Trading also
may be halted because of market
conditions or for reasons that, in the
view of the Exchange, make trading in
the Shares inadvisable. These may
include: (1) The extent to which trading
is not occurring in the securities and/or
the financial instruments comprising
the Disclosed Portfolio of the Fund; or
(2) whether other unusual conditions or
circumstances detrimental to the
maintenance of a fair and orderly
market are present. Trading in the
Shares will be subject to NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 8.600(d)(2)(D), which sets
forth circumstances under which Shares
of the Fund may be halted.
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
change are defined in the Registration
Statement.
Surveillance
The Exchange represents that trading
in the Shares will be subject to the
existing trading surveillances,
administered by the Financial Industry
Regulatory Authority (‘‘FINRA’’) on
behalf of the Exchange, which are
designed to detect violations of
Exchange rules and applicable federal
securities laws.33 The Exchange
represents that these procedures are
adequate to properly monitor Exchange
trading of the Shares in all trading
sessions and to deter and detect
violations of Exchange rules and federal
securities laws applicable to trading on
the Exchange.
The surveillances referred to above
generally focus on detecting securities
trading outside their normal patterns,
which could be indicative of
manipulative or other violative activity.
When such situations are detected,
surveillance analysis follows and
investigations are opened, where
appropriate, to review the behavior of
all relevant parties for all relevant
trading violations.
FINRA, on behalf of the Exchange,
will communicate as needed regarding
trading in the Shares, exchange-traded
options, common stocks and other
exchange-traded equity securities
(including shares of preferred securities,
convertible securities, ETPs, certain
exchange-traded Depositary Receipts
and QPTPs), and futures, with other
markets and other entities that are
members of the ISG, and FINRA, on
behalf of the Exchange, may obtain
trading information regarding trading in
the Shares and such exchange-traded
instruments underlying the Shares from
such markets and other entities. In
addition, the Exchange may obtain
information regarding trading in the
Shares and such exchange-traded
instruments underlying the Shares from
markets and other entities that are
members of ISG or with which the
Exchange has in place a comprehensive
surveillance sharing agreement.34 In
addition, FINRA, on behalf of the
Exchange, is able to access, as needed,
trade information for certain fixed
income securities held by the Fund
reported to FINRA’s Trade Reporting
Trading Rules
The Exchange deems the Shares to be
equity securities, thus rendering trading
in the Shares subject to the Exchange’s
existing rules governing the trading of
equity securities. Shares will trade on
the NYSE Arca Marketplace from 4:00
a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern time in
accordance with NYSE Arca Equities
Rule 7.34 (Opening, Core, and Late
Trading Sessions). The Exchange has
appropriate rules to facilitate
transactions in the Shares during all
trading sessions. As provided in NYSE
Arca Equities Rule 7.6, Commentary .03,
the minimum price variation (‘‘MPV’’)
for quoting and entry of orders in equity
securities traded on the NYSE Arca
Marketplace is $0.01, with the exception
of securities that are priced less than
$1.00 for which the MPV for order entry
is $0.0001.
The Shares will conform to the initial
and continued listing criteria under
NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600. The
Exchange represents that, for initial
and/or continued listing, the Fund will
be in compliance with Rule 10A–3 32
under the Act, as provided by NYSE
Arca Equities Rule 5.3. A minimum of
100,000 Shares for the Fund will be
outstanding at the commencement of
trading on the Exchange. The Exchange
will obtain a representation from the
issuer of the Shares that the NAV per
Share will be calculated daily and that
the NAV and the Disclosed Portfolio
31 See
32 17
NYSE Arca Equities Rule 7.12.
CFR 240.10A–3.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:38 Jan 05, 2015
Jkt 235001
33 FINRA surveils trading on the Exchange
pursuant to a regulatory services agreement. The
Exchange is responsible for FINRA’s performance
under this regulatory services agreement.
34 For a list of the current members of ISG, see
www.isgportal.org. The Exchange notes that not all
components of the Disclosed Portfolio for the Fund
may trade on markets that are members of ISG or
with which the Exchange has in place a
comprehensive surveillance sharing agreement.
PO 00000
Frm 00100
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
and Compliance Engine (‘‘TRACE’’).
FINRA also can access data obtained
from the Municipal Securities
Rulemaking Board (‘‘MSRB’’) relating to
municipal bond trading activity for
surveillance purposes in connection
with trading in the Shares.
With the exception of unsponsored
ADRs, which will comprise no more
than 10% of the Fund’s net assets, all
equity securities (i.e., common stocks,
Depositary Receipts, certain preferred
securities, ETPs and certain other
exchange-traded investment company
securities) in which the Portfolio or
Fund may invest will trade on markets
that are members of the ISG or that have
entered into a comprehensive
surveillance agreement with the
Exchange.
In addition, the Exchange also has a
general policy prohibiting the
distribution of material, non-public
information by its employees.
Information Bulletin
Prior to the commencement of
trading, the Exchange will inform its
Equity Trading Permit Holders in an
Information Bulletin (‘‘Bulletin’’) of the
special characteristics and risks
associated with trading the Shares.
Specifically, the Bulletin will discuss
the following: (1) The procedures for
purchases and redemptions of Shares in
Creation Unit aggregations (and that
Shares are not individually redeemable);
(2) NYSE Arca Equities Rule 9.2(a),
which imposes a duty of due diligence
on its Equity Trading Permit Holders to
learn the essential facts relating to every
customer prior to trading the Shares; (3)
the risks involved in trading the Shares
during the Opening and Late Trading
Sessions when an updated Portfolio
Indicative Value will not be calculated
or publicly disseminated; (4) how
information regarding the Portfolio
Indicative Value and the Disclosed
Portfolio is disseminated; (5) the
requirement that Equity Trading Permit
Holders deliver a prospectus to
investors purchasing newly issued
Shares prior to or concurrently with the
confirmation of a transaction; and (6)
trading information.
In addition, the Bulletin will
reference that the Fund is subject to
various fees and expenses described in
the Registration Statement. The Bulletin
will discuss any exemptive, no-action,
and interpretive relief granted by the
Commission from any rules under the
Act. The Bulletin will also disclose that
the NAV for the Shares will be
calculated after 4:00 p.m. Eastern time
each trading day.
E:\FR\FM\06JAN1.SGM
06JAN1
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2015 / Notices
2. Statutory Basis
The basis under the Act for this
proposed rule change is the requirement
under Section 6(b)(5) 35 that an
exchange have rules that are designed to
prevent fraudulent and manipulative
acts and practices, to promote just and
equitable principles of trade, to remove
impediments to, and perfect the
mechanism of a free and open market
and, in general, to protect investors and
the public interest.
The Exchange believes that the
proposed rule change is designed to
prevent fraudulent and manipulative
acts and practices in that the Shares will
be listed and traded on the Exchange
pursuant to the initial and continued
listing criteria in NYSE Arca Equities
Rule 8.600. The Exchange has in place
surveillance procedures that are
adequate to properly monitor trading in
the Shares in all trading sessions and to
deter and detect violations of Exchange
rules and federal securities laws
applicable to trading on the Exchange.
The Adviser and Sub-Adviser are not
registered as a broker-dealer but the
Adviser is affiliated with a broker-dealer
and has implemented a ‘‘fire wall’’ with
respect to such broker-dealer regarding
access to information concerning the
composition and/or changes to the
Fund’s portfolio. The Sub-Adviser is not
affiliated with a broker-dealer. In
addition, the Trust’s Pricing and
Investment Committee has implemented
procedures designed to prevent the use
and dissemination of material, nonpublic information regarding the
Portfolio and the Fund. FINRA, on
behalf of the Exchange, will
communicate as needed regarding
trading in the Shares, exchange-traded
options, common stocks and other
exchange-traded equity securities
(including shares of preferred securities,
convertible securities, ETPs, and
QPTPs), and futures with other markets
and other entities that are members of
the ISG, and FINRA, on behalf of the
Exchange, may obtain trading
information regarding trading in the
Shares and such exchange-traded
securities underlying the Shares from
such markets and other entities. In
addition, the Exchange may obtain
information regarding trading in the
Shares and such exchange-traded
securities underlying the Shares from
markets and other entities that are
members of ISG or with which the
Exchange has in place a comprehensive
surveillance sharing agreement. FINRA,
on behalf of the Exchange, is able to
access, as needed, trade information for
35 15
U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:38 Jan 05, 2015
Jkt 235001
certain fixed income securities held by
the Fund reported to FINRA’s TRACE.
FINRA also can access data obtained
from the MSRB relating to municipal
bond trading activity for surveillance
purposes in connection with trading in
the Shares. The ETPs held by the Fund
will be traded on U.S. national
securities exchanges and will be subject
to the rules of such exchanges, as
approved by the Commission. With the
exception of unsponsored ADRs, which
will comprise no more than 10% of the
Fund’s net assets, all exchange-traded
equity securities (i.e., common stocks,
Depositary Receipts, certain preferred
securities, ETPs and certain other
exchange-traded investment company
securities) in which the Portfolio or
Fund may invest will trade on markets
that are members of the ISG or that have
entered into a comprehensive
surveillance agreement with the
Exchange. The Fund may hold up to an
aggregate amount of 15% of its net
assets in illiquid assets (calculated at
the time of investment), including Rule
144A Restricted Securities deemed
illiquid by the Adviser, consistent with
Commission guidance, and repurchase
agreements having maturities longer
than seven days.
