Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE American LLC; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Change To Amend the NYSE American Options Fee Schedule Concerning the Options Regulatory Fee, 63565-63569 [2022-22659]
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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 201 / Wednesday, October 19, 2022 / Notices
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–CBOE–2022–052 and
should be submitted on or before
November 9, 2022.
For the Commission, by the Division of
Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated
authority.17
J. Matthew DeLesDernier,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022–22658 Filed 10–18–22; 8:45 am]
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE
American LLC; Notice of Filing and
Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed
Change To Amend the NYSE American
Options Fee Schedule Concerning the
Options Regulatory Fee
October 13, 2022.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) 1 of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the
‘‘Act’’) 2 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,3
notice is hereby given that, on
September 28, 2022, NYSE American
LLC (‘‘NYSE American’’ or the
‘‘Exchange’’) 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 self-regulatory
organization. The Commission is
publishing this notice to solicit
comments on the proposed rule change
from interested persons.
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I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Terms of Substance of
the Proposed Rule Change
The Exchange proposes to amend the
NYSE American Options Fee Schedule
(‘‘Fee Schedule’’) regarding the Options
Regulatory Fee (‘‘ORF’’), effective
September 28, 2022. The proposed
change is available on the Exchange’s
website at www.nyse.com, at the
principal office of the Exchange, and at
CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).
U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
2 15 U.S.C. 78a.
3 17 CFR 240.19b–4.
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In its filing with the Commission, the
self-regulatory organization included
statements concerning the purpose of,
and basis for, the proposed rule change
and discussed any comments it received
on the proposed rule change. The text
of those statements may be examined at
the places specified in Item IV below.
The Exchange has prepared summaries,
set forth in sections A, B, and C below,
of the most significant parts of such
statements.
1. Purpose
[Release No. 34–96066; File No. SR–
NYSEAMER–2022–45]
1 15
II. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule
Change
A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Purpose of, and the
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule
Change
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
17 17
the Commission’s Public Reference
Room.
The Exchange proposes to amend the
Fee Schedule to (1) waive the ORF for
the period November 1, 2022 through
January 31, 2023; (2) eliminate the
requirement that the Exchange may only
modify the ORF semi-annually; and (3)
delete outdated language relating to the
ORF for August 30, 2019 (the ‘‘August
2019 ORF’’).
Background
As a general matter, the Exchange
may only use regulatory funds such as
the ORF ‘‘to fund the legal, regulatory,
and surveillance operations’’ of the
Exchange.4 More specifically, the ORF
is designed to recover a material
portion, but not all, of the Exchange’s
costs for the supervision and regulation
of ATP Holders, including the
Exchange’s regulatory program and legal
expenses associated with options, such
as the costs related to in-house staff,
third-party service providers, and
technology that facilitate surveillance,
investigation, examinations and
enforcement (collectively, the ‘‘ORF
Costs’’). ORF funds may also be used for
indirect expenses such as human
resources and other administrative
costs. The Exchange monitors the
amount of revenue collected from the
ORF to ensure that this revenue, in
combination with other regulatory fees
4 The Exchange considers surveillance operations
part of regulatory operations. The limitation on the
use of regulatory funds also provides that they shall
not be distributed. See Thirteenth Amended and
Restated Operating Agreement of NYSE American
LLC, Article IV, Section 4.05 and Securities
Exchange Act Release No. 87993 (January 16, 2020),
85 FR 4050 (January 23, 2020) (SR–NYSEAMER–
2020–04).
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63565
and fines, does not exceed regulatory
costs.
The ORF is assessed on ATP Holders
for options transactions that are cleared
by the ATP Holder through the Options
Clearing Corporation (‘‘OCC’’) in the
Customer range regardless of the
exchange on which the transaction
occurs.5 All options transactions must
clear via a clearing firm and such
clearing firms can then choose to pass
through all, a portion, or none of the
cost of the ORF to its customers, i.e., the
entering firms. Because the ORF is
collected from ATP Holder clearing
firms by the OCC on behalf of NYSE
American,6 the Exchange believes that
using options transactions in the
Customer range serves as a proxy for
how to apportion regulatory costs
among such ATP Holders. In addition,
the Exchange notes that the costs
relating to monitoring ATP Holders with
respect to Customer trading activity are
generally higher than the costs
associated with monitoring ATP
Holders that do not engage in Customer
trading activity, which tends to be more
automated and less labor-intensive. By
contrast, regulating ATP Holders that
engage in Customer trading activity is
generally more labor intensive and
requires a greater expenditure of human
and technical resources as the Exchange
needs to review not only the trading
activity on behalf of Customers, but also
the ATP Holder’s relationship with its
Customers via more labor-intensive
exam-based programs.7 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 noncustomer component (e.g., ATP Holder
5 See Fee Schedule, Section VII, Regulatory Fees,
Options Regulatory Fee (‘‘ORF’’), available here,
https://www.nyse.com/publicdocs/nyse/markets/
american-options/NYSE_American_Options_Fee_
Schedule.pdf.
6 See id. The Exchange uses reports from OCC
when assessing and collecting the ORF. The ORF
is not assessed on outbound linkage trades. An ATP
Holder is not assessed the fee until it has satisfied
applicable technological requirements necessary to
commence operations on NYSE American. See id.
7 The Exchange notes that many of the Exchange’s
market surveillance programs require the Exchange
to look at and evaluate activity across all options
markets, such as surveillance for position limit
violations, manipulation, front-running and
contrary exercise advice violations/expiring
exercise declarations. The Exchange and other
options SROs are parties to a 17d–2 agreement
allocating among the SROs regulatory
responsibilities relating to compliance by the
common members with rules for expiring exercise
declarations, position limits, OCC trade
adjustments, and Large Option Position Report
reviews. See, e.g., Securities Exchange Act Release
No. 85097 (February 11, 2019), 84 FR 4871
(February 19, 2019).
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proprietary transactions) of its
regulatory program.
