Self-Regulatory Organizations; Cboe EDGX Exchange, Inc.; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed Rule Change To Amend Its Fee Schedule, 9399-9403 [2022-03495]
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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 34 / Friday, February 18, 2022 / Notices
For the Commission, by the Division of
Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated
authority.6
J. Matthew DeLesDernier,
Assistant Secretary.
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Release No. 34–94238; File No. SR–
CboeBZX–2021–086]
[FR Doc. 2022–03494 Filed 2–17–22; 8:45 am]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; Cboe
BZX Exchange, Inc.; Notice of
Designation of Longer Period for
Commission Action on Proposed Rule
Change To Amend the Opening
Auction Process Provided Under Rule
11.23(b)(2)(B)
jspears on DSK121TN23PROD with NOTICES1
February 14, 2022.
On December 21, 2021, Cboe BZX
Exchange, Inc. 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 the Opening Auction process
provided under Rule 11.23(b)(2)(B). The
proposed rule change was published for
comment in the Federal Register on
January 5, 2022.3 The Commission has
received no comment letters on the
proposed rule change.
Section 19(b)(2) of the Act 4 provides
that, within 45 days of the publication
of notice of the filing of a proposed rule
change, or within such longer period up
to 90 days as the Commission may
designate if it finds such longer period
to be appropriate and publishes its
reasons for so finding, or as to which the
self-regulatory organization consents,
the Commission shall either approve the
proposed rule change, disapprove the
proposed rule change, or institute
proceedings to determine whether the
proposed rule change should be
disapproved. The 45th day after
publication of the notice for this
proposed rule change is February 19,
2022.
The Commission is extending this 45day time period. The Commission finds
that it is appropriate to designate a
longer period within which to take
action on the proposal so that it has
sufficient time to consider the proposed
rule change. Accordingly, the
Commission, pursuant to Section
19(b)(2) of the Act,5 designates April 5,
2022, as the date by which the
Commission shall either approve or
disapprove, or institute proceedings to
determine whether to disapprove, the
proposed rule change (File No. SR–
CboeBZX–2021–086).
1 15
U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
CFR 240.19b–4.
3 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 93888
(December 30, 2021), 87 FR 532.
4 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2).
5 Id.
2 17
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BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Release No. 34–94237; File No. SR–
CboeEDGX–2022–005]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; Cboe
EDGX Exchange, Inc.; Notice of Filing
and Immediate Effectiveness of a
Proposed Rule Change To Amend Its
Fee Schedule
February 14, 2022.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the
‘‘Act’’),1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2
notice is hereby given that on February
1, 2022, Cboe EDGX Exchange, Inc. (the
‘‘Exchange’’ or ‘‘EDGX’’) filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission
(the ‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule
change as described in Items I, II, and
III below, which Items have been
prepared by the Exchange. The
Commission is publishing this notice to
solicit comments on the proposed rule
change from interested persons.
I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Terms of Substance of
the Proposed Rule Change
Cboe EDGX Exchange, Inc. (the
‘‘Exchange’’ or ‘‘EDGX’’ or ‘‘EDGX
Equities’’) proposes to amend its Fee
Schedule. The text of the proposed rule
change is provided in Exhibit 5.
The text of the proposed rule change
is also available on the Exchange’s
website (https://markets.cboe.com/us/
options/regulation/rule_filings/edgx/),
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
CFR 200.30–3(a)(31).
1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
2 17 CFR 240.19b–4.
Frm 00093
Fmt 4703
forth in sections A, B, and C below, of
the most significant aspects of such
statements.
A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule
Change
1. Purpose
The Exchange proposes to amend its
Fee Schedule applicable to its equities
trading platform (‘‘EDGX Equities’’) as
follows: (1) Adopt new fee code ZO
which will be applicable to retail orders
that add liquidity in the pre and post
market; (2) update Remove Volume Tier
2, the Retail Volume Tiers, and Retail
Membership Program Volume Tiers to
add references to proposed fee code ZO;
(3) modify the rebate applicable to Add/
Remove Volume Tiers 1 and 2; (4)
modify the criteria of Growth Tier 4;
and (5) modify the criteria of the
Remove Volume Tier 1. The Exchange
proposes to implement these changes
effective February 1, 2022.
The Exchange first notes that it
operates in a highly competitive market
in which market participants can
readily direct order flow to competing
venues if they deem fee levels at a
particular venue to be excessive or
incentives to be insufficient. More
specifically, the Exchange is only one of
16 registered equities exchanges, as well
as a number of alternative trading
systems and other off-exchange venues
that do not have similar self-regulatory
responsibilities under the Exchange Act,
to which market participants may direct
their order flow. Based on publicly
available information,3 no single
registered equities exchange has more
than 17% of the market share. Thus, in
such a low-concentrated and highly
competitive market, no single equities
exchange possesses significant pricing
power in the execution of order flow.
The Exchange in particular operates a
‘‘Maker-Taker’’ model whereby it pays
rebates to members that add liquidity
and assesses fees to those that remove
liquidity. The Exchange’s Fee Schedule
sets forth the standard rebates and rates
applied per share for orders that provide
and remove liquidity, respectively.
Currently, for orders in securities priced
at or above $1.00, the Exchange
provides a standard rebate of $0.00160
per share for orders that add liquidity
and assesses a fee of $0.0030 per share
for orders that remove liquidity. For
orders in securities priced below $1.00,
the Exchange provides a standard rebate
3 See Cboe Global Markets, U.S. Equities Market
Volume Summary, Month-to-Date (January 24,
2022), available at https://markets.cboe.com/us/
equities/market_statistics/.
6 17
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of $0.00009 per share for orders that add
liquidity and assesses a fee of 0.30% of
total dollar value for orders that remove
liquidity. Additionally, in response to
the competitive environment, the
Exchange also offers tiered pricing
which provides Members opportunities
to qualify for higher rebates or reduced
fees where certain volume criteria and
thresholds are met. Tiered pricing
provides an incremental incentive for
Members to strive for higher tier levels,
which provides increasingly higher
benefits or discounts for satisfying
increasingly more stringent criteria.