The proposed rule change is designed
to promote just and equitable principles
of trade and to protect investors and the
public interest in that the Exchange will
obtain a representation from the issuer
of the Shares that the NAV per Share
will be calculated daily and that the
NAV and the Disclosed Portfolio will be
made available to all market
participants at the same time. In
addition, a large amount of information
is publicly available regarding the Fund
and the Shares, thereby promoting
market transparency. The Fund’s
portfolio holdings will be disclosed on
its Web site daily after the close of
trading on the Exchange and prior to the
opening of trading on the Exchange the
following day. Moreover, the IOPV will
be widely disseminated by one or more
major market data vendors at least every
15 seconds during the Exchange’s Core
Trading Session. On each business day,
before commencement of trading in
Shares in the Core Trading Session on
the Exchange, the Fund will disclose on
its Web site the Disclosed Portfolio that
will form the basis for the Fund’s
calculation of NAV at the end of the
business day. Quotation and last sale
information for the Shares will be
available via the CTA high-speed line.
The intra-day, closing and settlement
prices of common stocks and other
exchange-traded equity securities
(including shares of preferred securities,
PO 00000
Frm 00101
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
581
convertible securities, Depositary
Receipts, ETPs, and QPTPs) will be
readily available from the national
securities exchanges trading such
securities as well as automated
quotation systems, published or other
public sources, or on-line information
services such as Bloomberg or Reuters.
Intra-day and closing price information
for exchange-traded options and futures
will be available from the applicable
exchange and from major market data
vendors. In addition, price information
for U.S. exchange-traded options is
available from the Options Price
Reporting Authority. Quotation
information from brokers and dealers or
pricing services will be available for
fixed income securities, including U.S.
Government obligations; U.S.registered, dollar-denominated bonds of
foreign corporations, governments,
agencies and supra-national entities;
corporate bonds; ABS; RMBS; CMBS;
CLOs; variable and floating rate
securities; TBA transactions; municipal
securities; and short-term instruments.
Price information regarding OTC-traded
derivative securities, including, options,
swaps, and spot and forward currency
transactions, as well as equity securities
traded in the OTC market, such as Rule
144A Restricted Securities, is available
from major market data vendors. The
Web site for the Fund will include a
form of the prospectus for the Fund and
additional data relating to NAV and
other applicable quantitative
information. Moreover, prior to the
commencement of trading, the Exchange
will inform its Equity Trading Permit
Holders in an Information Bulletin of
the special characteristics and risks
associated with trading the Shares.
Trading in Shares of the Fund will be
halted if the circuit breaker parameters
in NYSE Arca Equities Rule 7.12 have
been reached or because of market
conditions or for reasons that, in the
view of the Exchange, make trading in
the Shares inadvisable, and trading in
the Shares will be subject to NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 8.600(d)(2)(D), which sets
forth circumstances under which Shares
of the Fund may be halted. In addition,
as noted above, investors will have
ready access to information regarding
the Fund’s holdings, the IOPV, the
Disclosed Portfolio, and quotation and
last sale information for the Shares.
The proposed rule change is designed
to perfect the mechanism of a free and
open market and, in general, to protect
investors and the public interest in that
it will facilitate the listing and trading
of an additional type of activelymanaged exchange-traded product that
will enhance competition among market
E:\FR\FM\06JAN1.SGM
06JAN1
582
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2015 / Notices
participants, to the benefit of investors
and the marketplace. As noted above,
the Exchange has in place surveillance
procedures relating to trading in the
Shares and may obtain information via
ISG from other exchanges that are
members of ISG or with which the
Exchange has entered into a
comprehensive surveillance sharing
agreement. In addition, as noted above,
investors will have ready access to
information regarding the Fund’s
holdings, the IOPV, the Disclosed
Portfolio, and quotation and last sale
information for the Shares.
Electronic Comments
B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement on Burden on Competition
All submissions should refer to File
Number SR–NYSEArca–2014–143. 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 will also 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–
NYSEArca–2014–143 and should be
submitted on or before January 27, 2015.
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 purpose of the Act. The Exchange
notes that the proposed rule change will
facilitate the listing and trading of an
additional type of actively-managed
exchange-traded product that will invest
in multiple asset classes and that will
enhance competition among market
participants, to the benefit of investors
and the marketplace.
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
up to 90 days (i) as the Commission may
designate 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.
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
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:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:38 Jan 05, 2015
Jkt 235001
• 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–2014–143 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.
For the Commission, by the Division of
Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated
authority.36
Brent J. Fields,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014–30894 Filed 1–5–15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
36 17
PO 00000
CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).
Frm 00102
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Release No. 34–73959; File No. SR–
NASDAQ–2014–095]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; The
NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; Order
Granting Approval of Proposed Rule
Change To Provide a New Optional
Functionality to Minimum Quantity
Orders
December 30, 2014.
I. Introduction
On September 18, 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 NASDAQ Rule
(‘‘Rule’’) 4751(f)(5) to provide a new
optional functionality for Minimum
Quantity Orders. The proposed rule
change was published for comment in
the Federal Register on October 6,
2014.3 On November 18, 2014, the
Commission extended to January 4,
2015, the time period in which to
approve the proposed rule change,
disapprove the proposed rule change, or
institute proceedings to determine
whether the proposed rule change
should be disapproved.4 The
Commission received one comment
letter regarding the proposed rule
change.5 This order approves the
proposed rule change.
II. Description of the Proposal
A Minimum Quantity Order (‘‘MQO’’)
allows a market participant to specify a
minimum share amount at which it will
execute. A MQO will not execute unless
the volume of contra-side liquidity
available to execute against the order
meets or exceeds the designated
minimum. A MQO received by the
Exchange will execute immediately if
there is sufficient liquidity available on
the Exchange within the limit price of
the order. In addition, multiple orders
may be aggregated to meet the minimum
quantity. For example, a MQO will
execute if the sum of the shares of one
or more orders is equal to or greater than
its minimum quantity. If a MQO does
1 15
U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
CFR 240.19b–4.
3 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 73266
(September 30, 2014), 79 FR 60207 (‘‘Notice’’).
4 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 73621,
79 FR 69957 (November 24, 2014).
5 See letter to SEC from James J. Angel, Associate
Professor of Finance, Georgetown University, dated
November 26, 2014 (‘‘Angel Letter’’).
2 17
E:\FR\FM\06JAN1.SGM
06JAN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 3 (Tuesday, January 6, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 572-582]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-30894]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-73958; File No. SR-NYSEArca-2014-143]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE Arca, Inc.; Notice of Filing
of Proposed Rule Change Relating to Listing and Trading of Shares of
the SPDR[supreg] DoubleLine Total Return Tactical ETF Under NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 8.600
December 30, 2014.
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 December 17, 2014, 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 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\ 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 list and trade shares of the SPDR[supreg]
DoubleLine Total Return Tactical ETF under NYSE Arca Equities Rule
8.600 (``Managed Fund Shares''). 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
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
1. Purpose
The Exchange proposes to list and trade shares (''Shares'') of the
following under NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600, which governs the
listing and trading of Managed Fund Shares: \4\ SPDR[supreg] DoubleLine
Total Return Tactical ETF (``Fund'').\5\ The Shares will be offered by
[[Page 573]]
SSgA Active ETF Trust (the ``Trust''), which is organized as a
Massachusetts business trust and is registered with the Commission as
an open-end management investment company.\6\ SSgA Funds Management,
Inc. will serve as the investment adviser to the Fund (the ``Adviser''
or ``SSgA FM''). DoubleLine Capital L.P. will be the Fund's sub-adviser
(``Sub-Adviser''). State Street Global Markets, LLC (the
``Distributor'') will be the principal underwriter and distributor of
the Fund's Shares. State Street Bank and Trust Company (the
``Administrator'', ``Custodian'' or ``Transfer Agent'') will serve as
administrator, custodian and transfer agent for the Fund.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ A Managed Fund Share is a security that represents an
interest in an investment company registered under the Investment
Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a-1) (``1940 Act'') organized as an
open-end investment company or similar entity that invests in a
portfolio of securities selected by its investment adviser
consistent with its investment objectives and policies. In contrast,
an open-end investment company that issues Investment Company Units,
listed and traded on the Exchange under NYSE Arca Equities Rule
5.2(j)(3), seeks to provide investment results that correspond
generally to the price and yield performance of a specific foreign
or domestic stock index, fixed income securities index or
combination thereof.
\5\ The Commission has previously approved listing and trading
on the Exchange of a number of actively managed funds under Rule
8.600. See, e.g., Securities Exchange Act Release Nos. 57801 (May 8,
2008), 73 FR 27878 (May 14, 2008) (SR-NYSEArca-2008-31) (order
approving Exchange listing and trading of twelve actively-managed
funds of the WisdomTree Trust); 62502 (July 15, 2010), 75 FR 42471
(July 21, 2010) (SR-NYSEArca-2010-57) (order approving listing and
trading of AdviserShares WCM/BNY Mellon Focused Growth ADR ETF);
63076 (October 12, 2010), 75 FR 63874 (October 18, 2010) (SR-
NYSEArca-2010-79) (order approving listing and trading of Cambria
Global Tactical ETF); 71540 (February 12, 2014), 79 FR 9515
(February 19, 2014) (SR-NYSEArca-2013-138) (order approving listing
and trading of shares of the iShares Enhanced International Large-
Cap ETF and iShares Enhanced International Small-Cap ETF).
\6\ The Trust is registered under the 1940 Act. On May 30, 2014,
the Trust filed with the Commission an amendment to its registration
statement on Form N-1A under the Securities Act of 1933
(``Securities Act'') (15 U.S.C. 77a), and under the 1940 Act
relating to the Fund (File Nos. 333-173276 and 811-22542)
(``Registration Statement''). The description of the operation of
the Trust and the Fund herein is based, in part, on the Registration
Statement. In addition, the Commission has issued an order granting
certain exemptive relief to the Trust under the 1940 Act. See
Investment Company Act Release No. 29524 (December 13, 2010) (File
No. 812-13487) (``Exemptive Order'').