ORF Collections and Monitoring of ORF
Exchange rules establish that the
Exchange may only increase or decrease
the ORF semi-annually, that any such
fee change will be effective on the first
business day of February or August, and
that market participants must be
notified of any such change via Trader
Update at least 30 calendar days prior
to the effective date of the change.8
Because the ORF is based on options
transactions volume, the amount of ORF
collected is variable. For example, if
options transactions reported to OCC in
a given month increase, the ORF
collected from ATP Holders will likely
increase as well. Similarly, if options
transactions reported to OCC in a given
month decrease, the ORF collected from
ATP Holders will likely decrease as
well. Accordingly, the Exchange
monitors the amount of ORF collected
to ensure that it does not exceed the
ORF Costs. If the Exchange determines
the amount of ORF collected exceeds
costs over an extended period, the
Exchange may adjust the ORF by
submitting a fee change filing to the
Securities and Exchange Commission
(the ‘‘Commission’’).
Temporary ORF Waiver
Based on the Exchange’s recent
review of regulatory costs and ORF
collections, the Exchange proposes to
waive the ORF from November 1, 2022
through January 31, 2023 in order to
help ensure that the amount collected
from the ORF, in combination with
other regulatory fees and fines, does not
exceed the Exchange’s total regulatory
costs. The Exchange proposes to resume
assessing the ORF on February 1, 2023
at the current rate of $0.0055 per
contract. The Exchange will notify ATP
Holders of the proposed change to the
ORF via Trader Update at least 30
calendar days prior to the proposed
operative date of the waiver, November
1, 2022, so that market participants have
an opportunity to configure their
2019
Customer ADV .................................................................................................
Total ADV ........................................................................................................
In addition, the below industry data
from OCC demonstrates the high
options trading volumes (especially
when compared to 2019, 2020, and
April 2022
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Customer ADV .........................................
Total ADV .................................................
33,266,801
73,140,597
Because of the difficulty of predicting
when volumes may return to more
normal levels, the Exchange proposes to
waive the ORF from November 1, 2022
through January 31, 2023. The Exchange
cannot predict whether options volume
will remain at these levels going
forward and projections for future
regulatory costs are estimated,
preliminary, and may change. However,
the Exchange believes that the proposed
waiver of the ORF would allow the
Exchange to continue to monitor the
amount collected from the ORF to help
ensure that ORF collection, in
combination with other regulatory fees
and fines, does not exceed regulatory
costs without the need to account for
8 See
Fee Schedule, supra note 5.
OCC publishes options and futures volume
in a variety of formats, including daily and monthly
volume by exchange, available here: https://
www.theocc.com/Market-Data/Market-DataReports/Volume-and-Open-Interest/MonthlyWeekly-Volume-Statistics. The volume discussed in
9 The
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15,234,198
35,083,673
May 2022
June 2022
34,202,077
76,254,734
31,469,858
70,628,926
any ORF collection during that
timeframe. The Exchange proposes to
resume assessing the current ORF rate of
$0.0055 per contract side as of February
1, 2023.
Semi-Annual Changes To ORF
As noted above, the Fee Schedule
currently specifies that the Exchange
may only increase or decrease the ORF
semi-annually and that any such fee
change will be effective on the first
business day of February or August.10
NYSE American proposes to eliminate
this requirement to afford the Exchange
increased flexibility in amending the
ORF.11 Although the Exchange proposes
to eliminate the requirement to adjust
this filing is based on a compilation of OCC data
for monthly volume of equity-based options and
monthly volume of ETF-based options, in contract
sides.
10 See Fee Schedule, supra note 5.
11 The Exchange notes that at least one other
options exchange has previously removed this
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systems to account for the waiver of the
ORF. The Exchange’s proposal to waive
the ORF for the month of January 2023
would similarly provide ATP Holders
with additional time in the new year to
make any necessary adjustments or
preparations for the resumption of the
ORF effective February 1, 2023.
The proposed waiver is based on
recent options volumes. The options
industry has experienced extremely
high options trading volumes and
volatility, and options volume in 2022
remains high when compared to options
volume in 2019, 2020, and 2021. The
increased options volumes have, in
turn, impacted the Exchange’s ORF
collection.
For example, total average daily
volume in 2022, to date, is 115% higher
than total average daily volume in 2019,
and customer average daily volume in
2022, to date, is 123% higher than
customer average daily volume in 2019.
Below is industry data from OCC 9
illustrating the significant increase in
options volume between 2019 and 2022:
2020
2021
25,598,023
55,369,993
34,730,276
74,339,870
2022
33,939,560
75,497,647
2021) and volatility that the industry
has continued to experience in 2022:
July 2022
30,506,706
68,535,963
August 2022
33,013,156
73,487,342
September
2022
34,149,000
77,134,470
the ORF only semi-annually, it would
continue to submit a proposed rule
change for each modification of the ORF
and notify ATP Holders of any planned
change to the ORF by Trader Update at
least 30 calendar days prior to the
effective date of such change. The
Exchange believes that the prior
notification to ATP Holders will provide
guidance on the timing of any changes
to the ORF and ensure that ATP Holders
are prepared to configure their systems
to properly account for the ORF. The
Exchange will also issue a Trader
Update informing ATP Holders of the
ORF adjustment proposed in this filing,
as described below, at least 30 calendar
requirement with respect to adjusting the ORF. See,
e.g., Securities Exchange Act Release No. 76950
(January 21, 2016), 81 FR 4687 (January 27, 2016)
(SR–NASDAQ–2016–003) (Notice of Filing and
Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change
To Amend the Options Regulatory Fee).
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days prior to the proposed effective
date.
August 2019 ORF
The Exchange proposes to delete
language in the Fee Schedule pertaining
to the August 2019 ORF, which was
relevant only for the August 30, 2019
trading day and thus no longer reflects
a fee currently assessed by the
Exchange. The Exchange believes this
change would improve the clarity of the
Fee Schedule by removing obsolete
language.
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2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes that the
proposed rule change is consistent with
the provisions of Section 6(b) 12 of the
Act, in general, and Section 6(b)(4) and
(5) 13 of the Act, in particular, in that it
is designed to provide for the equitable
allocation of reasonable dues, fees, and
other charges among its members and
other persons using its facilities and
does not unfairly discriminate between
customers, issuers, brokers, or dealers.
The Proposal Is Reasonable
The Exchange believes the proposed
temporary waiver of the ORF is
reasonable because it would help ensure
that collections from the ORF do not
exceed a material portion of the
Exchange’s ORF Costs. As noted above,
the Exchange may only use regulatory
funds such as ORF ‘‘to fund the legal,
regulatory, and surveillance operations’’
of the Exchange.14 In this regard, the
ORF is designed to recover a material
portion, but not all, of the Exchange’s
ORF Costs.
