Self-Regulatory Organizations; C2 Options Exchange, Incorporated; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed Rule Change Relating to the Options Regulatory Fee, 44176-44177 [2015-18130]

Download as PDF 44176 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 142 / Friday, July 24, 2015 / Notices 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Copies of the 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–MIAX– 2015–48 and should be submitted on or before August 14, 2015. For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated authority.13 Robert W. Errett, Deputy Secretary. [FR Doc. 2015–18136 Filed 7–23–15; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 8011–01–P SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION [Release No. 34–75492; File No. SR–C2– 2015–019] Self-Regulatory Organizations; C2 Options Exchange, Incorporated; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed Rule Change Relating to the Options Regulatory Fee July 20, 2015. Pursuant to section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2 notice is hereby given that on July 10, 2015, C2 Options Exchange, Incorporated (the ‘‘Exchange’’ or ‘‘C2’’) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the ‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule change as described in Items I, II, and III below, which Items have been prepared by the Exchange. The Commission is publishing this notice to solicit comments on the proposed rule change from interested persons. asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement of the Terms of Substance of the Proposed Rule Change The Exchange proposes to amend the Options Regulatory Fee. The text of the proposed rule change is available on the Exchange’s Web site (https:// www.c2exchange.com/Legal/), at the Exchange’s Office of the Secretary, and at the Commission’s Public Reference Room. 13 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). U.S.C. 78s(b)(1). 2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 1 15 VerDate Sep<11>2014 19:59 Jul 23, 2015 Jkt 235001 II. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement of the Purpose of, and Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change In its filing with the Commission, the Exchange included statements concerning the purpose of and basis for the proposed rule change and discussed any comments it received on the proposed rule change. The text of these statements may be examined at the places specified in Item IV below. The Exchange has prepared summaries, set forth in sections A, B, and C below, of the most significant aspects of such statements. A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement of the Purpose of, and Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change 1. Purpose The Exchange proposes to increase the Options Regulatory Fee (‘‘ORF’’) from $.0002 to $.0051 per contract in order to help offset increased regulatory costs. The proposed fee change would be operative on August 1, 2015. The ORF is assessed by the Exchange to each Permit Holder for all options transactions executed or cleared by the Permit Holder that are cleared by The Options Clearing Corporation (‘‘OCC’’) in the customer range (i.e., transactions that clear in a customer account at OCC) regardless of the exchange on which the transaction occurs. In other words, the Exchange imposes the ORF on all customer-range transactions executed by a Permit Holder, even if the transactions do not take place on the Exchange. The ORF also is charged for transactions that are not executed by a Permit Holder but are ultimately cleared by a Permit Holder. In the case where a Permit Holder executes a transaction and a different Permit Holder clears the transaction, the ORF is assessed to the Permit Holder who executed the transaction. In the case where a nonPermit Holder executes a transaction and a Permit Holder clears the transaction, the ORF is assessed to the Permit Holder who clears the transaction. The ORF is collected indirectly from Permit Holders through their clearing firms by OCC on behalf of the Exchange. The ORF is designed to recover a material portion of the costs to the Exchange of the supervision and regulation of Permit Holder customer options business, including performing routine surveillances, investigations, examinations, financial monitoring, as well as policy, rulemaking, interpretive and enforcement activities. The Exchange believes that revenue PO 00000 Frm 00158 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 generated from the ORF, when combined with all of the Exchange’s other regulatory fees and fines, will cover a material portion, but not all, of the Exchange’s regulatory costs. The Exchange notes that its regulatory responsibilities with respect to Permit Holder compliance with options sales practice rules have largely been allocated to FINRA under a 17d–2 agreement. The ORF is not designed to cover the cost of that options sales practice regulation. The Exchange will continue to monitor the amount of revenue collected from the ORF to ensure that it, in combination with its other regulatory fees and fines, does not exceed the Exchange’s total regulatory costs. The Exchange monitors its regulatory costs and revenues at a minimum on a semiannual basis. If the Exchange determines regulatory revenues exceed or are insufficient to cover a material portion of its regulatory costs, the Exchange will adjust the ORF by submitting a fee change filing to the Commission. The Exchange notifies Permit Holders of adjustments to the ORF via regulatory circular. The Exchange endeavors to provide Permit Holders with such notice at least 30 calendar days prior to the effective date of the change. 2. Statutory Basis The Exchange believes the proposed rule change is consistent with the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the ‘‘Act’’) and the rules and regulations thereunder applicable to the Exchange and, in particular, the requirements of section 6(b) of the Act.3 Specifically, the Exchange believes the proposed rule change is consistent with section 6(b)(4) of the Act,4 which provides that Exchange rules may provide for the equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees, and other charges among its Permit Holders and other persons using its facilities. Additionally, the Exchange believes the proposed rule change is consistent with the section 6(b)(5) 5 requirement that the rules of an exchange not be designed to permit unfair discrimination between customers, issuers, brokers, or dealers. The Exchange believes the proposed fee change is reasonable because it would help the Exchange offset increased regulatory costs but would not result in total regulatory revenue exceeding total regulatory costs. Moreover, the Exchange believes the ORF ensures fairness by assessing 3 15 4 15 U.S.C. 78f(b). U.S.C. 78f(b)(4). 