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary .06 to Rule 8.600 provides that, if the investment
adviser to the investment company issuing Managed Fund Shares is
affiliated with a broker-dealer, such investment adviser shall erect a
``fire wall'' between the investment adviser and the broker-dealer with
respect to access to information concerning the composition and/or
changes to such investment company portfolio. In addition, Commentary
.06 further requires that personnel who make decisions on the open-end
fund's portfolio composition must be subject to procedures designed to
prevent the use and dissemination of material nonpublic information
regarding the open-end fund's portfolio.\7\ Commentary .06 to Rule
8.600 is similar to Commentary .03(a)(i) and (iii) to NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 5.2(j)(3); however, Commentary .06 in connection with the
establishment of a ``fire wall'' between the investment adviser and the
broker-dealer reflects the applicable open-end fund's portfolio, not an
underlying benchmark index, as is the case with index-based funds. The
Adviser and Sub-Adviser are not registered as a broker-dealer but the
Adviser is affiliated with a broker-dealer and has implemented a ``fire
wall'' with respect to such broker-dealer regarding access to
information concerning the composition and/or changes to the Fund's
portfolio. The Sub-Adviser is not affiliated with a broker-dealer. In
the event (a) the Adviser or Sub-Adviser becomes registered as a
broker-dealer or newly affiliated with a broker-dealer, or (b) any new
adviser or sub-adviser is a registered broker-dealer or becomes
affiliated with a broker-dealer, it will implement a fire wall with
respect to its relevant personnel or broker-dealer affiliate regarding
access to information concerning the composition and/or changes to the
portfolio, and will be subject to procedures designed to prevent the
use and dissemination of material non-public information regarding such
portfolio.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\7\ An investment adviser to an open-end fund is required to be
registered under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the ``Advisers
Act''). As a result, the Adviser and Sub-Adviser and their related
personnel are subject to the provisions of Rule 204A-1 under the
Advisers Act relating to codes of ethics. This Rule requires
investment advisers to adopt a code of ethics that reflects the
fiduciary nature of the relationship to clients as well as
compliance with other applicable securities laws. Accordingly,
procedures designed to prevent the communication and misuse of non-
public information by an investment adviser must be consistent with
Rule 204A-1 under the Advisers Act. In addition, Rule 206(4)-7 under
the Advisers Act makes it unlawful for an investment adviser to
provide investment advice to clients unless such investment adviser
has (i) adopted and implemented written policies and procedures
reasonably designed to prevent violation, by the investment adviser
and its supervised persons, of the Advisers Act and the Commission
rules adopted thereunder; (ii) implemented, at a minimum, an annual
review regarding the adequacy of the policies and procedures
established pursuant to subparagraph (i) above and the effectiveness
of their implementation; and (iii) designated an individual (who is
a supervised person) responsible for administering the policies and
procedures adopted under subparagraph (i) above.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
SPDR[supreg] DoubleLine Total Return Tactical ETF
Principal Investments
According to the Registration Statement, the investment objective
of the Fund will be to maximize total return. Under normal
circumstances,\8\ the Fund will invest all of its assets in the SSgA
DoubleLine Total Return Tactical Portfolio (the ``Portfolio''), a
separate series of the SSgA Master Trust with an identical investment
objective as the Fund. As a result, the Fund will invest indirectly in
all of the securities and assets owned by the Portfolio.\9\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\8\ The term ``under normal circumstances'' includes, but is not
limited to, the absence of extreme volatility or trading halts in
the fixed income markets or the financial markets generally;
operational issues causing dissemination of inaccurate market
information; or force majeure type events such as systems failure,
natural or man-made disaster, act of God, armed conflict, act of
terrorism, riot or labor disruption or any similar intervening
circumstance.
\9\ The Fund is intended to be managed in a ``master-feeder''
structure, under which the Fund invests substantially all of its
assets in a corresponding Portfolio (i.e., a ``master fund''), which
is a separate mutual fund registered under the 1940 Act that has an
identical investment objective. As a result, the Fund (i.e., a
``feeder fund'') has an indirect interest in all of the securities
and assets owned by the Portfolio. Because of this indirect
interest, the Fund's investment returns should be the same as those
of the Portfolio, adjusted for the expenses of the Fund. In
extraordinary instances, the Fund reserves the right to make direct
investments in securities and other assets. The Adviser and Sub-
Adviser will manage the investments of the Portfolio. Under the
master-feeder arrangement, and pursuant to the Investment Advisory
Agreement between the Adviser and the Trust, investment advisory
fees charged at the Portfolio level are deducted from the advisory
fees charged at the Fund level. This arrangement avoids a
``layering'' of fees, i.e., the Fund's total annual operating
expenses would be no higher as a result of investing in a master-
feeder arrangement than they would be if the Fund pursued its
investment objective directly. In addition, the Fund may discontinue
investing through the master-feeder arrangement and pursue its
investment objective directly if the Fund's Board of Trustees
(``Board'') determines that doing so would be in the best interests
of shareholders.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Under normal circumstances, the Portfolio will invest at least 80%
of its net assets in a diversified portfolio of fixed income securities
of any credit quality, as described further below.\10\ Fixed income
securities in which the Portfolio principally will invest include the
following, as discussed further below: Securities issued or guaranteed
by the U.S. government or its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored
corporations; inflation protected public obligations of the U.S.
Treasury (commonly known as ``TIPS''); agency and non-agency
residential mortgage-backed securities (``RMBS''); agency and non-
agency commercial mortgage-backed securities (``CMBS''); agency and
non-agency asset-backed securities
[[Page 574]]
(``ABS''); \11\ domestic corporate bonds; fixed income securities
issued by foreign corporations and foreign governments including
emerging markets; bank loans (primarily senior loans, including loan
participations or assignments whose loan syndication exceeds $300
million), municipal bonds and other securities (such as perpetual
bonds) bearing fixed interest rates of any maturity.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\10\ Generally, as used in this proposed rule change, the terms
debt security, debt obligation, bond, fixed income instrument and
fixed income security are used interchangeably. These terms should
be considered to include any evidence of indebtedness, including, by
way of example, a security or instrument having one or more of the
following characteristics: A security or instrument issued at a
discount to its face value, a security or instrument that pays
interest at a fixed, floating, or variable rate, or a security or
instrument with a stated principal amount that requires repayment of
some or all of that principal amount to the holder of the security.
These terms are interpreted broadly to include any instrument or
security evidencing what is commonly referred to as an IOU rather
than evidencing the corporate ownership of equity unless that equity
represents an indirect or derivative interest in one or more debt
securities. For this purpose, the terms also include instruments
that are intended to provide one or more of the characteristics of a
direct investment in one or more debt securities.
\11\ The term asset-backed securities is used by the Fund to
describe securities backed by installment contracts, credit-card
receivables or other assets but does not include either residential
or commercial mortgage-backed securities. Both asset-backed and
commercial mortgage-backed securities represent interests in
``pools'' of assets in which payments of both interest and principal
on the securities are made on a regular basis. Asset-backed
securities also include institutionally traded senior floating rate
debt obligations issued by asset-backed pools and other issues, and
interests therein.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Portfolio intends to invest at least 20% of its net assets in
mortgage-backed securities of any maturity or type guaranteed by, or
secured by collateral that is guaranteed by, the United States
Government, its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored corporations,
or in privately issued mortgage-backed securities rated at the time of
investment Aa3 or higher by Moody's Investor Service, Inc.
(``Moody's'') or AA- or higher by Standard & Poor's Rating Service
(``S&P'') or the equivalent by any other nationally recognized
statistical rating organization (``NRSRO'') or in unrated securities
that are determined by the Adviser to be of comparable quality.
The Portfolio may invest up to 20% of its net assets in the
aggregate in non-agency RMBS, CMBS and ABS.
The Sub-Adviser will actively manage the Portfolio's asset class
exposure using a top-down approach based on analysis of sector
fundamentals. The Sub-Adviser will rotate Portfolio assets among
sectors in various markets to attempt to maximize return. Individual
securities within asset classes will be selected using a bottom up
approach. Under normal circumstances, the Sub-Adviser will use a
controlled risk approach in managing the Portfolio's investments. The
techniques of this approach attempt to control the principal risk
components of the fixed income markets and include consideration of
security selection within a given sector; relative performance of the
various market sectors; the shape of the yield curve; and fluctuations
in the overall level of interest rates.
The Portfolio may invest in corporate bonds.\12\ The investment
return of corporate bonds reflects interest on the bond and changes in
the market value of the bond. The market value of a corporate bond may
be affected by the credit rating of the corporation, the corporation's
performance and perceptions of the corporation in the market place.
Such corporate bonds may be investment grade or may be below investment
grade.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\12\ The Adviser expects that, under normal circumstances, the
Fund will generally seek to invest in corporate bond issuances that
have at least $100,000,000 par amount outstanding in developed
countries and at least $200,000,000 par amount outstanding in
emerging market countries.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Portfolio may invest in sovereign debt. Sovereign debt
obligations are issued or guaranteed by foreign governments or their
agencies. Sovereign debt may be in the form of conventional securities
or other types of debt instruments such as loans or loan
participations. Sovereign debt obligations may be either investment
grade or below investment grade.
The Portfolio may invest up to 25% of its net assets in corporate
high yield securities (commonly known as ``junk bonds''). Under normal
circumstances, the combined total of corporate, sovereign, non-agency
and all other debt rated below investment grade will not exceed 40% of
the Fund's net assets. The Sub-Adviser will strive to allocate below
investment grade securities broadly by industry and issuer in an
attempt to reduce the impact of negative events on an industry or
issuer. Below investment grade securities are instruments that are
rated BB+ or lower by S&P or Fitch Inc. or Ba1 or lower by Moody's or,
if unrated by a NRSRO, of comparable quality in the opinion of the Sub-
Adviser.