Although there can be no assurance
that the Exchange’s final costs for 2022
will not differ materially from its
expectations and prior practice, nor can
the Exchange predict with certainty
whether options volume will remain at
the current level going forward, the
Exchange believes that the amount
collected based on the current ORF rate,
when combined with regulatory fees
and fines, may result in collections in
excess of the estimated ORF Costs for
the year. Particularly, as noted above,
the options market has seen a
substantial increase in volume in 2022
as compared to 2019, 2020, and 2021,
due in large part to the continued
extreme volatility in the marketplace as
a result of the COVID–19 pandemic.
This unprecedented spike in volatility
resulted in significantly higher volume
than was originally projected by the
Exchange, thereby resulting in
12 15
U.S.C. 78f(b).
U.S.C. 78f(b)(4) and (5).
14 See note 4, supra.
13 15
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substantially higher ORF collections
than projected. The Exchange therefore
believes that it would be reasonable to
waive ORF from November 1, 2022
through January 31, 2023 to help ensure
that ORF collection does not exceed the
ORF Costs for 2022.15 Particularly, the
Exchange believes that waiving the ORF
from November 1, 2022 to January 31,
2023 and taking into account all of the
Exchange’s other regulatory fees and
fines would allow the Exchange to
continue covering a material portion of
ORF Costs, while lessening the potential
for generating excess funds that may
otherwise occur using the current rate.
The Exchange would resume assessing
its current ORF ($0.0055 per contract) as
of February 1, 2023. Until effectiveness
of the waiver on November 1, 2022, the
Exchange will continue to monitor the
amount collected from the ORF to
ensure that it, in combination with its
other regulatory fees and fines, does not
exceed ORF Costs. The Exchange would
also continue monitoring the amount
collected from the ORF when such
collection resumes on February 1, 2023
and, if necessary to ensure that such
collections do not exceed such costs,
subsequently adjust the ORF by
submitting a filing a proposed rule
change and notifying ATP Holders of
such change by Trader Update.
The Exchange believes that the
proposed elimination of language
specifying that the Exchange may only
increase or decrease the ORF semiannually and that any such fee change
must be effective on the first business
day of February or August is reasonable
because it is designed to afford the
Exchange increased flexibility in
making necessary adjustments to the
ORF, as the Exchange is required to
monitor the amount collected from the
ORF to ensure that it, in combination
with its other regulatory fees and fines,
does not exceed ORF Costs . The
Exchange also believes the proposed
change is reasonable because the
Exchange will continue to provide
market participants with 30 days
advance notice of changes to the ORF,
thereby providing ATP Holders with
adequate time to make any necessary
adjustments to accommodate the
change.
The Exchange also believes that the
proposed deletion of language relating
to the August 2019 ORF is reasonable
because it would remove obsolete
15 The Exchange’s proposal to also waive the ORF
for the month of January 2023 would provide ATP
Holders with additional time in the new year to
make any necessary adjustments or preparations for
the resumption of the ORF effective February 1,
2023.
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63567
language and thus improve the clarity of
the Fee Schedule.
The Proposal Is an Equitable Allocation
of Fees
The Exchange believes its proposal is
an equitable allocation of fees among its
market participants. The Exchange
believes that the proposed waiver would
not place certain market participants at
an unfair disadvantage because all
options transactions must clear via a
clearing firm. Such clearing firms can
then choose to pass through all, a
portion, or none of the cost of the ORF
to its customers, i.e., the entering firms.
Because the ORF is collected from ATP
Holder clearing firms by the OCC on
behalf of NYSE American, the Exchange
believes that using options transactions
in the Customer range serves as a proxy
for how to apportion ORF Costs among
such ATP Holders. In addition, the
Exchange notes that the costs relating to
monitoring ATP Holders with respect to
Customer trading activity are generally
higher than the costs associated with
monitoring ATP Holders that do not
engage in Customer trading activity,
which tends to be more automated and
less labor-intensive. By contrast,
regulating ATP Holders that engage in
Customer trading activity is generally
more labor intensive and requires a
greater expenditure of human and
technical resources as the Exchange
needs to review not only the trading
activity on behalf of Customers, but also
the ATP Holder’s relationship with its
Customers via more labor-intensive
exam-based programs. 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 noncustomer component (e.g., ATP Holder
proprietary transactions) of its
regulatory program. Thus, the Exchange
believes that a temporary waiver of the
ORF is an equitable allocation of fees
because it would apply equally to all
ATP Holders on all their transactions
that clear in the Customer range at the
OCC.
The Exchange also believes that the
proposed change to eliminate the
requirement that the Exchange modify
the ORF only semi-annually in February
or August is equitable because the
change would impact all ATP Holders
subject to the ORF uniformly, and all
ATP Holders would continue to receive
at least 30 days’ advance notice of
changes to the ORF. The proposed
change to remove language relating to
the August 2019 ORF is also equitable
because it would eliminate language
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from the Fee Schedule that is no longer
applicable to any ATP Holders.
The Proposed Fee Is Not Unfairly
Discriminatory
The Exchange believes that the
proposal is not unfairly discriminatory.
The Exchange believes that the
proposed waiver of the ORF would not
place certain market participants at an
unfair disadvantage because all options
transactions must clear via a clearing
firm. Such clearing firms can then
choose to pass through all, a portion, or
none of the cost of the ORF to its
customers, i.e., the entering firms.
Because the ORF is collected from ATP
Holder clearing firms by the OCC on
behalf of NYSE American, the Exchange
believes that using options transactions
in the Customer range serves as a proxy
for how to apportion regulatory costs
among such ATP Holders. In addition,
the Exchange notes that the costs
relating to monitoring ATP Holders with
respect to Customer trading activity are
generally higher than the costs
associated with monitoring ATP
Holders that do not engage in Customer
trading activity, which tends to be more
automated and less labor-intensive. By
contrast, regulating ATP Holders that
engage in Customer trading activity is
generally more labor intensive and
requires a greater expenditure of human
and technical resources as the Exchange
needs to review not only the trading
activity on behalf of Customers, but also
the ATP Holder’s relationship with its
Customers via more labor-intensive
exam-based programs. 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 noncustomer component (e.g., ATP Holder
proprietary transactions) of its
regulatory program. Thus, the Exchange
believes the temporary waiver of the
ORF and the proposed modification of
language relating to the Exchange’s
ability to modify the ORF is not unfairly
discriminatory because the changes
would apply to all ATP Holders subject
to the ORF and the Exchange would
provide all such ATP Holders with 30
days’ advance notice of planned
changes to the ORF.
