20426 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 70 / Tuesday, April 12, 2011 / Notices 

2Securities Exchange Act Release No. 63368 

(Nov. 23, 2010), 75 FR 74117. 3 15 U.S.C. 78q–1(b)(3)(F). 

4 15 U.S.C. 78q–1. 

5 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2). 

6 In approving the proposed rule change, the 

Commission considered the proposal’s impact on 

efficiency, competition and capital formation. 15 

U.S.C. 78c(f). 

7 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 

1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1). 

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

3 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(ii). 

4 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(2). 

Register on November 30, 2010.2 No 

comment letters were received. This 

order approves the proposed rule 

change. 

II. Description of the Proposal 

The proposed rule change will enable 

NSCC to offer a new automated service 

for the transfer, replacement, or 

exchange (collectively referred to as a 

‘‘Replacement’’) of an existing insurance 

contract that is eligible for NSCC’s IPS. 

Specifically, NSCC will add new 

Section 11 to Rule 57 (Insurance and 

Retirement Processing Services) that 

will centralize and automate 

Replacement processing and will 

decrease the administrative burden on 

and risk to NSCC Members, Insurance 

Carrier/Retirement Service Members, 

Mutual Fund/Insurance Services 

Members, and Data Services Only 

Members. Prior to this rule change, the 

Replacement process was not conducted 

through a centralized or automated 

process and requires extensive manual 

processing of paper forms and other 

documents. The insurance industry 

utilized Transfer of Assets forms, 1035 

Exchange Forms, or other similar 

paperwork (collectively referred to as 

‘‘TOA’’) to document the request and the 

authorization for a Replacement. 

Under the new service, an Insurance 

Carrier/Retirement Services Member 

will be able to initiate a Replacement 

(‘‘Receiving Carrier’’) by submitting an 

instruction to NSCC to process a 

Replacement (‘‘Request for 

Replacement’’). NSCC will then transmit 

the Request for Replacement to the 

designated Insurance Carrier/Retirement 

Services Member (‘‘Delivering Carrier’’). 

The Delivery Member will have to 

confirm, reject, or request modification 

to the Request for Replacement in the 

format and by such time as established 

by NSCC. NSCC will delete from the IPS 

Requests for Replacement that are not 

confirmed or rejected. The IPS will also 

incorporate and will automate the 

settlement of confirmed Replacements 

into NSCC’s existing IPS settlement 

process. 

Also under the new Section 11, the 

Delivering Carrier will waive the 

obligation of the Receiving Carrier to 

submit a signed physical copy of the 

TOA unless specifically required by 

state or local law. The transfer of any 

physical documents related to 

Replacements that are required under 

state law would continue to be 

transferred outside of NSCC. It will be 

the sole obligation of the Insurance 

Carrier/Retirement Services Members 

involved in the Replacement to confirm 

that all legal requirements, including 

any requirement to obtain a signed 

physical copy of the TOA imposed by 

applicable State or local law, are 

satisfied prior to confirming a Request 

for Replacement. The Replacement 

service will permit the transfer of 

documentation as an attachment to the 

Request for Replacement but this will 

not be a requirement to utilize the 

Replacement service. The waiver of the 

obligation to submit signed physical 

documents is intended to improve the 

orderly processing of Replacements. 

Finally, NSCC will update the Fee 

Schedule to incorporate the fees 

associated with processing a Request for 

Replacement. The fee associated with a 

Request for Replacement, including 

submitting incremental replacement 

status messages and money settlement, 

will be $5.00 per Request for 

Replacement. The cost will be divided 

between the carriers associated with the 

transaction with the Receiving Carrier 

responsible for $3.75 per transaction, 

which is three-fourths of the cost of the 

Replacement service, and the Delivering 

Carrier responsible for the remaining 

$1.25, which is one-fourth of the cost. 

The fee associated with obtaining the 

status of a pending Request for 

Replacement, including incremental 

statuses, will be $1.00 per pending 

status request. The cost will be divided 

evenly between the Receiving Carrier 

and the Distributor, each of which will 

be responsible for paying a fee of $0.50. 

Members will be advised of the 

specific implementation date through 

the issuance of an NSCC Important 

Notice. 