The Portfolio may invest up to 15% of its net assets in securities
denominated in foreign currencies, and may invest beyond this limit in
U.S. dollar-denominated securities of foreign issuers. The Portfolio
may invest up to 25% of its net assets in securities and instruments
that are economically tied to emerging market countries.
The Sub-Adviser also will monitor the duration of the securities
held by the Portfolio to seek to mitigate exposure to interest rate
risk.\13\ Under normal circumstances, the Sub-Adviser will seek to
maintain an investment portfolio with a weighted average effective
duration of no less than 1 year and no more than 8 years. The duration
of the portfolio may vary materially from its target, from time to
time.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\13\ Duration is a measure used to determine the sensitivity of
a security's price to changes in interest rates. The longer a
security's duration, the more sensitive it will be to changes in
interest rates.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Portfolio may invest in U.S. Government obligations. U.S.
Government obligations are a type of bond. U.S. Government obligations
include securities issued or guaranteed as to principal and interest by
the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities.
The Portfolio may invest in TIPS of the U.S. Treasury, as well as
TIPS of major governments and emerging market countries, excluding the
United States. TIPS are a type of security issued by a government that
are designed to provide inflation protection to investors.
The Portfolio may invest a substantial portion of its assets in
U.S. agency mortgage pass-through securities. The term ``U.S. agency
mortgage pass-through security'' refers to a category of pass-through
securities backed by pools of mortgages and issued by one of several
U.S. Government-sponsored enterprises: Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae or
Freddie Mac.
The Portfolio will seek to obtain exposure to U.S. agency mortgage
pass-through securities primarily through the use of ``to-be-
announced'' or ``TBA transactions.'' ``TBA'' refers to a commonly used
mechanism for the forward settlement of U.S. agency mortgage pass-
through securities, and not to a separate type of mortgage-backed
security. Most transactions in mortgage pass-through securities occur
through the use of TBA transactions.\14\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\14\ TBA transactions generally are conducted in accordance with
widely-accepted guidelines which establish commonly observed terms
and conditions for execution, settlement and delivery. In a TBA
transaction, the buyer and seller decide on general trade
parameters, such as agency, settlement date, par amount, and price.
The actual pools delivered generally are determined two days prior
to settlement date.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Portfolio may invest in bank loans, which include floating rate
loans. Bank loan interests may be acquired from U.S. or foreign
commercial banks, insurance companies, finance companies or other
financial institutions that have made loans or are members of a lending
syndicate or from other holders of loan interests. Bank loans typically
pay interest at rates which are re-determined periodically on the basis
of a floating base lending rate (such as the London Inter-Bank Offered
Rate) plus a premium. Bank loans are typically of below investment
grade quality. Bank loans generally (but not always) hold the most
senior position in the capital structure of a borrower and are often
secured with collateral. The Portfolio may invest in both secured and
unsecured loans.
The Portfolio may invest in collateralized loan obligations
(``CLOs''). A CLO is a financing company (generally called a Special
Purpose
[[Page 575]]
Vehicle or ``SPV''), created to reapportion the risk and return
characteristics of a pool of assets. While the assets underlying CLOs
are typically bank loans, the assets may also include (i) unsecured
loans, (ii) other debt securities that are rated below investment
grade, (iii) debt tranches of other CLOs, and (iv) equity securities
incidental to investments in bank loans. When investing in CLOs, the
Portfolio will not invest in equity tranches, which are the lowest
tranche. However, the Portfolio may invest in lower debt tranches of
CLOs, which typically experience a lower recovery, greater risk of
loss, or deferral or non-payment of interest than more senior debt
tranches of the CLO. In addition, the Portfolio intends to invest in
CLOs consisting primarily of individual bank loans of borrowers and not
repackaged CLO obligations from other high risk pools. The underlying
bank loans purchased by CLOs are generally performing at the time of
purchase but may become non-performing, distressed or defaulted. CLOs
with underlying assets of non-performing, distressed or defaulted loans
are not contemplated to comprise a significant portion of the
Portfolio's investments in CLOs.
Non-Principal Investments
While the Adviser and Sub-Adviser, under normal circumstances, will
invest at least 80% of the Portfolio's net assets in fixed income
securities as described above, the Adviser and Sub-Adviser may invest
up to 20% of the Portfolio's net assets in other securities and
financial instruments, as described below.
According to the Registration Statement, in certain situations or
market conditions, the Fund may (either directly or through the
corresponding Portfolio) temporarily depart from its normal investment
policies and strategies provided that the alternative is consistent
with the Fund's investment objective and is in the best interest of the
Fund. For example, the Fund may hold a higher than normal proportion of
its assets in cash in times of extreme market stress.
The Fund may (either directly or through its investments in its
corresponding Portfolio) invest in the following types of investments:
Money market instruments, such as repurchase agreements, money market
funds (including money market funds managed by the Adviser), and
commercial paper.
The Portfolio may invest in preferred securities traded on an
exchange or over-the-counter (``OTC''). Preferred securities pay fixed
or adjustable rate dividends to investors, and have ``preference'' over
common stock in the payment of dividends and the liquidation of a
company's assets.
The Portfolio may invest in convertible securities traded on an
exchange or OTC. Convertible securities are bonds, debentures, notes,
preferred stocks or other securities that may be converted or exchanged
(by the holder or by the issuer) into shares of the underlying common
stock (or cash or securities of equivalent value) at a stated exchange
ratio.
The Portfolio may conduct foreign currency transactions on a spot
(i.e., cash) or forward basis (i.e., by entering into forward contracts
to purchase or sell foreign currencies).
The Portfolio may invest in foreign corporate and sovereign bonds
originating from issuers in emerging market countries. An ``emerging
market country'' is a country that, at the time the Fund invests in the
related fixed income instruments, is classified as an emerging or
developing economy by any supranational organization such as the
International Bank of Reconstruction and Development or any affiliate
thereof (the ``World Bank'') or the United Nations, or related
entities, or is considered an emerging market country for purposes of
constructing a major emerging market securities index.
The Portfolio may invest in ``Restricted Securities''. Restricted
Securities are securities that are not registered under the Securities
Act, but which can be offered and sold to ``qualified institutional
buyers'' under Rule 144A under the Securities Act.\15\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\15\ See note 21 and accompanying text, infra.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Portfolio may invest in exchange traded products (``ETPs''),
which include exchange traded funds (``ETFs'') registered under the
1940 Act; exchange traded commodity trusts; and exchange traded notes
(``ETNs''). The Adviser may receive management or other fees from the
ETPs (``Affiliated ETPs'') in which the Portfolio or Fund may invest,
as well as a management fee for managing the Fund.\16\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\16\ For purposes of this filing, ETPs include Investment
Company Units (as described in NYSE Arca Equities Rule 5.2(j)(3));
Index-Linked Securities (as described in NYSE Arca Equities Rule
5.2(j)(6)); Portfolio Depositary Receipts (as described in NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 8.100); Trust Issued Receipts (as described in NYSE
Arca Equities Rule 8.200); Commodity-Based Trust Shares (as
described in NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.201); Currency Trust Shares
(as described in NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.202); Commodity Index
Trust Shares (as described in NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.203); and
Managed Fund Shares (as described in NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600).
The Portfolio may invest in certain ETPs that pay fees to the
Adviser and its affiliates for management, marketing or other
services. The ETPs all will be listed and traded in the U.S. on
national securities exchanges. While the Fund may invest in inverse
ETPs, the Fund will not invest in leveraged or inverse leveraged
ETPs (e.g., 2X or 3X).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Portfolio may invest up to 20% of its net assets in one or more
ETPs that are qualified publicly traded partnerships (``QPTPs'') and
whose principal activities are the buying and selling of commodities or
options, futures, or forwards with respect to commodities. Income from
QPTPs is generally qualifying income. A QPTP is an entity that is
treated as a partnership for federal income tax purposes, subject to
certain requirements. If such an ETP fails to qualify as a QPTP, the
income generated from the Portfolio's investment in the QPTP may not be
qualifying income.\17\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\17\ Income from QPTPs is generally qualifying income. Examples
of such entities are the PowerShares DB Energy Fund, PowerShares DB
Oil Fund, PowerShares DB Precious Metals Fund, PowerShares DB Gold
Fund, PowerShares DB Silver Fund, PowerShares DB Base Metals Fund,
and PowerShares DB Agriculture Fund, which are listed and traded on
the Exchange pursuant to NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.200.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Portfolio may purchase exchange-traded common stocks and
exchange-traded preferred securities of foreign corporations. The
Fund's investments in common stock of foreign corporations may also be
in the form of American Depositary Receipts (``ADRs''), Global
Depositary Receipts (``GDRs'') and European Depositary Receipts
(``EDRs'') (collectively ``Depositary Receipts'').\18\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\18\ Depositary Receipts are receipts, typically issued by a
bank or trust company, which evidence ownership of underlying
securities issued by a foreign corporation. For ADRs, the depository
is typically a U.S. financial institution and the underlying
securities are issued by a foreign issuer. For other Depositary
Receipts, the depository may be a foreign or a U.S. entity, and the
underlying securities may have a foreign or a U.S. issuer.
Depositary Receipts will not necessarily be denominated in the same
currency as their underlying securities. Generally, ADRs, in
registered form, are designed for use in the U.S. securities market,
and EDRs, in bearer form, are designated for use in European
securities markets. GDRs are tradable both in the United States and
in Europe and are designed for use throughout the world. The Fund
may invest in sponsored or unsponsored ADRs; however, not more than
10% of the net assets of the Fund will be invested in unsponsored
ADRs. With the exception of unsponsored ADRs, all equity securities
(i.e., common stocks, Depositary Receipts, certain preferred
securities, ETPs and certain other exchange-traded investment
company securities) in which the Portfolio or Fund may invest will
trade on markets that are members of the Intermarket Surveillance
Group (``ISG'') or that have entered into a comprehensive
surveillance agreement with the Exchange.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Portfolio may invest in the securities of other investment
companies, including affiliated funds, money market funds and closed-
end funds, subject to applicable limitations under Section 12(d)(1) of
the 1940 Act.