The Exchange believes that the
proposed change to eliminate the semiannual change requirement is not
unfairly discriminatory because the
change would apply to all ATP Holders
subject to the ORF. Furthermore, all
ATP Holders would continue to be
notified of changes to the ORF at least
30 days prior to the effectiveness of any
such change. The proposed change to
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remove language relating to the August
2019 ORF is also not unfairly
discriminatory because it would
eliminate language from the Fee
Schedule describing a fee that was
effective only for August 30, 2019 and
thus no longer impacts any ATP
Holders.
B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement on Burden on Competition
The Exchange does not believe that
the proposed rule change will impose
any burden on competition that is not
necessary or appropriate in furtherance
of the purposes of the Act.
Intramarket Competition. The
Exchange believes the proposed change
would not impose an undue burden on
competition because the ORF is charged
to all ATP Holders on all their
transactions that clear in the Customer
range at the OCC; thus, the amount of
ORF imposed is based on the amount of
Customer volume transacted. The
Exchange believes that the proposed
temporary waiver of the ORF would not
place certain market participants at an
unfair disadvantage because all options
transactions must clear via a clearing
firm. Such clearing firms can then
choose to pass through all, a portion, or
none of the cost of the ORF to its
customers, i.e., the entering firms. In
addition, because the ORF is collected
from ATP Holder clearing firms by the
OCC on behalf of NYSE American, the
Exchange believes that using options
transactions in the Customer range
serves as a proxy for how to apportion
regulatory costs among such ATP
Holders. The Exchange further believes
that the proposed change to remove the
semi-annual requirement would not
impose any burden on competition
because the change would impact all
ATP Holders subject to the ORF, and the
Exchange will continue to provide
advance notice of changes to the ORF to
all ATP Holders via Trader Update. The
Exchange also believes that the
proposed change to eliminate language
relating to the August 2019 ORF would
not impact intramarket competition
because it would simply add clarity to
the Fee Schedule by removing text
describing a fee that is no longer
effective.
Intermarket Competition. The
proposed fee change is not designed to
address any competitive issues. Rather,
the proposed change is designed to help
the Exchange adequately fund its
regulatory activities while seeking to
ensure that total collections from
regulatory fees do not exceed total
regulatory costs and to promote clarity
in the Fee Schedule by deleting obsolete
text.
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C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement on Comments on the
Proposed Rule Change Received From
Members, Participants, or Others
No written comments were solicited
or received with respect to the proposed
rule change.
III. Date of Effectiveness of the
Proposed Rule Change and Timing for
Commission Action
The foregoing rule change is effective
upon filing pursuant to Section
19(b)(3)(A) 16 of the Act and
subparagraph (f)(2) of Rule 19b–4 17
thereunder, because it establishes a due,
fee, or other charge imposed by the
Exchange.
At any time within 60 days of the
filing of such proposed rule change, the
Commission summarily may
temporarily suspend such rule change if
it appears to the Commission that such
action is necessary or appropriate in the
public interest, for the protection of
investors, or otherwise in furtherance of
the purposes of the Act. If the
Commission takes such action, the
Commission shall institute proceedings
under Section 19(b)(2)(B) 18 of the Act to
determine whether the proposed rule
change should be approved or
disapproved.
IV. Solicitation of Comments
Interested persons are invited to
submit written data, views, and
arguments concerning the foregoing,
including whether the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Act.
Comments may be submitted by any of
the following methods:
Electronic Comments
• Use the Commission’s internet
comment form (https://www.sec.gov/
rules/sro.shtml); or
• Send an email to rule-comments@
sec.gov. Please include File No. SR–
NYSEAMER–2022–45 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 No.
SR–NYSEAMER–2022–45. 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
16 15
U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
CFR 240.19b–4(f)(2).
18 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2)(B).
17 17
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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 No.
SR–NYSEAMER–2022–45, and should
be submitted on or before November 9,
2022.
For the Commission, by the Division of
Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated
authority.19
J. Matthew DeLesDernier,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022–22659 Filed 10–18–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011–01–P
SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD
[Docket No. FD 36581]
jspears on DSK121TN23PROD with NOTICES
Akron Barberton Cluster Railway
Company—Acquisition Exemption—
Rittman Community Improvement
Corporation
Akron Barberton Cluster Railway
Company (ABC), a Class III rail carrier,
has filed a verified notice of exemption
under 49 CFR 1150.41 to acquire from
Rittman Community Improvement
Corporation (RCIC) approximately 3.26
miles of rail line between milepost
216.76 near Wadsworth, and milepost
220.02 near Rittman, in Medina and
Wayne Counties, Ohio (the Line).
The verified notice states that ABC
has been serving as the operator on the
Line since August 1994 when it
acquired the rail assets of its
predecessor, Akron & Barberton Belt
Railroad Company, and several
Consolidated Rail Corporation lines. See
Akron Barberton Cluster Ry.—Acquis. &
Operation Exemption—Certain Lines of
Consol. Rail Corp., FD 32537 (ICC
served Aug. 10, 1994). ABC states that
the Line was inadvertently omitted from
the verified notice of exemption filed in
that docket and that the authority it
seeks here would rectify that oversight.
The verified notice also states that RCIC
and ABC have executed a purchase and
sale agreement providing for ABC’s
acquisition of all of RCIC’s right, title,
and interest in and to the Line subject
to ABC’s receipt of appropriate
authority or exemption from the Board,
and that ABC will continue to operate
and provide all rail common carrier
service to shippers on the Line after the
exemption becomes effective.
ABC certifies that its projected annual
revenues as a result of this transaction
will not exceed those that would qualify
it as a Class III rail carrier and will not
exceed $5 million annually. ABC further
certifies that the acquisition does not
involve an interchange commitment.