Proposed New Fee Code
The Exchange proposes to adopt a
new fee code in the Fee Code and
Associated Fees table of the Fee
Schedule. Currently, all retail orders
that add liquidity yield fee code ‘‘ZA’’
and receive a rebate of $0.0032 per share
in securities priced at or above $1.00
and a rebate of $0.00003 per share in
securities priced below $1.00. The
Exchange now proposes to adopt fee
code ‘‘ZO’’, which will be appended to
retail orders that add liquidity, but in
the pre and post market. The Exchange
proposes to continue to assess the same
fees and rebates as are currently
assessed today for retail orders that add
liquidity (i.e., orders yielding fee code
ZO would receive a rebate of $0.0032
per share in securities priced at or above
$1.00 and a rebate of $0.00003 per share
in securities priced below $1.00). The
Exchange also proposes to apply
incentive tiers and programs that
currently apply to orders yielding ZA to
orders that will now yield ZO and
therefore append footnotes 2 and 3 to
ZO in the Fee Code and Associated Fees
table. Particularly, the Exchange
proposes to modify the description and
criteria of the Retail Volume Tiers
(provided under footnote 2 of the Fee
Schedule) and Retail Equities
Membership Program Volume Tiers
(provided under footnote 3 of the Fee
Schedule), so that orders yielding both
fee codes ZA and ZO are eligible for the
respective tiers and the Retail Order
ADV criteria under each tier includes
orders yielding ZO in addition to ZA.
Similarly, the Exchange proposes to
amend the second prong of Remove
Volume Tier 2 to provide the Retail
Order ADV criteria will also include
orders yielding ZO in addition to ZA.
Accordingly, retail orders that add
liquidity in the pre or post market will
continue to be eligible for the same
incentive programs (and continue to be
counted towards Retail Order ADV
thresholds) as they are today, albeit
under a separate fee code (i.e., ZO
instead of ZA).
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Modifications to Add/Remove Volume
Tiers
The Add Volume Tiers set forth in
footnote 1 of the Fee Schedule (Add/
Remove Volume Tiers) provides
Members an opportunity for qualifying
orders (i.e., orders yielding fee code B,4
V,5 Y,6 3 7 or 4 8) to receive an enhanced
rebate on their orders on orders that add
liquidity and meet certain volume
criteria. Specifically, Add Volume Tier
1 provides a rebate of $0.0023 per share
to Members that add an ADV 9 greater
than or equal to 0.20% of the TCV.10
Similarly, Add Volume Tier 2 provides
a rebate of $0.0025 per share to
Members that add an ADV greater than
or equal to 0.30% of the TCV. The
Exchange notes that the Add Volume
Tiers are designed to encourage
Members that provide liquidity adding
orders to the Exchange to increase their
order flow, which would benefit all
Members by providing greater execution
opportunities on the Exchange.
Now the Exchange proposes to reduce
the rebates provided under Add Volume
Tiers 1 and 2 to $0.0020 per share and
$0.0023 per share, respectively. While
the Exchange is proposing no change to
the criteria of the Add Volume Tiers 1
and 2, the Exchange believes that the
tier will continue to incentivize
increased order flow to the Exchange,
which may contribute to a deeper, more
liquid market to the benefit of all market
participants by creating a more robust
and well-balanced market ecosystem.
The Add Volume Tiers 1 and 2, as
modified, continue to be available to all
Members and provide Members an
opportunity to receive an enhanced
rebate, albeit a reduced rebate. The
proposed rebates are in line with similar
rebates for liquidity adding programs in
place on other exchanges.11
4 Orders yielding Fee Code ‘‘B’’ are orders adding
liquidity to EDGX (Tape B).
5 Orders yielding Fee Code ‘‘V’’ are orders adding
liquidity to EDGX (Tape A).
6 Orders yielding Fee Code ‘‘Y’’ are orders adding
liquidity to EDGX (Tape C).
7 Orders yielding Fee Code ‘‘3’’ are orders adding
liquidity to EDGX in the pre and post market (Tapes
A or C).
8 Orders yielding Fee Code ‘‘4’’ are orders adding
liquidity to EDGX in the pre and post market (Tape
B).
9 ‘‘ADAV’’ means average daily added volume
calculated as the number of shares added per day
and ‘‘ADV’’ means average daily volume calculated
as the number of shares added to, removed from,
or routed by, the Exchange, or any combination or
subset thereof, per day. ADAV and ADV is
calculated on a monthly basis
10 ‘‘TCV’’ means total consolidated volume
calculated as the volume reported by all exchanges
and trade reporting facilities to a consolidated
transaction reporting plan for the month for which
the fees apply.
11 E.g., the BZX Equities Add Volume Tiers
provide rebates ranging from $0.0020 per share up
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The Growth Volume Tiers are also set
forth under footnote 1 of the Fee
Schedule (Add/Remove Volume Tiers)
and are designed to encourage growth in
order flow by providing specific criteria
in which Members must increase their
relative liquidity each month over a
predetermined baseline. Growth Tier 4,
for example, provides an opportunity
for qualifying orders (i.e., orders
yielding fee code B, V, Y, 3 or 4) to
receive an enhanced rebate of $0.0034
per share to Members that (1) add a
Step-Up ADAV 12 from October 2021
greater than or equal to 0.10% of the
TCV or Members that add a Step-Up
ADAV from October 2021 equal to or
greater than 10 million shares; and (2)
Members that have a total remove ADV
equal to or greater than 0.60% of TCV
or Members that have a total remove
ADV greater than or equal to 60 million
shares. The Exchange now proposes to
amend the criteria of Growth Tier 4 to
provide the rebate to (1) an MPID that
adds a Step-Up ADAV from October
2021 equal to or greater than 10% of the
TCV or an MPID adds a Step-Up ADAV
from October 2021 equal to or greater
than 15 million shares (instead of 10
million shares); and (2) an MPID that
adds an ADV equal to or greater than
0.30% of TCV or an MPID that adds an
ADV equal to or greater than 30 million
shares (instead of 60 million shares).
Lastly, the Remove Volume Tiers are
also set forth under footnote 1 of the Fee
Schedule (Add/Remove Volume Tiers)
and provide Members an opportunity
for qualifying orders (i.e., orders
yielding fee codes BB,13 N 14 and W 15)
to receive a reduced fee on their orders
that remove liquidity and meet certain
volume criteria. Specifically, the
Remove Volume Tier 1 provides a
reduced fee of $0.00275 in securities at
or above $1.00 and 0.28% of the total
dollar value in securities priced below
$1.00 to (1) Members that add a Step-Up
ADAV from June 2021 equal to or
greater than 0.10% of the TCV or
Members that add a Step-Up ADAV
from June 2021 equal to or greater than
8 million shares; and (2) Members that
have a total remove ADV equal to or
greater than 0.60% of the TCV. Now the
Exchange proposes to modify the
criteria to adopt an alternative criteria to
satisfy prong two. Specifically, the
to $0.0031 per share. See BZX Equities Fee
Schedule, footnote 1.
12 ‘‘Step-Up ADAV’’ means ADAV in the relevant
baseline month subtracted from current ADAV.
13 Orders yielding Fee Code ‘‘BB’’ are orders
removing liquidity to EDGX (Tape (B)).