[[Page 576]]
The Portfolio may invest in municipal securities, which are
securities issued by states, municipalities and other political
subdivisions, agencies, authorities and instrumentalities of states and
multi-state agencies or authorities. The municipal securities which the
Portfolio may purchase include general obligation bonds and limited
obligation bonds (or revenue bonds), including industrial development
bonds issued pursuant to former federal tax law. General obligation
bonds are obligations involving the credit of an issuer possessing
taxing power and are payable from such issuer's general revenues and
not from any particular source. Limited obligation bonds are payable
only from the revenues derived from a particular facility or class of
facilities or, in some cases, from the proceeds of a special excise or
other specific revenue source. Also included within the general
category of municipal securities are municipal leases, certificates of
participation in such lease obligations or installment purchase
contract obligations.
The Portfolio may invest up to 20% of its assets in derivatives,
including exchange-traded futures on Treasuries or Eurodollars; U.S.
exchange-traded or OTC put and call options contracts and OTC or
exchange-traded swap agreements \19\ (including interest rate swaps,
total return swaps, excess return swaps, and credit default swaps). The
Portfolio will segregate cash and/or appropriate liquid assets if
required to do so by Commission or Commodity Futures Trading Commission
(``CFTC'') regulation or interpretation.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\19\ Swap agreements are contracts between parties in which one
party agrees to make periodic payments to the other party based on
the change in market value or level of a specified rate, index or
asset. In return, the other party agrees to make payments to the
first party based on the return of a different specified rate, index
or asset.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the case of a credit default swap (``CDS''), the contract gives
one party (the buyer) the right to recoup the economic value of a
decline in the value of debt securities of the reference issuer if the
credit event (a downgrade or default) occurs. This value is obtained by
delivering a debt security of the reference issuer to the party in
return for a previously agreed payment from the other party
(frequently, the par value of the debt security).\20\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\20\ The Portfolio will enter into CDS agreements only with
counterparties that meet certain standards of creditworthiness.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
CDSs may require initial premium (discount) payments as well as
periodic payments (receipts) related to the interest leg of the swap or
to the default of a reference obligation. The Portfolio will segregate
assets necessary to meet any accrued payment obligations when it is the
buyer of CDSs. In cases where the Portfolio is a seller of a CDS, if
the CDS is physically settled, the Portfolio will be required to
segregate the full notional amount of the CDS. Such segregation will
not limit the Portfolio's exposure to loss.
The Portfolio may invest in variable and floating rate securities.
Variable rate securities are instruments issued or guaranteed by
entities such as (1) the U.S. Government, or an agency or
instrumentality thereof, (2) corporations, (3) financial institutions,
(4) insurance companies or (5) trusts that have a rate of interest
subject to adjustment at regular intervals but less frequently than
annually. A variable rate security provides for the automatic
establishment of a new interest rate on set dates. Variable rate
obligations whose interest is readjusted no less frequently than
annually will be deemed to have a maturity equal to the period
remaining until the next readjustment of the interest rate. The
Portfolio may also purchase floating rate securities. A floating rate
security provides for the automatic adjustment of its interest rate
whenever a specified interest rate changes. Interest rates on these
securities are ordinarily tied to, and are a percentage of, a widely
recognized interest rate, such as the yield on 90-day U.S. Treasury
bills or the prime rate of a specified bank. These rates may change as
often as twice daily.
The Portfolio may invest in repurchase agreements with commercial
banks, brokers or dealers to generate income from its excess cash
balances and to invest securities lending cash collateral. A repurchase
agreement is an agreement under which a fund acquires a financial
instrument (e.g., a security issued by the U.S. Government or an agency
thereof, a banker's acceptance or a certificate of deposit) from a
seller, subject to resale to the seller at an agreed upon price and
date (normally, the next business day).
The Portfolio may enter into reverse repurchase agreements, which
involve the sale of securities with an agreement to repurchase the
securities at an agreed-upon price, date and interest payment and have
the characteristics of borrowing. The Portfolio's exposure to reverse
repurchase agreements will be covered by securities having a value
equal to or greater than such commitments. Under the 1940 Act, reverse
repurchase agreements are considered borrowings. Although there is no
limit on the percentage of Fund assets that can be used in connection
with reverse repurchase agreements, the Portfolio does not expect to
engage, under normal circumstances, in reverse repurchase agreements
with respect to more than 33\1/3\% of its net assets.
The Portfolio may invest in short-term instruments, including money
market instruments, (including money market funds advised by the
Adviser), repurchase agreements, cash and cash equivalents, on an
ongoing basis to provide liquidity or for other reasons. Money market
instruments are generally short-term investments that may include but
are not limited to: (i) Shares of money market funds (including those
advised by the Adviser); (ii) obligations issued or guaranteed by the
U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities (including
government-sponsored enterprises); (iii) negotiable certificates of
deposit (``CDs''), bankers' acceptances, fixed time deposits and other
obligations of U.S. and foreign banks (including foreign branches) and
similar institutions; (iv) commercial paper rated at the date of
purchase ``Prime-1'' by Moody's or ``A-1'' by S&P, or if unrated, of
comparable quality as determined by the Adviser; (v) non-convertible
corporate debt securities (e.g., bonds and debentures) with remaining
maturities at the date of purchase of not more than 397 days and that
satisfy the rating requirements set forth in Rule 2a-7 under the 1940
Act; and (vi) short-term U.S. dollar-denominated obligations of foreign
banks (including U.S. branches) that, in the opinion of the Adviser,
are of comparable quality to obligations of U.S. banks which may be
purchased by the Portfolio. Any of these instruments may be purchased
on a current or a forward-settled basis. Time deposits are non-
negotiable deposits maintained in banking institutions for specified
periods of time at stated interest rates. Bankers' acceptances are time
drafts drawn on commercial banks by borrowers, usually in connection
with international transactions.
Investment Restrictions
The Fund may hold up to an aggregate amount of 15% of its net
assets in illiquid assets (calculated at the time of investment),
including Rule 144A Restricted Securities deemed illiquid by the
Adviser, consistent with Commission guidance, and repurchase agreements
having maturities longer than seven days.\21\ The Fund will
[[Page 577]]
monitor its portfolio liquidity on an ongoing basis to determine
whether, in light of current circumstances, an adequate level of
liquidity is being maintained, and will consider taking appropriate
steps in order to maintain adequate liquidity if, through a change in
values, net assets, or other circumstances, more than 15% of the Fund's
net assets are held in illiquid assets. Illiquid assets include
securities subject to contractual or other restrictions on resale and
other instruments that lack readily available markets as determined in
accordance with Commission staff guidance.\22\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\21\ The Board has delegated the responsibility for determining
the liquidity of Rule 144A Restricted Securities that the Portfolio
may invest in to the Adviser. In reaching liquidity decisions, the
Adviser may consider the following factors: The frequency of trades
and quotes for the security; the number of dealers wishing to
purchase or sell the security and the number of other potential
purchasers; dealer undertakings to make a market in the security;
and the nature of the security and the nature of the marketplace in
which it trades (e.g., the time needed to dispose of the security,
the method of soliciting offers and the mechanics of transfer).
\22\ The Commission has stated that long-standing Commission
guidelines have required open-end funds to hold no more than 15% of
their net assets in illiquid securities and other illiquid assets.
See Investment Company Act Release No. 28193 (March 11, 2008), 73 FR
14618 (March 18, 2008), footnote 34. See also, Investment Company
Act Release No. 5847 (October 21, 1969), 35 FR 19989 (December 31,
1970) (Statement Regarding ``Restricted Securities''); Investment
Company Act Release No. 18612 (March 12, 1992), 57 FR 9828 (March
20, 1992) (Revisions of Guidelines to Form N-1A). A fund's portfolio
security is illiquid if it cannot be disposed of in the ordinary
course of business within seven days at approximately the value
ascribed to it by the fund. See Investment Company Act Release No.
14983 (March 12, 1986), 51 FR 9773 (March 21, 1986) (adopting
amendments to Rule 2a-7 under the 1940 Act); Investment Company Act
Release No. 17452 (April 23, 1990), 55 FR 17933 (April 30, 1990)
(adopting Rule 144A under the Securities Act).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
According to the Registration Statement, the Portfolio and Fund
will each be classified as a non-diversified investment company under
the 1940 Act. A ``non-diversified'' classification means that the
Portfolio or Fund is not limited by the 1940 Act with regard to the
percentage of its assets that may be invested in the securities of a
single issuer. This means that the Portfolio or Fund may invest a
greater portion of its assets in the securities of a single issuer than
a diversified fund.\23\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\23\ The diversification standard is set forth in Section
5(b)(1) of the 1940 Act.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Portfolio and Fund do not intend to concentrate their
investments in any particular industry. The Portfolio and Fund look to
the Global Industry Classification Standard Level 3 (Industries) in
making industry determinations.\24\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\24\ See Form N-1A, Item 9. The Commission has taken the
position that a fund is concentrated if it invests more than 25% of
the value of its total assets in any one industry. See, e.g.,
Investment Company Act Release No. 9011 (October 30, 1975), 40 FR
54241 (November 21, 1975).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Portfolio and Fund intend to maintain the required level of
diversification and otherwise conduct their operations so as to qualify
as a ``regulated investment company'' for purposes of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986.\25\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\25\ 26 U.S.C. 851.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Fund's investments will be consistent with its investment
objective and will not be used to enhance leverage.