III. Discussion 

The Commission finds that the 

proposed rule change is consistent with 

the requirements of the Act and the 

rules thereunder applicable to NSCC. In 

particular, the Commission finds that 

the proposal is consistent with Section 

17A(b)(3)(F) of the Act,3 which requires, 

among other things, that the rules of a 

registered clearing agency are designed 

to promote the prompt and accurate 

clearance and settlement of securities 

transactions. NSCC’s new Replacement 

service is designed to process 

Replacements in a more timely and 

efficient manner by reducing manual 

errors, lowering costs, and providing a 

uniform platform for Replacements 

processing. In addition, the new service 

should increase the speed of processing 

Replacements through the use of 

automation, which should also decrease 

NSCC’s operational risk posed by 

processing paper documentation. 

Accordingly, NSCC’s proposal should 

promote the prompt and accurate 

clearance and settlement of securities 

transactions. 

IV. Conclusion 

On the basis of the foregoing, the 

Commission finds that the proposed 

rule change is consistent with the 

requirements of the Act and in 

particular Section 17A of the Act 4 and 

the rules and regulations thereunder. 

It is therefore ordered, pursuant to 

Section 19(b)(2) of the Act,5 that the 

proposed rule change (File No. SR– 

NSCC–2010–15) be and hereby is 

approved.6

For the Commission by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.7

Cathy H. Ahn, 

Deputy Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2011–8585 Filed 4–11–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–64198; File No. SR–BX– 

2011–020] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Notice 

of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness 

of Proposed Rule Change by NASDAQ 

OMX BX, Inc. To Amend the Fee 

Schedule of the Boston Options 

Exchange Facility 

April 6, 2011. 

Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the 

Securities Exchange Act of 1934 

(‘‘Act’’),1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2

notice is hereby given that on March 31, 

2011, NASDAQ OMX BX, Inc. (the 

‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the Securities 

and Exchange Commission 

(‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule 

change as described in Items I and II, 

below, which Items have been prepared 

by the self-regulatory organization. The 

Exchange filed the proposed rule change 

pursuant to Section 19(b)(3)(A)(ii) of the 

Act,3 and Rule 19b–4(f)(2) thereunder,4

which renders the proposal effective 

upon filing with the Commission. The 

Commission is publishing this notice to 


srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 70 / Tuesday, April 12, 2011 / Notices 20427 

5 15 U.S.C. 78f(b). 

6 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4). 

7 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(ii). 

8 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(2). 

solicit comments on the proposed rule 

change from interested persons. 

I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement of the Terms of Substance of 

the Proposed Rule Change 

The Exchange proposes to amend the 

Fee Schedule of the Boston Options 

Exchange Group, LLC (‘‘BOX’’). While 

changes to the BOX Fee Schedule 

pursuant to this proposal will be 

effective upon filing, the changes will 

become operative on April 1, 2011. The 

text of the proposed rule change is 

available from the principal office of the 

Exchange, at the Commission’s Public 

Reference Room, on the Exchange’s 

Internet Web site at http:// 

nasdaqomxbx.cchwallstreet.com/ 

NASDAQOMXBX/Filings/, and on the 

Commission’s Web site at http:// 

www.sec.gov. 

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 these statements may be examined at 

the places specified in Item IV below. 

The self-regulatory organization 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 

Fees and Credits in Section 7 

Currently, Section 7 of the BOX Fee 

Schedule specifies a $0.25 credit and fee 

for transactions in the BOX Price 

Improvement Period (‘‘PIP’’). These 

credits and fees apply equally to all 

account types, whether Public 

Customer, Broker Dealer or Market 

Maker, and across options classes, both 

those within the Penny Pilot program 

and non-Penny classes, and are in 

addition to any applicable trading fees, 

as described in Sections 1 through 3 of 

the BOX Fee Schedule. The Exchange 

proposes to increase the existing credits 

and fees within Section 7 for 

transactions in the PIP, from $0.25 to 

$0.30. This increase in credits and fees 

for PIP transactions is designed to 

provide all BOX market participants an 

additional incentive to submit their 

orders to the PIP and the opportunity to 

benefit from its potential price 

improvement. 

BOX believes that the change to PIP 

transaction fees and credits are 

competitive, fair and reasonable, and 

non-discriminatory in that they apply to 

all account types and options classes. 