14 Orders yielding Fee Code ‘‘N’’ are orders
removing liquidity to EDGX (Tape (C)).
15 Orders yielding Fee Code ‘‘W’’ are orders
removing liquidity to EDGX (Tape (A)).
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Exchange proposes to provide the
reduced rebate to (1) Members that add
a Step-Up ADAV from June 2021 equal
to or greater than 0.10% of the TCV or
Members that add a Step-Up ADAV
from June 2021 equal to or greater than
8 million shares; and (2) Members that
have a total remove ADV equal to or
greater than 0.60% of the TCV, or,
Members that have a total remove ADV
equal to or greater than 60 million
shares. The Exchange proposes no
change to the current reduced fee
applicable to the Remove Volume Tier
1.
2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes that the
proposed rule change is consistent with
the objectives of Section 6 of the
Securities and Exchange Act of 1933
(the ‘‘Act’’),16 in general, and furthers
the objectives of Section 6(b)(4),17 in
particular, as it is designed to provide
for the equitable allocation of reasonable
dues, fees and other charges among its
Members and issuers and other persons
using its facilities. The Exchange also
believes that the proposed rule change
is consistent with the objectives of
Section 6(b)(5) 18 requirements that the
rules of an exchange be designed to
prevent fraudulent and manipulative
acts and practices, to promote just and
equitable principles of trade, to foster
cooperation and coordination with
persons engaged in regulating, clearing,
settling, processing information with
respect to, and facilitating transactions
in securities, to remove impediments to
and perfect the mechanism of a free and
open market and a national market
system, and, in general, to protect
investors and the public interest, and,
particularly, is not designed to permit
unfair discrimination between
customers, issuers, brokers, or dealers.
As described above, the Exchange
operates in a highly competitive market
in which market participants can
readily direct order flow to competing
venues if they deem fee levels at a
particular venue to be excessive or
incentives to be insufficient. The
proposed rule changes reflect a
competitive pricing structure designed
to incentivize market participants to
direct their order flow to the Exchange,
which the Exchange believes would
enhance market quality to the benefit of
all Members.
Regarding the proposed new fee code
ZO appended to retail orders adding
liquidity in the pre and post market, the
Exchange notes that the competition for
16 15
U.S.C. 78f.
U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).
18 15 U.S.C. 78f.(b)(5).
17 15
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retail order flow is particularly intense,
especially as it relates to exchange
versus off-exchange venues, as
prominent retail brokerages tend to
route a majority of their limit orders to
off-exchange venues.19 Accordingly,
competitive forces compel the Exchange
to use exchange transaction fees and
credits, particularly as they relate to
competing for retail order flow, because
market participants can readily trade on
competing venues if they deem pricing
levels at those other venues to be more
favorable.
The Exchange believes that its
proposed change to adopt fee code ZO
is reasonable, equitable and not unfairly
discriminatory. First, the Exchange
notes that the proposed standard rebates
under fee code ZO are the same as those
currently applied to such orders under
fee code ZA, which fee code as
discussed currently also applies to retail
orders that add liquidity, albeit during
regular market hours. Further, the
proposed standard rebates are consistent
with, and competitive with, rebates for
retail order flow on other equities
exchanges, which provide pricing
incentives to retail orders in the form of
lower fees and/or higher rebates.20
Second, while the proposed rebates
apply only to retail orders, the Exchange
does not believe this application is
discriminatory as the Exchange offers
similar rebates or reduced fees to nonretail order flow. The Exchange notes
that, like all other fee codes, ZO and the
accompanying rebates will be
automatically and uniformly applied to
all Members’ qualifying orders as
applicable. The Exchange also believes
it’s reasonable, equitable and not
unfairly discriminatory to apply volume
incentive tiers that currently apply to
orders yielding ZA to ZO and to clarify
that Retail Order ADV will include
orders yielding either ZA or ZO as such
changes apply to all members and such
tiers already apply to all retail orders
that add liquidity, including those that
execute in the pre or post market (i.e.,
there will be no substantive impact to
orders yielding ZO with respect to their
inclusion in these programs).
The Exchange believes its proposal to
reduce the rebates applicable to Add
Volume Tiers 1 and 2 is reasonable
because each tier continues to be
available to all Members and provides
Members an opportunity to receive an
enhanced rebate, albeit a reduced
enhanced rebate. Similarly, the
19 See Securities Exchange Release No. 86375
(July 15, 2019), 84 FR 34960 (SRCboeEDGX–2019–
045).
20 See e.g., BZX Equities Fee Schedule, Fee Code
ZA, which provides a rebate of $0.0032 per share
to retail orders adding liquidity.
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Exchange believes its proposal to amend
the criteria of the Growth Tier 4 is
reasonable because the tier will be
available to all MPIDs and provides
MPIDs an opportunity to receive an
enhanced rebate. The Exchange also
believes its proposal to amend the
criteria of the Remove Volume Tier 1 is
reasonable because it will provide an
additional opportunity for Members to
reach the tier, will continue to be
available to all Members, and will
provide Members an opportunity to
receive a reduced fee.
The Exchange notes that relative
volume-based incentives and discounts
have been widely adopted by
exchanges, including the Exchange, and
are reasonable, equitable, and nondiscriminatory because they are open to
all Members on an equal basis and
provide additional discounts that are
reasonably related to (i) the value to an
exchange’s market quality and (ii)
associated with higher levels of market
activity, such as higher levels of
liquidity provision and/or growth
patterns. The Exchange also believes
that the proposed and existing rebates
and fees, as applicable, under Add
Volume Tiers 1 and 2, Growth Tier 4,
and Remove Volume Tier 1 continue to
be commensurate with the existing and
proposed criteria. That is, the rebates
reasonably reflect the difficulty in
achieving the corresponding criteria as
amended.
The Exchange believes that the
changes to the Add Volume Tiers 1 and
2, Growth Tier 4, and Remove Volume
Tier 1, will benefit all market
participants by incentivizing continuous
liquidity and, thus, deeper more liquid
markets as well as increased execution
opportunities. Particularly, the proposal
is designed to incentivize liquidity,
which further contributes to a deeper,
more liquid market and provide even
more execution opportunities for active
market participants at improved prices.
This overall increase in activity deepens
the Exchange’s liquidity pool, offers
additional cost savings, supports the
quality of price discovery, promotes
market transparency and improves
market quality, for all investors.