5 Id. E:\FR\FM\24JYN1.SGM 24JYN1 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 142 / Friday, July 24, 2015 / Notices higher fees to those Permit Holders that require more Exchange regulatory services based on the amount of customer options business they conduct. Regulating customer trading activity is much more labor intensive and requires greater expenditure of human and technical resources than regulating non-customer trading activity, which tends to be more automated and less labor-intensive. As a result, the costs associated with administering the customer component of the Exchange’s overall regulatory program are materially higher than the costs associated with administering the non-customer component (e.g., Permit Holder proprietary transactions) of its regulatory program.6 The Exchange believes the proposed fee change is equitable and not unfairly discriminatory in that it is charged to all Permit Holders on all their transactions that clear in the customer range at the OCC. B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement on Burden on Competition C2 does not believe that the proposed rule change will impose any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate in furtherance of the purposes of the Act, because it applies to all Permit Holders. The proposed ORF is comparable to fees charged by other options exchanges for the same or similar service. The Exchange believes any burden on competition imposed by the proposed rule change is outweighed by the need to help the Exchange adequately fund its regulatory activities to ensure compliance with the Exchange Act. asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement on Comments on the Proposed Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others The Exchange neither solicited nor received comments on the proposed rule change. III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for Commission Action The foregoing rule change has become effective pursuant to section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act 7 and paragraph (f) of Rule 19b–4 8 thereunder. At any time within 60 days of the filing of the proposed rule change, the Commission summarily may 6 If the Exchange changes its method of funding regulation or if circumstances otherwise change in the future, the Exchange may decide to modify the ORF or assess a separate regulatory fee on Permit Holder proprietary transactions if the Exchange deems it advisable. 7 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A). 8 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f). VerDate Sep<11>2014 19:59 Jul 23, 2015 Jkt 235001 temporarily suspend such rule change if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. If the Commission takes such action, the Commission will institute proceedings to determine whether the proposed rule change should be approved or disapproved. IV. Solicitation of Comments Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods: Electronic Comments • Use the Commission’s Internet comment form (https://www.sec.gov/ rules/sro.shtml); or • Send an email to rule-comments@ sec.gov. Please include File Number SR– C2–2015–019 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–C2–2015–019. 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 the 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 PO 00000 Frm 00159 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 44177 available publicly. All submissions should refer to File Number SR–C2– 2015–019 and should be submitted on or before August 14, 2015. For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated authority.9 Robert W. Errett, Deputy Secretary. [FR Doc. 2015–18130 Filed 7–23–15; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 8011–01–P SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Investment Company Act of 1940; Release No. 31719/July 20, 2015; Order under Sections 6(c) and 17(b) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 In the Matter of: Cash Trust Series, Inc., Federated Adjustable Rate Securities Fund, Federated Core Trust, Federated Core Trust II, L.P., Federated Core Trust III, Federated Enhanced Treasury Income Fund, Federated Equity Funds, Federated Equity Income Fund, Inc., Federated Fixed Income Securities, Inc., Federated Global Allocation Fund, Federated Government Income Securities, Inc., Federated Government Income Trust, Federated High Income Bond Fund, Inc., Federated High Yield Trust, Federated Income Securities Trust, Federated Index Trust, Federated Institutional Trust, Federated Insurance Series, Federated International Series, Inc., Federated Investment Series Funds, Inc., Federated MDT Series, Federated MDT Stock Trust, Federated Managed Pool Series, Federated Municipal Securities Fund, Inc., Federated Municipal Securities Income Trust, Federated Premier Intermediate Municipal Income Fund, Federated Premier Municipal Income Fund, Federated Short-Intermediate Duration Municipal Trust, Federated Total Return Government Bond Fund, Federated Total Return Series, Inc., Federated U.S. Government Securities Fund: 1–3 Years, Federated U.S. Government Securities Fund: 2–5 Years, Federated World Investment Series, Inc., Intermediate Municipal Trust, Edward Jones Money Market Fund, Money Market Obligations Trust, Federated Advisory Services Company, Federated Equity Management Company of Pennsylvania, Federated Global Investment Management Corp., Federated Investment Counseling, Federated Investment Management Company, Federated MDTA LLC, Passport Research, Ltd., Federated Securities Corp., c/o Peter Germain, Federated Investors, Inc., Federated Investors Tower, 1001 Liberty Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222–3779, (File No. 812–1385–47). Cash Trust Series, Inc., et al. filed an application on March 1, 2011 and amendments to the application on August 29, 2011, July 3, 2012, December 7, 2012, August 29, 2013, June 15, 2015 and June 22, 2015, requesting an order 9 17 E:\FR\FM\24JYN1.SGM CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 24JYN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 142 (Friday, July 24, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44176-44177]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-18130]