Net Asset Value
The Fund will calculate net asset value (``NAV'') using the NAV of
the Portfolio. To the extent that the Fund invests in instruments other
than those in the Portfolio, the Fund will calculate its NAV based on
all assets.
NAV per Share for the Fund will be computed by dividing the value
of the net assets of the Portfolio (i.e., the value of its total assets
less total liabilities) by the total number of Shares outstanding.
Expenses and fees, including the management fees, will be accrued daily
and taken into account for purposes of determining NAV. The NAV of the
Portfolio will be calculated by the Custodian and determined as of the
close of the regular trading session on the New York Stock Exchange
(``NYSE'') (ordinarily 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) on each day that such
exchange is open. Fixed-income assets will generally be valued as of
the announced closing time for trading in fixed-income instruments in a
particular market or exchange. Any assets or liabilities denominated in
currencies other than the U.S. dollar will be converted into U.S.
dollars at market rates on the date of valuation (generally as of 4:00
p.m. London time) as quoted by one or more sources.
In calculating the Portfolio's NAV per Share, the Portfolio's
investments will generally be valued using market valuations. A market
valuation generally means a valuation (i) obtained from an exchange, a
pricing service, or a major market maker (or dealer), (ii) based on a
price quotation or other equivalent indication of value supplied by an
exchange, a pricing service, or a major market maker (or dealer), or
(iii) based on amortized cost. In the case of shares of other funds
that are not traded on an exchange, a market valuation means such
fund's published NAV per share. The Adviser may use various pricing
services, or discontinue the use of any pricing service, as approved by
the Board of the SSgA Master Trust from time to time. A price obtained
from a pricing service based on such pricing service's valuation matrix
may be considered a market valuation.
Common stocks and other exchange-traded equity securities
(including shares of preferred securities, convertible securities,
ETPs, and QPTPs) generally will be valued at the last reported sale
price or the official closing price on that exchange where the stock is
primarily traded on the day that the valuation is made. Foreign
equities and exchange-listed Depositary Receipts will be valued at the
last sale or official closing price on the relevant exchange on the
valuation date. If, however, neither the last sales price nor the
official closing price is available, each of these securities will be
valued at either the last reported sale price or official closing price
as of the close of regular trading of the principal market on which the
security is listed. Unsponsored ADRs, which are traded in the OTC
market, will be valued at the last reported sale price from the OTC
Bulletin Board or OTC Link LLC on the valuation date. OTC-traded
preferred securities and OTC-traded convertible securities will be
valued based on price quotations obtained from a broker-dealer who
makes markets in such securities or other equivalent indications of
value provided by a third-party pricing service.
Securities of investment companies (other than ETFs registered
under the 1940 Act), including affiliated funds, money market funds and
closed-end funds, will be valued at NAV.
Rule 144A Restricted Securities, repurchase agreements and reverse
repurchase agreements will generally be valued at bid prices received
from independent pricing services as of the announced closing time for
trading in such instruments. Spot currency transactions will generally
be valued at mid prices received from an independent pricing service
converted into U.S. dollars at current market rates on the date of
valuation. Foreign currency forwards normally will be valued on the
basis of quotes obtained from broker-dealers or third party pricing
services.
According to the Adviser, fixed income securities, including U.S.
Government obligations; TIPS; U.S.-registered, dollar-denominated bonds
of foreign corporations, governments, agencies and supra-national
entities; sovereign debt; corporate bonds; ABS, RMBS, and CMBS (either
agency or non-agency); CLOs; TBA transactions; municipal securities;
inverse floaters and bank loans; and short-term instruments will
generally be valued at bid prices received from independent pricing
services as of the announced closing time for trading in fixed-income
instruments in the respective market or
[[Page 578]]
exchange. In determining the value of a fixed income investment,
pricing services determine valuations for normal institutional-size
trading units of such securities using valuation models or matrix
pricing, which incorporates yield and/or price with respect to bonds
that are considered comparable in characteristics such as rating,
interest rate and maturity date and quotations from securities dealers
to determine current value.
The Trust will generally value listed futures and options at the
settlement price determined by the applicable exchange. Non-exchange-
traded derivatives, including OTC-traded options, swaps and forwards,
will normally be valued on the basis of quotations or equivalent
indication of value supplied by a third-party pricing service or major
market makers or dealers. The Fund's OTC-traded derivative instruments
will generally be valued at bid prices. Certain OTC-traded derivative
instruments, such as interest rate swaps and credit default swaps, will
be valued at the mean price.
In the event that current market valuations are not readily
available or such valuations do not reflect current market value, the
SSgA Master Trust's procedures require the Pricing and Investment
Committee (``Committee'') to determine a security's fair value if a
market price is not readily available, in accordance with the 1940
Act.\26\ In determining such value the Committee may consider, among
other things, (i) price comparisons among multiple sources, (ii) a
review of corporate actions and news events, and (iii) a review of
relevant financial indicators (e.g., movement in interest rates, market
indices, and prices from the Portfolio's index provider). In these
cases, the Portfolio's NAV may reflect certain portfolio securities'
fair values rather than their market prices.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\26\ If a security's market price is not readily available or
does not otherwise accurately reflect the fair value of the
security, the security will be valued by another method that the
Board believes will better reflect fair value in accordance with the
Trust's valuation policies and procedures and in accordance with the
1940 Act. The Board has delegated the process of valuing securities
for which market quotations are not readily available or do not
otherwise accurately reflect the fair value of the security to the
Committee. The Committee, subject to oversight by the Board, may use
fair value pricing in a variety of circumstances, including but not
limited to, situations when trading in a security has been suspended
or halted. Accordingly, the Portfolio's NAV may reflect certain
securities' fair values rather than their market prices. Fair value
pricing involves subjective judgments and it is possible that the
fair value determination for a security is materially different than
the value that could be received on the sale of the security. The
Committee has implemented procedures designed to prevent the use and
dissemination of material, non-public information regarding the
Portfolio and the Fund.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Creation and Redemption of Shares
The NAV of Shares of the Fund will be determined once each business
day, normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time. The Creation Unit size will be
50,000 Shares per Creation Unit. The Trust will issue and sell Shares
of the Fund only in Creation Units on a continuous basis, without a
sales load (but subject to transaction fees), at their NAV per Share
next determined after receipt of an order, on any business day, in
proper form.
The consideration for purchase of a Creation Unit of the Fund
generally will consist of either (i) the in-kind deposit of a
designated portfolio of securities held by the corresponding master
fund (the ``Deposit Securities'') per each Creation Unit and the Cash
Component (defined below), computed as described below, or (ii) the
cash value of the Deposit Securities (``Deposit Cash'') and the ``Cash
Component,'' computed as described below. When accepting purchases of
Creation Units for cash, the Fund may incur additional costs associated
with the acquisition of Deposit Securities that would otherwise be
provided by an in-kind purchaser. Together, the Deposit Securities or
Deposit Cash, as applicable, and the Cash Component constitute the
``Fund Deposit,'' which represents the minimum initial and subsequent
investment amount for a Creation Unit of the Fund. The ``Cash
Component'' is an amount equal to the difference between the NAV of the
Shares (per Creation Unit) and the market value of the Deposit
Securities or Deposit Cash, as applicable. If the Cash Component is a
positive number (i.e., the NAV per Creation Unit exceeds the market
value of the Deposit Securities or Deposit Cash, as applicable), the
Cash Component shall be such positive amount. If the Cash Component is
a negative number (i.e., the NAV per Creation Unit is less than the
market value of the Deposit Securities or Deposit Cash, as applicable),
the Cash Component will be such negative amount and the creator will be
entitled to receive cash in an amount equal to the Cash Component. The
Cash Component serves the function of compensating for any differences
between the NAV per Creation Unit and the market value of the Deposit
Securities or Deposit Cash, as applicable.
The Custodian, through the National Securities Clearing Corporation
(``NSCC''), will make available on each business day, immediately prior
to the opening of business on the Exchange's Core Trading Session (9:30
a.m., Eastern time), the list of the names and the required amount of
each Deposit Security or the required amount of Deposit Cash, as
applicable, to be included in the current Fund Deposit (based on
information at the end of the previous business day) for the Fund. Such
Fund Deposit is subject to any applicable adjustments as described in
the Registration Statement, in order to effect purchases of Creation
Units of the Fund until such time as the next-announced composition of
the Deposit Securities or the required amount of Deposit Cash, as
applicable, is made available.
Shares may be redeemed only in Creation Units at their NAV next
determined after receipt of a redemption request in proper form by the
Fund through the Transfer Agent and only on a business day.
With respect to the Fund, the Custodian, through the NSCC, will
make available immediately prior to the opening of business on the
Exchange (9:30 a.m. Eastern time) on each business day, the list of the
names and share quantities of the Fund's portfolio securities that will
be applicable (subject to possible amendment or correction) to
redemption requests received in proper form on that day (``Fund
Securities''). Fund Securities received on redemption may not be
identical to Deposit Securities.
Redemption proceeds for a Creation Unit will be paid either in-kind
or in cash or a combination thereof, as determined by the Trust. With
respect to in-kind redemptions of the Fund, redemption proceeds for a
Creation Unit will consist of Fund Securities as announced by the
Custodian on the business day of the request for redemption received in
proper form plus cash in an amount equal to the difference between the
NAV of the Shares being redeemed, as next determined after a receipt of
a request in proper form, and the value of the Fund Securities (the
``Cash Redemption Amount''), less a fixed redemption transaction fee
and any applicable additional variable charge as set forth in the
Registration Statement. In the event that the Fund Securities have a
value greater than the NAV of the Shares, a compensating cash payment
equal to the differential will be required to be made by or through an
authorized participant by the redeeming shareholder. Notwithstanding
the foregoing, at the Trust's discretion, an authorized participant may
receive the corresponding cash value of the securities in lieu of the
in-kind
[[Page 579]]
securities value representing one or more Fund Securities.