The Exchange also believes that the
proposed amendments to the Add
Volume Tiers 1 and 2, Growth Tier 4,
and Remove Volume Tier 1 represent an
equitable allocation of rebates and are
not unfairly discriminatory because all
Members or MPIDs are eligible for the
tiers and would have the opportunity to
meet the tiers’ criteria and would
receive the proposed rebate if such
criteria is met. Without having a view of
activity on other markets and offexchange venues, the Exchange has no
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way of knowing whether this proposed
rule change would definitely result in
any Members or MPIDs qualifying for
the proposed tiers. While the Exchange
has no way of predicting with certainty
how the proposed tier will impact
Member activity, the Exchange
anticipates that at least one MPID will
be able to compete for and reach the
proposed criteria in Growth Tier 4 and
Remove Volume Tier 1. The Exchange
also notes that proposed tiers will not
adversely impact any Member’s ability
to qualify for other reduced fee or
enhanced rebate tiers. Should a Member
not meet the proposed criteria under
any of the proposed tiers, the Member
will merely not receive that
corresponding enhanced rebate or
reduced fee.
As noted above, the Exchange
operates in a highly competitive market.
The Exchange is only one of 16 equity
venues to which market participants
may direct their order flow, and it
represents a small percentage of the
overall market. It is also only one of
several maker-taker exchanges.
Competing equity exchanges offer
similar rates and tiered pricing
structures to that of the Exchange,
including schedules of rebates and fees
that apply based upon members
achieving certain volume thresholds.
B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement on Burden on Competition
The Exchange does not believe that
the proposed rule changes will impose
any burden on competition not
necessary or appropriate in furtherance
of the purposes of the Act. Rather, as
discussed above, the Exchange believes
that the proposed changes would
encourage the submission of additional
order flow to a public exchange, thereby
promoting market depth, execution
incentives and enhanced execution
opportunities, as well as price discovery
and transparency for all Members. As a
result, the Exchange believes that the
proposed changes further the
Commission’s goal in adopting
Regulation NMS of fostering
competition among orders, which
promotes ‘‘more efficient pricing of
individual stocks for all types of orders,
large and small.’’
The Exchange believes the proposed
rule changes do not impose any burden
on intramarket competition that is not
necessary or appropriate in furtherance
of the purposes of the Act. Particularly,
the proposed tier changes will apply to
Members or MPIDs equally in that all
Members or MPIDs are eligible for each
of the tiers, have a reasonable
opportunity to meet the tiers’ criteria
and will receive the enhanced rebate or
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reduced fee on their qualifying orders if
such criteria is met. Further, the
proposed Fee Code will similarly be
available to all Members equally. The
Exchange does not believe the proposed
changes burdens competition, but
rather, enhances competition as it is
intended to increase the
competitiveness of EDGX by amending
an existing pricing incentive and
adopting a pricing incentive in order to
attract order flow and incentivize
participants to increase their
participation on the Exchange,
providing for additional execution
opportunities for market participants
and improved price transparency.
Greater overall order flow, trading
opportunities, and pricing transparency
benefits all market participants on the
Exchange by enhancing market quality
and continuing to encourage Members
to send orders, thereby contributing
towards a robust and well-balanced
market ecosystem.
Next, the Exchange believes the
proposed rule change does not impose
any burden on intermarket competition
that is not necessary or appropriate in
furtherance of the purposes of the Act.
As previously discussed, the Exchange
operates in a highly competitive market.
Members have numerous alternative
venues that they may participate on and
direct their order flow, including other
equities exchanges, off-exchange
venues, and alternative trading systems.
Additionally, the Exchange represents a
small percentage of the overall market.
Based on publicly available information,
no single equities exchange has more
than 17% of the market share.21
Therefore, no exchange possesses
significant pricing power in the
execution of order flow. Indeed,
participants can readily choose to send
their orders to other exchange and offexchange venues if they deem fee levels
at those other venues to be more
favorable. Moreover, the Commission
has repeatedly expressed its preference
for competition over regulatory
intervention in determining prices,
products, and services in the securities
markets. Specifically, in Regulation
NMS, the Commission highlighted the
importance of market forces in
determining prices and SRO revenues
and, also, recognized that current
regulation of the market system ‘‘has
been remarkably successful in
promoting market competition in its
broader forms that are most important to
investors and listed companies.’’ 22 The
fact that this market is competitive has
21 Supra
note 3.
Securities Exchange Act Release No. 51808
(June 9, 2005), 70 FR 37496, 37499 (June 29, 2005).
22 See
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also long been recognized by the courts.
In NetCoalition v. Securities and
Exchange Commission, the D.C. Circuit
stated as follows: ‘‘[n]o one disputes
that competition for order flow is
‘fierce.’ . . . As the SEC explained, ‘[i]n
the U.S. national market system, buyers
and sellers of securities, and the brokerdealers that act as their order-routing
agents, have a wide range of choices of
where to route orders for execution’;
[and] ‘no exchange can afford to take its
market share percentages for granted’
because ‘no exchange possesses a
monopoly, regulatory or otherwise, in
the execution of order flow from broker
dealers’. . . .’’.23 Accordingly, the
Exchange does not believe its proposed
fee change imposes any burden on
competition that is not necessary or
appropriate in furtherance of the
purposes of the 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 24 and paragraph (f) of Rule
19b–4 25 thereunder. At any time within
60 days of the filing of the proposed rule
change, the Commission summarily may
temporarily suspend such rule change if
it appears to the Commission that such
action is necessary or appropriate in the
public interest, for the protection of
investors, or otherwise in furtherance of
the purposes of the Act. If the
Commission takes such action, the
Commission will institute proceedings
to determine whether the proposed rule
change should be approved or
disapproved.
IV. Solicitation of Comments
Interested persons are invited to
submit written data, views, and
arguments concerning the foregoing,
including whether the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Act.
Comments may be submitted by any of
the following methods:
23 NetCoalition v. SEC, 615 F.3d 525, 539 (D.C.
Cir. 2010) (quoting Securities Exchange Act Release
No. 59039 (December 2, 2008), 73 FR 74770, 74782–
83 (December 9, 2008) (SR–NYSEArca–2006–21)).
24 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
25 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f).
E:\FR\FM\18FEN1.SGM
18FEN1
Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 34 / Friday, February 18, 2022 / 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–
CboeEDGX–2022–005 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.
jspears on DSK121TN23PROD with NOTICES1
All submissions should refer to File
Number SR–CboeEDGX–2022–005. 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 website (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 website 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.
Persons submitting comments are
cautioned that we do not redact or edit
personal identifying information from
comment submissions. You should
submit only information that you wish
to make available publicly. All
submissions should refer to File
Number SR–CboeEDGX–2022–005 and
should be submitted on or before March
11, 2022.
For the Commission, by the Division of
Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated
authority.26
J. Matthew DeLesDernier,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022–03495 Filed 2–17–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
26 17
CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:54 Feb 17, 2022
Jkt 256001
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[SEC File No. 270–0329, OMB Control No.