The transaction may be consummated
on or after November 2, 2022, the
effective date of the exemption (30 days
after the verified notice was filed).
If the verified notice contains false or
misleading information, the exemption
is void ab initio. Petitions to revoke the
exemption under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d)
may be filed at any time. The filing of
a petition to revoke will not
automatically stay the effectiveness of
the exemption. Petitions to stay must be
filed no later than October 26, 2022 (at
least seven days before the exemption
becomes effective).
All pleadings, referring to Docket No.
FD 36581, must be filed with the
Surface Transportation Board either via
e-filing or in writing addressed to 395 E
Street SW Washington, DC 20423–0001.
In addition, a copy of each pleading
must be served on ABC’s representative:
Michael J. Barron Jr., Fletcher & Sippel
LLC, 29 North Wacker Drive, Suite 800,
Chicago, IL 60606–3208.
According to ABC, this action is
categorically excluded from
environmental review under 49 CFR
1105.6(c) and from historic preservation
reporting requirements under 49 CFR
1105.8(b).
Board decisions and notices are
available at www.stb.gov.
Decided: October 14, 2022.
By the Board, Mai T. Dinh, Director, Office
of Proceedings.
Jeffrey Herzig,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2022–22683 Filed 10–18–22; 8:45 am]
19 17
CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:58 Oct 18, 2022
SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD
[Docket No. AB 290 Sub-No (411X)]
Northern Southern Railway
Company—Abandonment Exemption—
in the City of Evansville, Ind.
Norfolk Southern Railway Company
(NSR) has filed a verified notice of
exemption pursuant to 49 CFR part
1152, subpart F—Exempt
Abandonments to abandon an
approximately 0.24-mile rail line
extending from milepost +/1 0.00 EB to
milepost +/¥0.24 EB in the City of
Evansville, Ind. (the Line). The Line
traverses U.S. Postal Service Zip Code
47711.
NSR has certified that: (1) no local
traffic has moved over the Line for at
least two years; (2) no overhead traffic
has moved over the Line for at least two
years, and overhead traffic, if there were
any, could be rerouted over other lines;
(3) no formal complaint filed by a user
of rail service on the Line (or by a state
or local government entity acting on
behalf of such user) regarding cessation
of service over the Line either is
pending with the Surface
Transportation Board (Board) or with
any U.S. District Court or has been
decided in favor of complainant within
the two-year period; and (4) the
requirements at 49 CFR 1105.7 and
1105.8 (notice of environmental and
historic report), 49 CFR 1105.12
(newspaper publication), and 49 CFR
1152.50(d)(1) (notice to governmental
agencies) have been met.
Any employee of NSR adversely
affected by the abandonment shall be
protected under Oregon Short Line
Railroad—Abandonment Portion
Goshen Branch Between Firth &
Ammon, in Bingham & Bonneville
Counties, Idaho, 360 I.C.C. 91 (1979). To
address whether this condition
adequately protects affected employees,
a petition for partial revocation under
49 U.S.C. 10502(d) must be filed.
Provided no formal expression of
intent to file an offer of financial
assistance (OFA) has been received,1 the
exemption will be effective on
November 18, 2022, unless stayed
pending reconsideration. Petitions to
stay that do not involve environmental
issues,2 formal expressions of intent to
1 Persons interested in submitting an OFA must
first file a formal expression of intent to file an
offer, indicating the type of financial assistance they
wish to provide (i.e., subsidy or purchase) and
demonstrating that they are preliminarily
financially responsible. See 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2)(i).
2 The Board will grant a stay if an informed
decision on environmental issues (whether raised
by a party or by the Board’s Office of Environmental
Continued
BILLING CODE 4915–01–P
Jkt 259001
PO 00000
Frm 00096
Fmt 4703
63569
Sfmt 4703
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19OCN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 201 (Wednesday, October 19, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63565-63569]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-22659]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-96066; File No. SR-NYSEAMER-2022-45]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE American LLC; Notice of
Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Change To Amend the NYSE
American Options Fee Schedule Concerning the Options Regulatory Fee
October 13, 2022.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) \1\ of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934 (the ``Act'') \2\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\3\ notice is hereby
given that, on September 28, 2022, NYSE American LLC (``NYSE American''
or the ``Exchange'') 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 self-
regulatory organization. The Commission is publishing this notice to
solicit comments on the proposed rule change from interested persons.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
\2\ 15 U.S.C. 78a.
\3\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance
of the Proposed Rule Change
The Exchange proposes to amend the NYSE American Options Fee
Schedule (``Fee Schedule'') regarding the Options Regulatory Fee
(``ORF''), effective September 28, 2022. The proposed change is
available on the Exchange's website at www.nyse.com, at the principal
office of the Exchange, and at the Commission's Public Reference Room.
II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
In its filing with the Commission, the self-regulatory organization
included statements concerning the purpose of, and basis for, the
proposed rule change and discussed any comments it received on the
proposed rule change. The text of those statements may be examined at
the places specified in Item IV below. The Exchange has prepared
summaries, set forth in sections A, B, and C below, of the most
significant parts of such statements.
A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and the
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
1. Purpose
The Exchange proposes to amend the Fee Schedule to (1) waive the
ORF for the period November 1, 2022 through January 31, 2023; (2)
eliminate the requirement that the Exchange may only modify the ORF
semi-annually; and (3) delete outdated language relating to the ORF for
August 30, 2019 (the ``August 2019 ORF'').
Background
As a general matter, the Exchange may only use regulatory funds
such as the ORF ``to fund the legal, regulatory, and surveillance
operations'' of the Exchange.\4\ More specifically, the ORF is designed
to recover a material portion, but not all, of the Exchange's costs for
the supervision and regulation of ATP Holders, including the Exchange's
regulatory program and legal expenses associated with options, such as
the costs related to in-house staff, third-party service providers, and
technology that facilitate surveillance, investigation, examinations
and enforcement (collectively, the ``ORF Costs''). ORF funds may also
be used for indirect expenses such as human resources and other
administrative costs. The Exchange monitors the amount of revenue
collected from the ORF to ensure that this revenue, in combination with
other regulatory fees and fines, does not exceed regulatory costs.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ The Exchange considers surveillance operations part of
regulatory operations. The limitation on the use of regulatory funds
also provides that they shall not be distributed. See Thirteenth
Amended and Restated Operating Agreement of NYSE American LLC,
Article IV, Section 4.05 and Securities Exchange Act Release No.