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

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-75492; File No. SR-C2-2015-019]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; C2 Options Exchange, Incorporated; 
Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed Rule Change 
Relating to the Options Regulatory Fee

July 20, 2015.
    Pursuant to section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 
1934,\1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given that on 
July 10, 2015, C2 Options Exchange, Incorporated (the ``Exchange'' or 
``C2'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the 
``Commission'') the proposed rule change as described in Items I, II, 
and III below, which Items have been prepared by the Exchange. The 
Commission is publishing this notice to solicit comments on the 
proposed rule change from interested persons.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

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

    The Exchange proposes to amend the Options Regulatory Fee. The text 
of the proposed rule change is available on the Exchange's Web site 
(https://www.c2exchange.com/Legal/), at the Exchange's Office of the 
Secretary, and at the Commission's Public Reference Room.

II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and 
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

    In its filing with the Commission, the Exchange included statements 
concerning the purpose of and basis for the proposed rule change and 
discussed any comments it received on the proposed rule change. The 
text of these statements may be examined at the places specified in 
Item IV below. The Exchange has prepared summaries, set forth in 
sections A, B, and C below, of the most significant aspects of such 
statements.

A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and 
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

1. Purpose
    The Exchange proposes to increase the Options Regulatory Fee 
(``ORF'') from $.0002 to $.0051 per contract in order to help offset 
increased regulatory costs. The proposed fee change would be operative 
on August 1, 2015.
    The ORF is assessed by the Exchange to each Permit Holder for all 
options transactions executed or cleared by the Permit Holder that are 
cleared by The Options Clearing Corporation (``OCC'') in the customer 
range (i.e., transactions that clear in a customer account at OCC) 
regardless of the exchange on which the transaction occurs. In other 
words, the Exchange imposes the ORF on all customer-range transactions 
executed by a Permit Holder, even if the transactions do not take place 
on the Exchange. The ORF also is charged for transactions that are not 
executed by a Permit Holder but are ultimately cleared by a Permit 
Holder. In the case where a Permit Holder executes a transaction and a 
different Permit Holder clears the transaction, the ORF is assessed to 
the Permit Holder who executed the transaction. In the case where a 
non-Permit Holder executes a transaction and a Permit Holder clears the 
transaction, the ORF is assessed to the Permit Holder who clears the 
transaction. The ORF is collected indirectly from Permit Holders 
through their clearing firms by OCC on behalf of the Exchange.
    The ORF is designed to recover a material portion of the costs to 
the Exchange of the supervision and regulation of Permit Holder 
customer options business, including performing routine surveillances, 
investigations, examinations, financial monitoring, as well as policy, 
rulemaking, interpretive and enforcement activities. The Exchange 
believes that revenue generated from the ORF, when combined with all of 
the Exchange's other regulatory fees and fines, will cover a material 
portion, but not all, of the Exchange's regulatory costs. The Exchange 
notes that its regulatory responsibilities with respect to Permit 
Holder compliance with options sales practice rules have largely been 
allocated to FINRA under a 17d-2 agreement. The ORF is not designed to 
cover the cost of that options sales practice regulation.
    The Exchange will continue to monitor the amount of revenue 
collected from the ORF to ensure that it, in combination with its other 
regulatory fees and fines, does not exceed the Exchange's total 
regulatory costs. The Exchange monitors its regulatory costs and 
revenues at a minimum on a semi-annual basis. If the Exchange 
determines regulatory revenues exceed or are insufficient to cover a 
material portion of its regulatory costs, the Exchange will adjust the 
ORF by submitting a fee change filing to the Commission. The Exchange 
notifies Permit Holders of adjustments to the ORF via regulatory 
circular. The Exchange endeavors to provide Permit Holders with such 
notice at least 30 calendar days prior to the effective date of the 