3235–0371]
Proposed Collection; Comment
Request
Upon Written Request, Copies Available
From: Securities and Exchange
Commission, Office of FOIA Services,
100 F Street NE, Washington, DC
20549–2736
Extension:
Rule 15a–6
Notice is hereby given that pursuant
to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
(‘‘PRA’’) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the
Securities and Exchange Commission
(‘‘Commission’’) is soliciting comments
on the existing collection of information
provided for in Rule 15a–6, (17 CFR
240.15a–6), under the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78a et
seq.). The Commission plans to submit
this existing collection of information to
the Office of Management and Budget
(‘‘OMB’’) for extension and approval.
Rule 15a–6 provides conditional
exemptions from the requirement to
register as a broker-dealer pursuant to
Section 15 of the Securities Exchange
Act for foreign broker-dealers that
engage in certain specified activities
involving U.S. persons. In particular,
Rule 15a–6(a)(3) provides an exemption
from broker-dealer registration for
foreign broker-dealers that solicit and
effect transactions with or for U.S.
institutional investors or major U.S.
institutional investors through a
registered broker-dealer, provided that
the U.S. broker-dealer, among other
things, obtains certain information
about, and consents to service of process
from, the personnel of the foreign
broker-dealer involved in such
transactions, and maintains certain
records in connection therewith.
These requirements are intended to
ensure (a) that the registered brokerdealer will receive notice of the identity
of, and has reviewed the background of,
foreign personnel who will contact U.S.
investors, (b) that the foreign brokerdealer and its personnel effectively may
be served with process in the event
enforcement action is necessary, and (c)
that the Commission has ready access to
information concerning these persons
and their U.S. securities activities.
Commission staff estimates that
approximately 2,000 U.S. registered
broker-dealers will spend an average of
two hours of clerical staff time and one
hour of managerial staff time per year
obtaining the information required by
the rule, resulting in a total aggregate
PO 00000
Frm 00097
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 9990
9403
burden of 6,000 hours per year for
complying with the rule. Assuming an
hourly cost of $72 1 for a compliance
clerk and $319 2 for a compliance
manager, the resultant total internal
labor cost of compliance for the
respondents is $926,000 per year (2,000
entities × ((2 hours/entity × $72/hour) +
(1 hour per entity × $319/hour)) =
$926,000).
Written comments are invited on: (a)
Whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the
Commission, including whether the
information shall have practical utility;
(b) the accuracy of the Commission’s
estimates of the burden of the proposed
collection of information; (c) ways to
enhance the quality, utility, and clarity
of the information collected; and (d)
ways to minimize the burden of the
collection of information on
respondents, including through the use
of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
Consideration will be given to
comments and suggestions submitted in
writing within 60 days of this
publication.
An agency may not conduct or
sponsor, and a person is not required to
respond to, a collection of information
under the PRA unless it displays a
currently valid OMB control number.
Please direct your written comments
to: David Bottom, Director/Chief
Information Officer, Securities and
Exchange Commission, c/o John
Pezzullo, 100 F Street NE, Washington,
DC 20549, or send an email to: PRA_
Mailbox@sec.gov.
Dated: February 14, 2020.
J. Matthew DeLesDernier,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022–03493 Filed 2–17–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
1 The hourly rate used for a compliance clerk was
from SIFMA’s Office Salaries in the Securities
Industry 2013, modified by Commission staff to
account for an 1,800 hour work-year and multiplied
by 2.93 to account for bonuses, firm size, employee
benefits and overhead.
2 The hourly rate used for a compliance manager
was from SIFMA’s Management & Professional
Earnings in the Securities Industry 2013, modified
by Commission staff to account for an 1,800 hour
work-year and multiplied by 5.35 to account for
bonuses, firm size, employee benefits and overhead.
E:\FR\FM\18FEN1.SGM
18FEN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 34 (Friday, February 18, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9399-9403]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-03495]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-94237; File No. SR-CboeEDGX-2022-005]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; Cboe EDGX Exchange, Inc.; Notice
of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed Rule Change To
Amend Its Fee Schedule
February 14, 2022.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(the ``Act''),\1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given
that on February 1, 2022, Cboe EDGX Exchange, Inc. (the ``Exchange'' or
``EDGX'') 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
Cboe EDGX Exchange, Inc. (the ``Exchange'' or ``EDGX'' or ``EDGX
Equities'') proposes to amend its Fee Schedule. The text of the
proposed rule change is provided in Exhibit 5.
The text of the proposed rule change is also available on the
Exchange's website (https://markets.cboe.com/us/options/regulation/rule_filings/edgx/), at the Exchange's Office of the Secretary, and at
the Commission's Public Reference Room.
II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
In its filing with the Commission, the Exchange included statements
concerning the purpose of and basis for the proposed rule change and
discussed any comments it received on the proposed rule change. The
text of these statements may be examined at the places specified in
Item IV below. The Exchange has prepared summaries, set forth in
sections A, B, and C below, of the most significant aspects of such
statements.
A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
1. Purpose
The Exchange proposes to amend its Fee Schedule applicable to its
equities trading platform (``EDGX Equities'') as follows: (1) Adopt new
fee code ZO which will be applicable to retail orders that add
liquidity in the pre and post market; (2) update Remove Volume Tier 2,
the Retail Volume Tiers, and Retail Membership Program Volume Tiers to
add references to proposed fee code ZO; (3) modify the rebate
applicable to Add/Remove Volume Tiers 1 and 2; (4) modify the criteria
of Growth Tier 4; and (5) modify the criteria of the Remove Volume Tier
1. The Exchange proposes to implement these changes effective February
1, 2022.
The Exchange first notes that it operates in a highly competitive
market in which market participants can readily direct order flow to
competing venues if they deem fee levels at a particular venue to be
excessive or incentives to be insufficient. More specifically, the
Exchange is only one of 16 registered equities exchanges, as well as a
number of alternative trading systems and other off-exchange venues
that do not have similar self-regulatory responsibilities under the
Exchange Act, to which market participants may direct their order flow.
Based on publicly available information,\3\ no single registered
equities exchange has more than 17% of the market share. Thus, in such
a low-concentrated and highly competitive market, no single equities
exchange possesses significant pricing power in the execution of order
flow. The Exchange in particular operates a ``Maker-Taker'' model
whereby it pays rebates to members that add liquidity and assesses fees
to those that remove liquidity. The Exchange's Fee Schedule sets forth
the standard rebates and rates applied per share for orders that
provide and remove liquidity, respectively. Currently, for orders in
securities priced at or above $1.00, the Exchange provides a standard
rebate of $0.00160 per share for orders that add liquidity and assesses
a fee of $0.0030 per share for orders that remove liquidity. For orders
in securities priced below $1.00, the Exchange provides a standard
rebate
[[Page 9400]]
of $0.00009 per share for orders that add liquidity and assesses a fee
of 0.30% of total dollar value for orders that remove liquidity.