87993 (January 16, 2020), 85 FR 4050 (January 23, 2020) (SR-
NYSEAMER-2020-04).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The ORF is assessed on ATP Holders for options transactions that
are cleared by the ATP Holder through the Options Clearing Corporation
(``OCC'') in the Customer range regardless of the exchange on which the
transaction occurs.\5\ All options transactions must clear via a
clearing firm and such clearing firms can then choose to pass through
all, a portion, or none of the cost of the ORF to its customers, i.e.,
the entering firms. Because the ORF is collected from ATP Holder
clearing firms by the OCC on behalf of NYSE American,\6\ the Exchange
believes that using options transactions in the Customer range serves
as a proxy for how to apportion regulatory costs among such ATP
Holders. In addition, the Exchange notes that the costs relating to
monitoring ATP Holders with respect to Customer trading activity are
generally higher than the costs associated with monitoring ATP Holders
that do not engage in Customer trading activity, which tends to be more
automated and less labor-intensive. By contrast, regulating ATP Holders
that engage in Customer trading activity is generally more labor
intensive and requires a greater expenditure of human and technical
resources as the Exchange needs to review not only the trading activity
on behalf of Customers, but also the ATP Holder's relationship with its
Customers via more labor-intensive exam-based programs.\7\ 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.,
ATP Holder
[[Page 63566]]
proprietary transactions) of its regulatory program.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\5\ See Fee Schedule, Section VII, Regulatory Fees, Options
Regulatory Fee (``ORF''), available here, https://www.nyse.com/publicdocs/nyse/markets/american-options/NYSE_American_Options_Fee_Schedule.pdf.
\6\ See id. The Exchange uses reports from OCC when assessing
and collecting the ORF. The ORF is not assessed on outbound linkage
trades. An ATP Holder is not assessed the fee until it has satisfied
applicable technological requirements necessary to commence
operations on NYSE American. See id.
\7\ The Exchange notes that many of the Exchange's market
surveillance programs require the Exchange to look at and evaluate
activity across all options markets, such as surveillance for
position limit violations, manipulation, front-running and contrary
exercise advice violations/expiring exercise declarations. The
Exchange and other options SROs are parties to a 17d-2 agreement
allocating among the SROs regulatory responsibilities relating to
compliance by the common members with rules for expiring exercise
declarations, position limits, OCC trade adjustments, and Large
Option Position Report reviews. See, e.g., Securities Exchange Act
Release No. 85097 (February 11, 2019), 84 FR 4871 (February 19,
2019).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
ORF Collections and Monitoring of ORF
Exchange rules establish that the Exchange may only increase or
decrease the ORF semi-annually, that any such fee change will be
effective on the first business day of February or August, and that
market participants must be notified of any such change via Trader
Update at least 30 calendar days prior to the effective date of the
change.\8\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\8\ See Fee Schedule, supra note 5.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Because the ORF is based on options transactions volume, the amount
of ORF collected is variable. For example, if options transactions
reported to OCC in a given month increase, the ORF collected from ATP
Holders will likely increase as well. Similarly, if options
transactions reported to OCC in a given month decrease, the ORF
collected from ATP Holders will likely decrease as well. Accordingly,
the Exchange monitors the amount of ORF collected to ensure that it
does not exceed the ORF Costs. If the Exchange determines the amount of
ORF collected exceeds costs over an extended period, the Exchange may
adjust the ORF by submitting a fee change filing to the Securities and
Exchange Commission (the ``Commission'').
Temporary ORF Waiver
Based on the Exchange's recent review of regulatory costs and ORF
collections, the Exchange proposes to waive the ORF from November 1,
2022 through January 31, 2023 in order to help ensure that the amount
collected from the ORF, in combination with other regulatory fees and
fines, does not exceed the Exchange's total regulatory costs. The
Exchange proposes to resume assessing the ORF on February 1, 2023 at
the current rate of $0.0055 per contract. The Exchange will notify ATP
Holders of the proposed change to the ORF via Trader Update at least 30
calendar days prior to the proposed operative date of the waiver,
November 1, 2022, so that market participants have an opportunity to
configure their systems to account for the waiver of the ORF. The
Exchange's proposal to waive the ORF for the month of January 2023
would similarly provide ATP Holders with additional time in the new
year to make any necessary adjustments or preparations for the
resumption of the ORF effective February 1, 2023.
The proposed waiver is based on recent options volumes. The options
industry has experienced extremely high options trading volumes and
volatility, and options volume in 2022 remains high when compared to
options volume in 2019, 2020, and 2021. The increased options volumes
have, in turn, impacted the Exchange's ORF collection.
For example, total average daily volume in 2022, to date, is 115%
higher than total average daily volume in 2019, and customer average
daily volume in 2022, to date, is 123% higher than customer average
daily volume in 2019. Below is industry data from OCC \9\ illustrating
the significant increase in options volume between 2019 and 2022:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\ The OCC publishes options and futures volume in a variety of
formats, including daily and monthly volume by exchange, available
here: https://www.theocc.com/Market-Data/Market-Data-Reports/Volume-and-Open-Interest/Monthly-Weekly-Volume-Statistics. The volume
discussed in this filing is based on a compilation of OCC data for
monthly volume of equity-based options and monthly volume of ETF-
based options, in contract sides.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2019 2020 2021 2022
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Customer ADV.................................... 15,234,198 25,598,023 34,730,276 33,939,560
Total ADV....................................... 35,083,673 55,369,993 74,339,870 75,497,647
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In addition, the below industry data from OCC demonstrates the high
options trading volumes (especially when compared to 2019, 2020, and
2021) and volatility that the industry has continued to experience in
2022:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
April 2022 May 2022 June 2022 July 2022 August 2022 September 2022
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Customer ADV............................................ 33,266,801 34,202,077 31,469,858 30,506,706 33,013,156 34,149,000
Total ADV............................................... 73,140,597 76,254,734 70,628,926 68,535,963 73,487,342 77,134,470
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Because of the difficulty of predicting when volumes may return to
more normal levels, the Exchange proposes to waive the ORF from
November 1, 2022 through January 31, 2023. The Exchange cannot predict
whether options volume will remain at these levels going forward and
projections for future regulatory costs are estimated, preliminary, and
may change. However, the Exchange believes that the proposed waiver of
the ORF would allow the Exchange to continue to monitor the amount
collected from the ORF to help ensure that ORF collection, in
combination with other regulatory fees and fines, does not exceed
regulatory costs without the need to account for any ORF collection
during that timeframe. The Exchange proposes to resume assessing the
current ORF rate of $0.0055 per contract side as of February 1, 2023.