change.
2. Statutory Basis
    The Exchange believes the proposed rule change is consistent with 
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the ``Act'') and the rules and 
regulations thereunder applicable to the Exchange and, in particular, 
the requirements of section 6(b) of the Act.\3\ Specifically, the 
Exchange believes the proposed rule change is consistent with section 
6(b)(4) of the Act,\4\ which provides that Exchange rules may provide 
for the equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees, and other 
charges among its Permit Holders and other persons using its 
facilities. Additionally, the Exchange believes the proposed rule 
change is consistent with the section 6(b)(5) \5\ requirement that the 
rules of an exchange not be designed to permit unfair discrimination 
between customers, issuers, brokers, or dealers.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
    \4\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).
    \5\ Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Exchange believes the proposed fee change is reasonable because 
it would help the Exchange offset increased regulatory costs but would 
not result in total regulatory revenue exceeding total regulatory 
costs. Moreover, the Exchange believes the ORF ensures fairness by 
assessing

[[Page 44177]]

higher fees to those Permit Holders that require more Exchange 
regulatory services based on the amount of customer options business 
they conduct. Regulating customer trading activity is much more labor 
intensive and requires greater expenditure of human and technical 
resources than regulating non-customer trading activity, which tends to 
be more automated and less labor-intensive. As a result, the costs 
associated with administering the customer component of the Exchange's 
overall regulatory program are materially higher than the costs 
associated with administering the non-customer component (e.g., Permit 
Holder proprietary transactions) of its regulatory program.\6\ The 
Exchange believes the proposed fee change is equitable and not unfairly 
discriminatory in that it is charged to all Permit Holders on all their 
transactions that clear in the customer range at the OCC.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \6\ If the Exchange changes its method of funding regulation or 
if circumstances otherwise change in the future, the Exchange may 
decide to modify the ORF or assess a separate regulatory fee on 
Permit Holder proprietary transactions if the Exchange deems it 
advisable.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

    C2 does not believe that the proposed rule change will impose any 
burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate in 
furtherance of the purposes of the Act, because it applies to all 
Permit Holders. The proposed ORF is comparable to fees charged by other 
options exchanges for the same or similar service. The Exchange 
believes any burden on competition imposed by the proposed rule change 
is outweighed by the need to help the Exchange adequately fund its 
regulatory activities to ensure compliance with the Exchange Act.

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

    The Exchange neither solicited nor received comments on the 
proposed rule change.

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

    The foregoing rule change has become effective pursuant to section 
19(b)(3)(A) of the Act \7\ and paragraph (f) of Rule 19b-4 \8\ 
thereunder. At any time within 60 days of the filing of the proposed 
rule change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule 
change if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or 
appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or 
otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. If the Commission 
takes such action, the Commission will institute proceedings to 
determine whether the proposed rule change should be approved or 
disapproved.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \7\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \8\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

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-C2-2015-019 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-C2-2015-019. 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 the 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-C2-2015-019 and should be 
submitted on or before August 14, 2015.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\9\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \9\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Robert W. Errett,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2015-18130 Filed 7-23-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 8011-01-P
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