Additionally, in response to the competitive environment, the Exchange
also offers tiered pricing which provides Members opportunities to
qualify for higher rebates or reduced fees where certain volume
criteria and thresholds are met. Tiered pricing provides an incremental
incentive for Members to strive for higher tier levels, which provides
increasingly higher benefits or discounts for satisfying increasingly
more stringent criteria.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ See Cboe Global Markets, U.S. Equities Market Volume
Summary, Month-to-Date (January 24, 2022), available at https://markets.cboe.com/us/equities/market_statistics/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Proposed New Fee Code
The Exchange proposes to adopt a new fee code in the Fee Code and
Associated Fees table of the Fee Schedule. Currently, all retail orders
that add liquidity yield fee code ``ZA'' and receive a rebate of
$0.0032 per share in securities priced at or above $1.00 and a rebate
of $0.00003 per share in securities priced below $1.00. The Exchange
now proposes to adopt fee code ``ZO'', which will be appended to retail
orders that add liquidity, but in the pre and post market. The Exchange
proposes to continue to assess the same fees and rebates as are
currently assessed today for retail orders that add liquidity (i.e.,
orders yielding fee code ZO would receive a rebate of $0.0032 per share
in securities priced at or above $1.00 and a rebate of $0.00003 per
share in securities priced below $1.00). The Exchange also proposes to
apply incentive tiers and programs that currently apply to orders
yielding ZA to orders that will now yield ZO and therefore append
footnotes 2 and 3 to ZO in the Fee Code and Associated Fees table.
Particularly, the Exchange proposes to modify the description and
criteria of the Retail Volume Tiers (provided under footnote 2 of the
Fee Schedule) and Retail Equities Membership Program Volume Tiers
(provided under footnote 3 of the Fee Schedule), so that orders
yielding both fee codes ZA and ZO are eligible for the respective tiers
and the Retail Order ADV criteria under each tier includes orders
yielding ZO in addition to ZA. Similarly, the Exchange proposes to
amend the second prong of Remove Volume Tier 2 to provide the Retail
Order ADV criteria will also include orders yielding ZO in addition to
ZA. Accordingly, retail orders that add liquidity in the pre or post
market will continue to be eligible for the same incentive programs
(and continue to be counted towards Retail Order ADV thresholds) as
they are today, albeit under a separate fee code (i.e., ZO instead of
ZA).
Modifications to Add/Remove Volume Tiers
The Add Volume Tiers set forth in footnote 1 of the Fee Schedule
(Add/Remove Volume Tiers) provides Members an opportunity for
qualifying orders (i.e., orders yielding fee code B,\4\ V,\5\ Y,\6\ 3
\7\ or 4 \8\) to receive an enhanced rebate on their orders on orders
that add liquidity and meet certain volume criteria. Specifically, Add
Volume Tier 1 provides a rebate of $0.0023 per share to Members that
add an ADV \9\ greater than or equal to 0.20% of the TCV.\10\
Similarly, Add Volume Tier 2 provides a rebate of $0.0025 per share to
Members that add an ADV greater than or equal to 0.30% of the TCV. The
Exchange notes that the Add Volume Tiers are designed to encourage
Members that provide liquidity adding orders to the Exchange to
increase their order flow, which would benefit all Members by providing
greater execution opportunities on the Exchange.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ Orders yielding Fee Code ``B'' are orders adding liquidity
to EDGX (Tape B).
\5\ Orders yielding Fee Code ``V'' are orders adding liquidity
to EDGX (Tape A).
\6\ Orders yielding Fee Code ``Y'' are orders adding liquidity
to EDGX (Tape C).
\7\ Orders yielding Fee Code ``3'' are orders adding liquidity
to EDGX in the pre and post market (Tapes A or C).
\8\ Orders yielding Fee Code ``4'' are orders adding liquidity
to EDGX in the pre and post market (Tape B).
\9\ ``ADAV'' means average daily added volume calculated as the
number of shares added per day and ``ADV'' means average daily
volume calculated as the number of shares added to, removed from, or
routed by, the Exchange, or any combination or subset thereof, per
day. ADAV and ADV is calculated on a monthly basis
\10\ ``TCV'' means total consolidated volume calculated as the
volume reported by all exchanges and trade reporting facilities to a
consolidated transaction reporting plan for the month for which the
fees apply.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now the Exchange proposes to reduce the rebates provided under Add
Volume Tiers 1 and 2 to $0.0020 per share and $0.0023 per share,
respectively. While the Exchange is proposing no change to the criteria
of the Add Volume Tiers 1 and 2, the Exchange believes that the tier
will continue to incentivize increased order flow to the Exchange,
which may contribute to a deeper, more liquid market to the benefit of
all market participants by creating a more robust and well-balanced
market ecosystem. The Add Volume Tiers 1 and 2, as modified, continue
to be available to all Members and provide Members an opportunity to
receive an enhanced rebate, albeit a reduced rebate. The proposed
rebates are in line with similar rebates for liquidity adding programs
in place on other exchanges.\11\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\11\ E.g., the BZX Equities Add Volume Tiers provide rebates
ranging from $0.0020 per share up to $0.0031 per share. See BZX
Equities Fee Schedule, footnote 1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Growth Volume Tiers are also set forth under footnote 1 of the
Fee Schedule (Add/Remove Volume Tiers) and are designed to encourage
growth in order flow by providing specific criteria in which Members
must increase their relative liquidity each month over a predetermined
baseline. Growth Tier 4, for example, provides an opportunity for
qualifying orders (i.e., orders yielding fee code B, V, Y, 3 or 4) to
receive an enhanced rebate of $0.0034 per share to Members that (1) add
a Step-Up ADAV \12\ from October 2021 greater than or equal to 0.10% of
the TCV or Members that add a Step-Up ADAV from October 2021 equal to
or greater than 10 million shares; and (2) Members that have a total
remove ADV equal to or greater than 0.60% of TCV or Members that have a
total remove ADV greater than or equal to 60 million shares. The
Exchange now proposes to amend the criteria of Growth Tier 4 to provide
the rebate to (1) an MPID that adds a Step-Up ADAV from October 2021
equal to or greater than 10% of the TCV or an MPID adds a Step-Up ADAV
from October 2021 equal to or greater than 15 million shares (instead
of 10 million shares); and (2) an MPID that adds an ADV equal to or
greater than 0.30% of TCV or an MPID that adds an ADV equal to or
greater than 30 million shares (instead of 60 million shares).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\12\ ``Step-Up ADAV'' means ADAV in the relevant baseline month
subtracted from current ADAV.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lastly, the Remove Volume Tiers are also set forth under footnote 1
of the Fee Schedule (Add/Remove Volume Tiers) and provide Members an
opportunity for qualifying orders (i.e., orders yielding fee codes
BB,\13\ N \14\ and W \15\) to receive a reduced fee on their orders
that remove liquidity and meet certain volume criteria. Specifically,
the Remove Volume Tier 1 provides a reduced fee of $0.00275 in
securities at or above $1.00 and 0.28% of the total dollar value in
securities priced below $1.00 to (1) Members that add a Step-Up ADAV
from June 2021 equal to or greater than 0.10% of the TCV or Members
that add a Step-Up ADAV from June 2021 equal to or greater than 8
million shares; and (2) Members that have a total remove ADV equal to
or greater than 0.60% of the TCV. Now the Exchange proposes to modify
the criteria to adopt an alternative criteria to satisfy prong two.