Semi-Annual Changes To ORF
As noted above, the Fee Schedule currently specifies that the
Exchange may only increase or decrease the ORF semi-annually and that
any such fee change will be effective on the first business day of
February or August.\10\ NYSE American proposes to eliminate this
requirement to afford the Exchange increased flexibility in amending
the ORF.\11\ Although the Exchange proposes to eliminate the
requirement to adjust the ORF only semi-annually, it would continue to
submit a proposed rule change for each modification of the ORF and
notify ATP Holders of any planned change to the ORF by Trader Update at
least 30 calendar days prior to the effective date of such change. The
Exchange believes that the prior notification to ATP Holders will
provide guidance on the timing of any changes to the ORF and ensure
that ATP Holders are prepared to configure their systems to properly
account for the ORF. The Exchange will also issue a Trader Update
informing ATP Holders of the ORF adjustment proposed in this filing, as
described below, at least 30 calendar
[[Page 63567]]
days prior to the proposed effective date.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\10\ See Fee Schedule, supra note 5.
\11\ The Exchange notes that at least one other options exchange
has previously removed this requirement with respect to adjusting
the ORF. See, e.g., Securities Exchange Act Release No. 76950
(January 21, 2016), 81 FR 4687 (January 27, 2016) (SR-NASDAQ-2016-
003) (Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule
Change To Amend the Options Regulatory Fee).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
August 2019 ORF
The Exchange proposes to delete language in the Fee Schedule
pertaining to the August 2019 ORF, which was relevant only for the
August 30, 2019 trading day and thus no longer reflects a fee currently
assessed by the Exchange. The Exchange believes this change would
improve the clarity of the Fee Schedule by removing obsolete language.
2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes that the proposed rule change is consistent
with the provisions of Section 6(b) \12\ of the Act, in general, and
Section 6(b)(4) and (5) \13\ of the Act, in particular, in that it is
designed to provide for the equitable allocation of reasonable dues,
fees, and other charges among its members and other persons using its
facilities and does not unfairly discriminate between customers,
issuers, brokers, or dealers.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\12\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
\13\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4) and (5).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Proposal Is Reasonable
The Exchange believes the proposed temporary waiver of the ORF is
reasonable because it would help ensure that collections from the ORF
do not exceed a material portion of the Exchange's ORF Costs. As noted
above, the Exchange may only use regulatory funds such as ORF ``to fund
the legal, regulatory, and surveillance operations'' of the
Exchange.\14\ In this regard, the ORF is designed to recover a material
portion, but not all, of the Exchange's ORF Costs.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\14\ See note 4, supra.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Although there can be no assurance that the Exchange's final costs
for 2022 will not differ materially from its expectations and prior
practice, nor can the Exchange predict with certainty whether options
volume will remain at the current level going forward, the Exchange
believes that the amount collected based on the current ORF rate, when
combined with regulatory fees and fines, may result in collections in
excess of the estimated ORF Costs for the year. Particularly, as noted
above, the options market has seen a substantial increase in volume in
2022 as compared to 2019, 2020, and 2021, due in large part to the
continued extreme volatility in the marketplace as a result of the
COVID-19 pandemic. This unprecedented spike in volatility resulted in
significantly higher volume than was originally projected by the
Exchange, thereby resulting in substantially higher ORF collections
than projected. The Exchange therefore believes that it would be
reasonable to waive ORF from November 1, 2022 through January 31, 2023
to help ensure that ORF collection does not exceed the ORF Costs for
2022.\15\ Particularly, the Exchange believes that waiving the ORF from
November 1, 2022 to January 31, 2023 and taking into account all of the
Exchange's other regulatory fees and fines would allow the Exchange to
continue covering a material portion of ORF Costs, while lessening the
potential for generating excess funds that may otherwise occur using
the current rate. The Exchange would resume assessing its current ORF
($0.0055 per contract) as of February 1, 2023. Until effectiveness of
the waiver on November 1, 2022, the Exchange will continue to monitor
the amount collected from the ORF to ensure that it, in combination
with its other regulatory fees and fines, does not exceed ORF Costs.
The Exchange would also continue monitoring the amount collected from
the ORF when such collection resumes on February 1, 2023 and, if
necessary to ensure that such collections do not exceed such costs,
subsequently adjust the ORF by submitting a filing a proposed rule
change and notifying ATP Holders of such change by Trader Update.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\15\ The Exchange's proposal to also waive the ORF for the month
of January 2023 would provide ATP Holders with additional time in
the new year to make any necessary adjustments or preparations for
the resumption of the ORF effective February 1, 2023.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Exchange believes that the proposed elimination of language
specifying that the Exchange may only increase or decrease the ORF
semi-annually and that any such fee change must be effective on the
first business day of February or August is reasonable because it is
designed to afford the Exchange increased flexibility in making
necessary adjustments to the ORF, as the Exchange is required to
monitor the amount collected from the ORF to ensure that it, in
combination with its other regulatory fees and fines, does not exceed
ORF Costs . The Exchange also believes the proposed change is
reasonable because the Exchange will continue to provide market
participants with 30 days advance notice of changes to the ORF, thereby
providing ATP Holders with adequate time to make any necessary
adjustments to accommodate the change.
The Exchange also believes that the proposed deletion of language
relating to the August 2019 ORF is reasonable because it would remove
obsolete language and thus improve the clarity of the Fee Schedule.