The creation/redemption order cut-off time for the Fund is expected
to be 4:00 p.m. Eastern time. Creation/redemption order cut-off times
may be earlier on any day that the Securities Industry and Financial
Markets Association (``SIFMA'') (or applicable exchange or market on
which the Portfolio's investments are traded) announces an early
closing time. On days when the Exchange closes earlier than normal, the
Fund may require orders for Creation Units to be placed earlier in the
day.
Availability of Information
The Fund's Web site (www.spdrs.com), which will be publicly
available prior to the public offering of Shares, will include a form
of the prospectus for the Fund that may be downloaded. The Fund's Web
site will include additional quantitative information updated on a
daily basis, including, for the Fund (1) daily trading volume, the
prior business day's reported closing price, NAV and mid-point of the
bid/ask spread at the time of calculation of such NAV (the ``Bid/Ask
Price''),\27\ and a calculation of the premium and discount of the Bid/
Ask Price against the NAV, and (2) data in chart format displaying the
frequency distribution of discounts and premiums of the daily Bid/Ask
Price against the NAV, within appropriate ranges, for each of the four
previous calendar quarters. On each business day, before commencement
of trading in Shares in the Core Trading Session on the Exchange, the
Fund will disclose on its Web site the Disclosed Portfolio as defined
in NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(c)(2) that will form the basis for the
Fund's calculation of NAV at the end of the business day.\28\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\27\ The Bid/Ask Price of the Fund will be determined using the
midpoint of the highest bid and the lowest offer on the Exchange as
of the time of calculation of the Fund's NAV. The records relating
to Bid/Ask Prices will be retained by the Fund and its service
providers.
\28\ Under accounting procedures followed by the Fund, trades
made on the prior business day (``T'') will be booked and reflected
in NAV on the current business day (``T + 1''). Accordingly, the
Fund will be able to disclose at the beginning of the business day
the portfolio that will form the basis for the NAV calculation at
the end of the business day.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Fund's disclosure of derivative positions in the Disclosed
Portfolio will include information that market participants can use to
value these positions intraday. On a daily basis, the Fund will
disclose on the Fund's Web site the following information regarding
each portfolio holding, as applicable to the type of holding: Ticker
symbol, CUSIP number or other identifier, if any; a description of the
holding (including the type of holding, such as the type of swap); the
identity of the security, commodity, index or other asset or instrument
underlying the holding, if any; for options, the option strike price;
quantity held (as measured by, for example, par value, notional value
or number of shares, contracts or units); maturity date, if any; coupon
rate, if any; effective date, if any; market value of the holding; and
the percentage weighting of the holding in the Fund's portfolio. The
Web site information will be publicly available at no charge.
In addition, a basket composition file, which includes the security
names and quantities required to be delivered in exchange for the
Fund's Shares, together with estimates and actual cash components, will
be publicly disseminated daily prior to the opening of the NYSE via
NSCC. The basket represents one Creation Unit of the Fund.
Investors can also obtain the Trust's Statement of Additional
Information (``SAI''), the Fund's Shareholder Reports, and the Trust's
Form N-CSR and Form N-SAR, filed twice a year. The Trust's SAI and
Shareholder Reports are available free upon request from the Trust, and
those documents and the Form N-CSR and Form N-SAR may be viewed on-
screen or downloaded from the Commission's Web site at www.sec.gov.
Information regarding market price and trading volume of the Shares
will be continually available on a real-time basis throughout the day
on brokers' computer screens and other electronic services. Information
regarding the previous day's closing price and trading volume
information for the Shares will be published daily in the financial
section of newspapers. Quotation and last sale information for the
Shares will be available via the Consolidated Tape Association
(``CTA'') high-speed line. The intra-day, closing and settlement prices
of common stocks and other exchange-traded equity securities (including
shares of Depositary Receipts, preferred securities, convertible
securities, ETPs, and QPTPs) will be readily available from the
national securities exchanges trading such securities as well as
automated quotation systems, published or other public sources, or on-
line information services such as Bloomberg or Reuters. Intra-day and
closing price information for exchange-traded options and futures will
be available from the applicable exchange and from major market data
vendors. In addition, price information for U.S. exchange-traded
options is available from the Options Price Reporting Authority.
Quotation information from brokers and dealers or pricing services will
be available for fixed income securities, including U.S. Government
obligations; TIPS; U.S. registered, dollar-denominated bonds of foreign
corporations, governments, agencies and supra-national entities;
sovereign debt; corporate bonds; asset-backed and commercial mortgage-
backed securities; residential mortgage backed securities (either
agency or non-agency); CLOs; TBA transactions; municipal securities;
inverse floaters and bank loans; and short-term instruments. Price
information regarding OTC-traded derivative instruments, including,
options, swaps, and spot and forward currency transactions, as well as
equity securities traded in the OTC market, including Rule 144A
Restricted Securities, OTC-traded preferred securities and OTC-traded
convertible securities, is available from major market data vendors.
Pricing information regarding each asset class in which the Fund or
Portfolio will invest, including investment company securities, Rule
144A Restricted Securities, repurchase agreements and reverse
repurchase agreements will generally be available through nationally
recognized data service providers through subscription arrangements. In
addition, the Indicative Optimized Portfolio Value (``IOPV''),\29\
which is the Portfolio Indicative Value as defined in NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 8.600(c)(3), will be widely disseminated at least every
15 seconds during the Exchange's Core Trading Session by one or more
major market data vendors.\30\ The dissemination of the IOPV, together
with the Disclosed Portfolio, will allow investors to determine the
value of the underlying portfolio of the Fund and of the Portfolio on a
daily basis and to provide a close estimate of that value throughout
the trading day.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\29\ Premiums and discounts between the IOPV and the market
price may occur. This should not be viewed as a ``real-time'' update
of the NAV per Share of the Fund, which will be calculated only once
a day.
\30\ Currently, it is the Exchange's understanding that several
major market data vendors display and/or make widely available
Portfolio Indicative Values taken from CTA or other data feeds.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Additional information regarding the Trust and the Shares,
including investment strategies, risks, creation and redemption
procedures, fees, portfolio holdings disclosure policies, distributions
and taxes is included in the Registration Statement. All terms relating
to the Fund that are referred to, but not defined in, this proposed
rule
[[Page 580]]
change are defined in the Registration Statement.
Trading Halts
With respect to trading halts, the Exchange may consider all
relevant factors in exercising its discretion to halt or suspend
trading in the Shares of the Fund.\31\ Trading in Shares of the Fund
will be halted if the circuit breaker parameters in NYSE Arca Equities
Rule 7.12 have been reached. Trading also may be halted because of
market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange,
make trading in the Shares inadvisable. These may include: (1) The
extent to which trading is not occurring in the securities and/or the
financial instruments comprising the Disclosed Portfolio of the Fund;
or (2) whether other unusual conditions or circumstances detrimental to
the maintenance of a fair and orderly market are present. Trading in
the Shares will be subject to NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(d)(2)(D),
which sets forth circumstances under which Shares of the Fund may be
halted.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\31\ See NYSE Arca Equities Rule 7.12.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trading Rules
The Exchange deems the Shares to be equity securities, thus
rendering trading in the Shares subject to the Exchange's existing
rules governing the trading of equity securities. Shares will trade on
the NYSE Arca Marketplace from 4:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern time in
accordance with NYSE Arca Equities Rule 7.34 (Opening, Core, and Late
Trading Sessions). The Exchange has appropriate rules to facilitate
transactions in the Shares during all trading sessions. As provided in
NYSE Arca Equities Rule 7.6, Commentary .03, the minimum price
variation (``MPV'') for quoting and entry of orders in equity
securities traded on the NYSE Arca Marketplace is $0.01, with the
exception of securities that are priced less than $1.00 for which the
MPV for order entry is $0.0001.
The Shares will conform to the initial and continued listing
criteria under NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600. The Exchange represents
that, for initial and/or continued listing, the Fund will be in
compliance with Rule 10A-3 \32\ under the Act, as provided by NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 5.3. A minimum of 100,000 Shares for the Fund will be
outstanding at the commencement of trading on the Exchange. The
Exchange will obtain a representation from the issuer of the Shares
that the NAV per Share will be calculated daily and that the NAV and
the Disclosed Portfolio will be made available to all market
participants at the same time.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\32\ 17 CFR 240.10A-3.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Surveillance
The Exchange represents that trading in the Shares will be subject
to the existing trading surveillances, administered by the Financial
Industry Regulatory Authority (``FINRA'') on behalf of the Exchange,
which are designed to detect violations of Exchange rules and
applicable federal securities laws.\33\ The Exchange represents that
these procedures are adequate to properly monitor Exchange trading of
the Shares in all trading sessions and to deter and detect violations
of Exchange rules and federal securities laws applicable to trading on
the Exchange.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\33\ FINRA surveils trading on the Exchange pursuant to a
regulatory services agreement. The Exchange is responsible for
FINRA's performance under this regulatory services agreement.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The surveillances referred to above generally focus on detecting
securities trading outside their normal patterns, which could be
indicative of manipulative or other violative activity. When such
situations are detected, surveillance analysis follows and
investigations are opened, where appropriate, to review the behavior of
all relevant parties for all relevant trading violations.