Specifically, the
[[Page 9401]]
Exchange proposes to provide the reduced rebate to (1) Members that add
a Step-Up ADAV from June 2021 equal to or greater than 0.10% of the TCV
or Members that add a Step-Up ADAV from June 2021 equal to or greater
than 8 million shares; and (2) Members that have a total remove ADV
equal to or greater than 0.60% of the TCV, or, Members that have a
total remove ADV equal to or greater than 60 million shares. The
Exchange proposes no change to the current reduced fee applicable to
the Remove Volume Tier 1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\13\ Orders yielding Fee Code ``BB'' are orders removing
liquidity to EDGX (Tape (B)).
\14\ Orders yielding Fee Code ``N'' are orders removing
liquidity to EDGX (Tape (C)).
\15\ Orders yielding Fee Code ``W'' are orders removing
liquidity to EDGX (Tape (A)).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes that the proposed rule change is consistent
with the objectives of Section 6 of the Securities and Exchange Act of
1933 (the ``Act''),\16\ in general, and furthers the objectives of
Section 6(b)(4),\17\ in particular, as it is designed to provide for
the equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees and other charges
among its Members and issuers and other persons using its facilities.
The Exchange also believes that the proposed rule change is consistent
with the objectives of Section 6(b)(5) \18\ requirements that the rules
of an exchange be designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts
and practices, to promote just and equitable principles of trade, to
foster cooperation and coordination with persons engaged in regulating,
clearing, settling, processing information with respect to, and
facilitating transactions in securities, to remove impediments to and
perfect the mechanism of a free and open market and a national market
system, and, in general, to protect investors and the public interest,
and, particularly, is not designed to permit unfair discrimination
between customers, issuers, brokers, or dealers. As described above,
the Exchange operates in a highly competitive market in which market
participants can readily direct order flow to competing venues if they
deem fee levels at a particular venue to be excessive or incentives to
be insufficient. The proposed rule changes reflect a competitive
pricing structure designed to incentivize market participants to direct
their order flow to the Exchange, which the Exchange believes would
enhance market quality to the benefit of all Members.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\16\ 15 U.S.C. 78f.
\17\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).
\18\ 15 U.S.C. 78f.(b)(5).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Regarding the proposed new fee code ZO appended to retail orders
adding liquidity in the pre and post market, the Exchange notes that
the competition for retail order flow is particularly intense,
especially as it relates to exchange versus off-exchange venues, as
prominent retail brokerages tend to route a majority of their limit
orders to off-exchange venues.\19\ Accordingly, competitive forces
compel the Exchange to use exchange transaction fees and credits,
particularly as they relate to competing for retail order flow, because
market participants can readily trade on competing venues if they deem
pricing levels at those other venues to be more favorable.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\19\ See Securities Exchange Release No. 86375 (July 15, 2019),
84 FR 34960 (SRCboeEDGX-2019-045).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Exchange believes that its proposed change to adopt fee code ZO
is reasonable, equitable and not unfairly discriminatory. First, the
Exchange notes that the proposed standard rebates under fee code ZO are
the same as those currently applied to such orders under fee code ZA,
which fee code as discussed currently also applies to retail orders
that add liquidity, albeit during regular market hours. Further, the
proposed standard rebates are consistent with, and competitive with,
rebates for retail order flow on other equities exchanges, which
provide pricing incentives to retail orders in the form of lower fees
and/or higher rebates.\20\ Second, while the proposed rebates apply
only to retail orders, the Exchange does not believe this application
is discriminatory as the Exchange offers similar rebates or reduced
fees to non-retail order flow. The Exchange notes that, like all other
fee codes, ZO and the accompanying rebates will be automatically and
uniformly applied to all Members' qualifying orders as applicable. The
Exchange also believes it's reasonable, equitable and not unfairly
discriminatory to apply volume incentive tiers that currently apply to
orders yielding ZA to ZO and to clarify that Retail Order ADV will
include orders yielding either ZA or ZO as such changes apply to all
members and such tiers already apply to all retail orders that add
liquidity, including those that execute in the pre or post market
(i.e., there will be no substantive impact to orders yielding ZO with
respect to their inclusion in these programs).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\20\ See e.g., BZX Equities Fee Schedule, Fee Code ZA, which
provides a rebate of $0.0032 per share to retail orders adding
liquidity.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Exchange believes its proposal to reduce the rebates applicable
to Add Volume Tiers 1 and 2 is reasonable because each tier continues
to be available to all Members and provides Members an opportunity to
receive an enhanced rebate, albeit a reduced enhanced rebate.
Similarly, the Exchange believes its proposal to amend the criteria of
the Growth Tier 4 is reasonable because the tier will be available to
all MPIDs and provides MPIDs an opportunity to receive an enhanced
rebate. The Exchange also believes its proposal to amend the criteria
of the Remove Volume Tier 1 is reasonable because it will provide an
additional opportunity for Members to reach the tier, will continue to
be available to all Members, and will provide Members an opportunity to
receive a reduced fee.
The Exchange notes that relative volume-based incentives and
discounts have been widely adopted by exchanges, including the
Exchange, and are reasonable, equitable, and non-discriminatory because
they are open to all Members on an equal basis and provide additional
discounts that are reasonably related to (i) the value to an exchange's
market quality and (ii) associated with higher levels of market
activity, such as higher levels of liquidity provision and/or growth
patterns. The Exchange also believes that the proposed and existing
rebates and fees, as applicable, under Add Volume Tiers 1 and 2, Growth
Tier 4, and Remove Volume Tier 1 continue to be commensurate with the
existing and proposed criteria. That is, the rebates reasonably reflect
the difficulty in achieving the corresponding criteria as amended.