The Proposal Is an Equitable Allocation of Fees
The Exchange believes its proposal is an equitable allocation of
fees among its market participants. The Exchange believes that the
proposed waiver would not place certain market participants at an
unfair disadvantage because all options transactions must clear via a
clearing firm. Such clearing firms can then choose to pass through all,
a portion, or none of the cost of the ORF to its customers, i.e., the
entering firms. Because the ORF is collected from ATP Holder clearing
firms by the OCC on behalf of NYSE American, the Exchange believes that
using options transactions in the Customer range serves as a proxy for
how to apportion ORF Costs among such ATP Holders. In addition, the
Exchange notes that the costs relating to monitoring ATP Holders with
respect to Customer trading activity are generally higher than the
costs associated with monitoring ATP Holders that do not engage in
Customer trading activity, which tends to be more automated and less
labor-intensive. By contrast, regulating ATP Holders that engage in
Customer trading activity is generally more labor intensive and
requires a greater expenditure of human and technical resources as the
Exchange needs to review not only the trading activity on behalf of
Customers, but also the ATP Holder's relationship with its Customers
via more labor-intensive exam-based programs. 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., ATP
Holder proprietary transactions) of its regulatory program. Thus, the
Exchange believes that a temporary waiver of the ORF is an equitable
allocation of fees because it would apply equally to all ATP Holders on
all their transactions that clear in the Customer range at the OCC.
The Exchange also believes that the proposed change to eliminate
the requirement that the Exchange modify the ORF only semi-annually in
February or August is equitable because the change would impact all ATP
Holders subject to the ORF uniformly, and all ATP Holders would
continue to receive at least 30 days' advance notice of changes to the
ORF. The proposed change to remove language relating to the August 2019
ORF is also equitable because it would eliminate language
[[Page 63568]]
from the Fee Schedule that is no longer applicable to any ATP Holders.
The Proposed Fee Is Not Unfairly Discriminatory
The Exchange believes that the proposal is not unfairly
discriminatory. The Exchange believes that the proposed waiver of the
ORF would not place certain market participants at an unfair
disadvantage because all options transactions must clear via a clearing
firm. Such clearing firms can then choose to pass through all, a
portion, or none of the cost of the ORF to its customers, i.e., the
entering firms. Because the ORF is collected from ATP Holder clearing
firms by the OCC on behalf of NYSE American, the Exchange believes that
using options transactions in the Customer range serves as a proxy for
how to apportion regulatory costs among such ATP Holders. In addition,
the Exchange notes that the costs relating to monitoring ATP Holders
with respect to Customer trading activity are generally higher than the
costs associated with monitoring ATP Holders that do not engage in
Customer trading activity, which tends to be more automated and less
labor-intensive. By contrast, regulating ATP Holders that engage in
Customer trading activity is generally more labor intensive and
requires a greater expenditure of human and technical resources as the
Exchange needs to review not only the trading activity on behalf of
Customers, but also the ATP Holder's relationship with its Customers
via more labor-intensive exam-based programs. 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., ATP
Holder proprietary transactions) of its regulatory program. Thus, the
Exchange believes the temporary waiver of the ORF and the proposed
modification of language relating to the Exchange's ability to modify
the ORF is not unfairly discriminatory because the changes would apply
to all ATP Holders subject to the ORF and the Exchange would provide
all such ATP Holders with 30 days' advance notice of planned changes to
the ORF.
The Exchange believes that the proposed change to eliminate the
semi-annual change requirement is not unfairly discriminatory because
the change would apply to all ATP Holders subject to the ORF.
Furthermore, all ATP Holders would continue to be notified of changes
to the ORF at least 30 days prior to the effectiveness of any such
change. The proposed change to remove language relating to the August
2019 ORF is also not unfairly discriminatory because it would eliminate
language from the Fee Schedule describing a fee that was effective only
for August 30, 2019 and thus no longer impacts any ATP Holders.
B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition
The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule change will
impose any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate
in furtherance of the purposes of the Act.
Intramarket Competition. The Exchange believes the proposed change
would not impose an undue burden on competition because the ORF is
charged to all ATP Holders on all their transactions that clear in the
Customer range at the OCC; thus, the amount of ORF imposed is based on
the amount of Customer volume transacted. The Exchange believes that
the proposed temporary waiver of the ORF would not place certain market
participants at an unfair disadvantage because all options transactions
must clear via a clearing firm. Such clearing firms can then choose to
pass through all, a portion, or none of the cost of the ORF to its
customers, i.e., the entering firms. In addition, because the ORF is
collected from ATP Holder clearing firms by the OCC on behalf of NYSE
American, the Exchange believes that using options transactions in the
Customer range serves as a proxy for how to apportion regulatory costs
among such ATP Holders. The Exchange further believes that the proposed
change to remove the semi-annual requirement would not impose any
burden on competition because the change would impact all ATP Holders
subject to the ORF, and the Exchange will continue to provide advance
notice of changes to the ORF to all ATP Holders via Trader Update. The
Exchange also believes that the proposed change to eliminate language
relating to the August 2019 ORF would not impact intramarket
competition because it would simply add clarity to the Fee Schedule by
removing text describing a fee that is no longer effective.
Intermarket Competition. The proposed fee change is not designed to
address any competitive issues. Rather, the proposed change is designed
to help the Exchange adequately fund its regulatory activities while
seeking to ensure that total collections from regulatory fees do not
exceed total regulatory costs and to promote clarity in the Fee
Schedule by deleting obsolete text.
C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others
No written comments were solicited or received with respect to the
proposed rule change.
III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for
Commission Action
The foregoing rule change is effective upon filing pursuant to
Section 19(b)(3)(A) \16\ of the Act and subparagraph (f)(2) of Rule
19b-4 \17\ thereunder, because it establishes a due, fee, or other
charge imposed by the Exchange.
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\16\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
\17\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(2).
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At any time within 60 days of the filing of such proposed rule
change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule
change if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or
appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or
otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. If the Commission
takes such action, the Commission shall institute proceedings under
Section 19(b)(2)(B) \18\ of the Act to determine whether the proposed
rule change should be approved or disapproved.
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\18\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2)(B).
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IV. Solicitation of Comments
Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of
the following methods:
Electronic Comments
Use the Commission's internet comment form (https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
Send an email to [email protected]. Please include
File No. SR-NYSEAMER-2022-45 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 No. SR-NYSEAMER-2022-45. 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
[[Page 63569]]
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 No. SR-NYSEAMER-2022-45, and should be submitted
on or before November 9, 2022.
For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\19\
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\19\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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J. Matthew DeLesDernier,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022-22659 Filed 10-18-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P