FINRA, on behalf of the Exchange, will communicate as needed
regarding trading in the Shares, exchange-traded options, common stocks
and other exchange-traded equity securities (including shares of
preferred securities, convertible securities, ETPs, certain exchange-
traded Depositary Receipts and QPTPs), and futures, with other markets
and other entities that are members of the ISG, and FINRA, on behalf of
the Exchange, may obtain trading information regarding trading in the
Shares and such exchange-traded instruments underlying the Shares from
such markets and other entities. In addition, the Exchange may obtain
information regarding trading in the Shares and such exchange-traded
instruments underlying the Shares from markets and other entities that
are members of ISG or with which the Exchange has in place a
comprehensive surveillance sharing agreement.\34\ In addition, FINRA,
on behalf of the Exchange, is able to access, as needed, trade
information for certain fixed income securities held by the Fund
reported to FINRA's Trade Reporting and Compliance Engine (``TRACE'').
FINRA also can access data obtained from the Municipal Securities
Rulemaking Board (``MSRB'') relating to municipal bond trading activity
for surveillance purposes in connection with trading in the Shares.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\34\ For a list of the current members of ISG, see
www.isgportal.org. The Exchange notes that not all components of the
Disclosed Portfolio for the Fund may trade on markets that are
members of ISG or with which the Exchange has in place a
comprehensive surveillance sharing agreement.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
With the exception of unsponsored ADRs, which will comprise no more
than 10% of the Fund's net assets, all equity securities (i.e., common
stocks, Depositary Receipts, certain preferred securities, ETPs and
certain other exchange-traded investment company securities) in which
the Portfolio or Fund may invest will trade on markets that are members
of the ISG or that have entered into a comprehensive surveillance
agreement with the Exchange.
In addition, the Exchange also has a general policy prohibiting the
distribution of material, non-public information by its employees.
Information Bulletin
Prior to the commencement of trading, the Exchange will inform its
Equity Trading Permit Holders in an Information Bulletin (``Bulletin'')
of the special characteristics and risks associated with trading the
Shares. Specifically, the Bulletin will discuss the following: (1) The
procedures for purchases and redemptions of Shares in Creation Unit
aggregations (and that Shares are not individually redeemable); (2)
NYSE Arca Equities Rule 9.2(a), which imposes a duty of due diligence
on its Equity Trading Permit Holders to learn the essential facts
relating to every customer prior to trading the Shares; (3) the risks
involved in trading the Shares during the Opening and Late Trading
Sessions when an updated Portfolio Indicative Value will not be
calculated or publicly disseminated; (4) how information regarding the
Portfolio Indicative Value and the Disclosed Portfolio is disseminated;
(5) the requirement that Equity Trading Permit Holders deliver a
prospectus to investors purchasing newly issued Shares prior to or
concurrently with the confirmation of a transaction; and (6) trading
information.
In addition, the Bulletin will reference that the Fund is subject
to various fees and expenses described in the Registration Statement.
The Bulletin will discuss any exemptive, no-action, and interpretive
relief granted by the Commission from any rules under the Act. The
Bulletin will also disclose that the NAV for the Shares will be
calculated after 4:00 p.m. Eastern time each trading day.
[[Page 581]]
2. Statutory Basis
The basis under the Act for this proposed rule change is the
requirement under Section 6(b)(5) \35\ that an exchange have rules that
are designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices,
to promote just and equitable principles of trade, to remove
impediments to, and perfect the mechanism of a free and open market
and, in general, to protect investors and the public interest.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\35\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Exchange believes that the proposed rule change is designed to
prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices in that the
Shares will be listed and traded on the Exchange pursuant to the
initial and continued listing criteria in NYSE Arca Equities Rule
8.600. The Exchange has in place surveillance procedures that are
adequate to properly monitor trading in the Shares in all trading
sessions and to deter and detect violations of Exchange rules and
federal securities laws applicable to trading on the Exchange. The
Adviser and Sub-Adviser are not registered as a broker-dealer but the
Adviser is affiliated with a broker-dealer and has implemented a ``fire
wall'' with respect to such broker-dealer regarding access to
information concerning the composition and/or changes to the Fund's
portfolio. The Sub-Adviser is not affiliated with a broker-dealer. In
addition, the Trust's Pricing and Investment Committee has implemented
procedures designed to prevent the use and dissemination of material,
non-public information regarding the Portfolio and the Fund. FINRA, on
behalf of the Exchange, will communicate as needed regarding trading in
the Shares, exchange-traded options, common stocks and other exchange-
traded equity securities (including shares of preferred securities,
convertible securities, ETPs, and QPTPs), and futures with other
markets and other entities that are members of the ISG, and FINRA, on
behalf of the Exchange, may obtain trading information regarding
trading in the Shares and such exchange-traded securities underlying
the Shares from such markets and other entities. In addition, the
Exchange may obtain information regarding trading in the Shares and
such exchange-traded securities underlying the Shares from markets and
other entities that are members of ISG or with which the Exchange has
in place a comprehensive surveillance sharing agreement. FINRA, on
behalf of the Exchange, is able to access, as needed, trade information
for certain fixed income securities held by the Fund reported to
FINRA's TRACE. FINRA also can access data obtained from the MSRB
relating to municipal bond trading activity for surveillance purposes
in connection with trading in the Shares. The ETPs held by the Fund
will be traded on U.S. national securities exchanges and will be
subject to the rules of such exchanges, as approved by the Commission.
With the exception of unsponsored ADRs, which will comprise no more
than 10% of the Fund's net assets, all exchange-traded equity
securities (i.e., common stocks, Depositary Receipts, certain preferred
securities, ETPs and certain other exchange-traded investment company
securities) in which the Portfolio or Fund may invest will trade on
markets that are members of the ISG or that have entered into a
comprehensive surveillance agreement with the Exchange. The Fund may
hold up to an aggregate amount of 15% of its net assets in illiquid
assets (calculated at the time of investment), including Rule 144A
Restricted Securities deemed illiquid by the Adviser, consistent with
Commission guidance, and repurchase agreements having maturities longer
than seven days.
The proposed rule change is designed to promote just and equitable
principles of trade and to protect investors and the public interest in
that the Exchange will obtain a representation from the issuer of the
Shares that the NAV per Share will be calculated daily and that the NAV
and the Disclosed Portfolio will be made available to all market
participants at the same time. In addition, a large amount of
information is publicly available regarding the Fund and the Shares,
thereby promoting market transparency. The Fund's portfolio holdings
will be disclosed on its Web site daily after the close of trading on
the Exchange and prior to the opening of trading on the Exchange the
following day. Moreover, the IOPV will be widely disseminated by one or
more major market data vendors at least every 15 seconds during the
Exchange's Core Trading Session. On each business day, before
commencement of trading in Shares in the Core Trading Session on the
Exchange, the Fund will disclose on its Web site the Disclosed
Portfolio that will form the basis for the Fund's calculation of NAV at
the end of the business day. Quotation and last sale information for
the Shares will be available via the CTA high-speed line. The intra-
day, closing and settlement prices of common stocks and other exchange-
traded equity securities (including shares of preferred securities,
convertible securities, Depositary Receipts, ETPs, and QPTPs) will be
readily available from the national securities exchanges trading such
securities as well as automated quotation systems, published or other
public sources, or on-line information services such as Bloomberg or
Reuters. Intra-day and closing price information for exchange-traded
options and futures will be available from the applicable exchange and
from major market data vendors. In addition, price information for U.S.
exchange-traded options is available from the Options Price Reporting
Authority. Quotation information from brokers and dealers or pricing
services will be available for fixed income securities, including U.S.
Government obligations; U.S.- registered, dollar-denominated bonds of
foreign corporations, governments, agencies and supra-national
entities; corporate bonds; ABS; RMBS; CMBS; CLOs; variable and floating
rate securities; TBA transactions; municipal securities; and short-term
instruments. Price information regarding OTC-traded derivative
securities, including, options, swaps, and spot and forward currency
transactions, as well as equity securities traded in the OTC market,
such as Rule 144A Restricted Securities, is available from major market
data vendors. The Web site for the Fund will include a form of the
prospectus for the Fund and additional data relating to NAV and other
applicable quantitative information. Moreover, prior to the
commencement of trading, the Exchange will inform its Equity Trading
Permit Holders in an Information Bulletin of the special
characteristics and risks associated with trading the Shares. Trading
in Shares of the Fund will be halted if the circuit breaker parameters
in NYSE Arca Equities Rule 7.12 have been reached or because of market
conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make
trading in the Shares inadvisable, and trading in the Shares will be
subject to NYSE Arca Equities Rule 8.600(d)(2)(D), which sets forth
circumstances under which Shares of the Fund may be halted. In
addition, as noted above, investors will have ready access to
information regarding the Fund's holdings, the IOPV, the Disclosed
Portfolio, and quotation and last sale information for the Shares.
The proposed rule change is designed to perfect the mechanism of a
free and open market and, in general, to protect investors and the
public interest in that it will facilitate the listing and trading of
an additional type of actively-managed exchange-traded product that
will enhance competition among market
[[Page 582]]
participants, to the benefit of investors and the marketplace. As noted
above, the Exchange has in place surveillance procedures relating to
trading in the Shares and may obtain information via ISG from other
exchanges that are members of ISG or with which the Exchange has
entered into a comprehensive surveillance sharing agreement. In
addition, as noted above, investors will have ready access to
information regarding the Fund's holdings, the IOPV, the Disclosed
Portfolio, and quotation and last sale information for the Shares.
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 purpose of the Act. The Exchange notes that the
proposed rule change will facilitate the listing and trading of an
additional type of actively-managed exchange-traded product that will
invest in multiple asset classes and that will enhance competition
among market participants, to the benefit of investors and the
marketplace.
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 up to 90 days (i) as the
Commission may designate 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-2014-143 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-NYSEArca-2014-143. 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 will also 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-NYSEArca-2014-143 and should
be submitted on or before January 27, 2015.
For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\36\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\36\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Brent J. Fields,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014-30894 Filed 1-5-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P