The Exchange believes that the changes to the Add Volume Tiers 1
and 2, Growth Tier 4, and Remove Volume Tier 1, will benefit all market
participants by incentivizing continuous liquidity and, thus, deeper
more liquid markets as well as increased execution opportunities.
Particularly, the proposal is designed to incentivize liquidity, which
further contributes to a deeper, more liquid market and provide even
more execution opportunities for active market participants at improved
prices. This overall increase in activity deepens the Exchange's
liquidity pool, offers additional cost savings, supports the quality of
price discovery, promotes market transparency and improves market
quality, for all investors.
The Exchange also believes that the proposed amendments to the Add
Volume Tiers 1 and 2, Growth Tier 4, and Remove Volume Tier 1 represent
an equitable allocation of rebates and are not unfairly discriminatory
because all Members or MPIDs are eligible for the tiers and would have
the opportunity to meet the tiers' criteria and would receive the
proposed rebate if such criteria is met. Without having a view of
activity on other markets and off-exchange venues, the Exchange has no
[[Page 9402]]
way of knowing whether this proposed rule change would definitely
result in any Members or MPIDs qualifying for the proposed tiers. While
the Exchange has no way of predicting with certainty how the proposed
tier will impact Member activity, the Exchange anticipates that at
least one MPID will be able to compete for and reach the proposed
criteria in Growth Tier 4 and Remove Volume Tier 1. The Exchange also
notes that proposed tiers will not adversely impact any Member's
ability to qualify for other reduced fee or enhanced rebate tiers.
Should a Member not meet the proposed criteria under any of the
proposed tiers, the Member will merely not receive that corresponding
enhanced rebate or reduced fee.
As noted above, the Exchange operates in a highly competitive
market. The Exchange is only one of 16 equity venues to which market
participants may direct their order flow, and it represents a small
percentage of the overall market. It is also only one of several maker-
taker exchanges. Competing equity exchanges offer similar rates and
tiered pricing structures to that of the Exchange, including schedules
of rebates and fees that apply based upon members achieving certain
volume thresholds.
B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition
The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule changes will
impose any burden on competition not necessary or appropriate in
furtherance of the purposes of the Act. Rather, as discussed above, the
Exchange believes that the proposed changes would encourage the
submission of additional order flow to a public exchange, thereby
promoting market depth, execution incentives and enhanced execution
opportunities, as well as price discovery and transparency for all
Members. As a result, the Exchange believes that the proposed changes
further the Commission's goal in adopting Regulation NMS of fostering
competition among orders, which promotes ``more efficient pricing of
individual stocks for all types of orders, large and small.''
The Exchange believes the proposed rule changes do not impose any
burden on intramarket competition that is not necessary or appropriate
in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. Particularly, the proposed
tier changes will apply to Members or MPIDs equally in that all Members
or MPIDs are eligible for each of the tiers, have a reasonable
opportunity to meet the tiers' criteria and will receive the enhanced
rebate or reduced fee on their qualifying orders if such criteria is
met. Further, the proposed Fee Code will similarly be available to all
Members equally. The Exchange does not believe the proposed changes
burdens competition, but rather, enhances competition as it is intended
to increase the competitiveness of EDGX by amending an existing pricing
incentive and adopting a pricing incentive in order to attract order
flow and incentivize participants to increase their participation on
the Exchange, providing for additional execution opportunities for
market participants and improved price transparency. Greater overall
order flow, trading opportunities, and pricing transparency benefits
all market participants on the Exchange by enhancing market quality and
continuing to encourage Members to send orders, thereby contributing
towards a robust and well-balanced market ecosystem.
Next, the Exchange believes the proposed rule change does not
impose any burden on intermarket competition that is not necessary or
appropriate in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. As previously
discussed, the Exchange operates in a highly competitive market.
Members have numerous alternative venues that they may participate on
and direct their order flow, including other equities exchanges, off-
exchange venues, and alternative trading systems. Additionally, the
Exchange represents a small percentage of the overall market. Based on
publicly available information, no single equities exchange has more
than 17% of the market share.\21\ Therefore, no exchange possesses
significant pricing power in the execution of order flow. Indeed,
participants can readily choose to send their orders to other exchange
and off-exchange venues if they deem fee levels at those other venues
to be more favorable. Moreover, the Commission has repeatedly expressed
its preference for competition over regulatory intervention in
determining prices, products, and services in the securities markets.
Specifically, in Regulation NMS, the Commission highlighted the
importance of market forces in determining prices and SRO revenues and,
also, recognized that current regulation of the market system ``has
been remarkably successful in promoting market competition in its
broader forms that are most important to investors and listed
companies.'' \22\ The fact that this market is competitive has also
long been recognized by the courts. In NetCoalition v. Securities and
Exchange Commission, the D.C. Circuit stated as follows: ``[n]o one
disputes that competition for order flow is `fierce.' . . . As the SEC
explained, `[i]n the U.S. national market system, buyers and sellers of
securities, and the broker-dealers that act as their order-routing
agents, have a wide range of choices of where to route orders for
execution'; [and] `no exchange can afford to take its market share
percentages for granted' because `no exchange possesses a monopoly,
regulatory or otherwise, in the execution of order flow from broker
dealers'. . . .''.\23\ Accordingly, the Exchange does not believe its
proposed fee change imposes any burden on competition that is not
necessary or appropriate in furtherance of the purposes of the Act.
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\21\ Supra note 3.
\22\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 51808 (June 9,
2005), 70 FR 37496, 37499 (June 29, 2005).
\23\ NetCoalition v. SEC, 615 F.3d 525, 539 (D.C. Cir. 2010)
(quoting Securities Exchange Act Release No. 59039 (December 2,
2008), 73 FR 74770, 74782-83 (December 9, 2008) (SR-NYSEArca-2006-
21)).
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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 \24\ and paragraph (f) of Rule 19b-4 \25\
thereunder. At any time within 60 days of the filing of the proposed
rule change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule
change if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or
appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or
otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. If the Commission
takes such action, the Commission will institute proceedings to
determine whether the proposed rule change should be approved or
disapproved.
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\24\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
\25\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f).
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IV. Solicitation of Comments
Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of
the following methods:
[[Page 9403]]
Electronic Comments
Use the Commission's internet comment form (https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
Send an email to [email protected]. Please include
File Number SR-CboeEDGX-2022-005 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-CboeEDGX-2022-005. 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 website (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 website 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. Persons submitting comments are
cautioned that we do not redact or edit personal identifying
information from comment submissions. You should submit only
information that you wish to make available publicly. All submissions
should refer to File Number SR-CboeEDGX-2022-005 and should be
submitted on or before March 11, 2022.
For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\26\
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\26\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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J. Matthew DeLesDernier,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022-03495 Filed 2-17-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P