2. Statutory Basis 

The Exchange believes that the 

proposal is consistent with the 

requirements of Section 6(b) of the Act,5

in general, and Section 6(b)(4) of the 

Act,6 in particular, in that it provides for 

the equitable allocation of reasonable 

dues, fees, and other charges among its 

members and other persons using its 

facilities. The Exchange believes the 

proposal is an equitable allocation of 

reasonable fees and other charges among 

BOX Options Participants. The 

Exchange also believes that there is an 

equitable allocation of reasonable 

credits among BOX Options 

Participants. 

The Exchange believes that it is 

equitable to provide a credit to any 

Participant that removes liquidity 

through the PIP on behalf of its 

customer. The Exchange believes this 

credit will attract additional order flow 

to BOX, and to the PIP in particular, to 

the benefit of all market participants. 

The Exchange believes that it is an 

equitable allocation of the fees and 

credits for PIP transactions because such 

fees and credits apply uniformly to all 

categories of participants in PIP 

transactions, across all account types 

and options classes. All market 

participants that trade within the PIP, 

and all PIP transactions would be 

subject to the fees and credits in Section 

7 of the BOX Fee Schedule. 

Further, the Exchange believes the 

proposed fees and credits related to PIP 

transactions to be reasonable. BOX 

operates within a highly competitive 

market in which market participants can 

readily direct order flow to any of eight 

other competing venues if they deem fee 

levels at a particular venue to be 

excessive. The changes to BOX credits 

and fees proposed by this filing are 

intended to attract order flow to BOX by 

offering incentives to all market 

participants to submit their orders to the 

PIP for potential price improvement. 

BOX notes that this proposed rule 

change will increase both the fees and 

credit for PIP transactions. The result is 

that BOX will collect a $.30 fee from 

Participants that add liquidity in the PIP 

and credit another Participant $.30 for 

removing liquidity. Stated otherwise, 

the fees collected will not necessarily 

result in additional revenue to BOX, but 

will simply allow BOX to provide the 

credit incentive to Participants to attract 

additional order flow to the PIP. BOX 

believes it is appropriate to provide 

incentives to market participants to use 

PIP, resulting in potential benefit to 

customers through potential price 

improvement, and to all market 

participants from greater liquidity. 

In particular, the proposed change 

will allow the fees charged on BOX to 

remain competitive with other 

exchanges as well as apply such fees in 

a manner which is equitable among all 

BOX Participants. The Exchange 

believes that the PIP transaction fees 

and credits it assesses are fair and 

reasonable and must be competitive 

with fees and credits in place on other 

exchanges. Further, the Exchange 

believes that this competitive 

marketplace impacts the fees and credits 

present on BOX today and influences 

the proposal set forth above. 

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 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 has 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)(ii) of the Act 7 and Rule 19b– 

4(f)(2) thereunder,8 because it 

establishes or changes a due, fee, or 

other charge applicable only to a 

member. 

At any time within 60 days of the 

filing of the proposed rule change, the 

Commission summarily may 

temporarily suspend such rule change if 

it appears to the Commission that such 

action is necessary or appropriate in the 

public interest, for the protection of 

investors, or otherwise in furtherance of 

the purposes of the Act. If the 

Commission takes such action, the 

Commission shall institute proceedings 

to determine whether the proposed rule 

should be approved or disapproved. 


srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
20428 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 70 / Tuesday, April 12, 2011 / Notices 

9 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 

1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1). 

2 15 U.S.C. 78a. 

3 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

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 (http://www.sec.gov/ 

rules/sro.shtml); or 

• Send an e-mail to rulecomments@sec.gov. Please include File 

Number SR–BX–2011–020 on the 

subject line. 

Paper Comments 

• Send paper comments in triplicate 

to Elizabeth M. Murphy, Secretary, 

Securities and Exchange Commission, 

100 F Street, NE., Washington, DC 

20549–1090. 

All submissions should refer to File 

Number SR–BX–2011–020. This file 

number should be included on the 

subject line if e-mail is used. To help the 

Commission process and review your 

comments more efficiently, please use 

only one method. The Commission will 

post all comments on the Commission’s 

Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/ 

rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the 

submission, all subsequent 

amendments, all written statements 

with respect to the proposed rule 

change that are filed with the 

Commission, and all written 

communications relating to the 

proposed rule change between the 

Commission and any person, other than 

those that may be withheld from the 

public in accordance with the 

provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be 

available for Web site viewing and 

printing in the Commission’s Public 

Reference Room, 100 F Street, NW., 

Washington, DC 20549, on official 

business days between the hours of 10 

a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of such filing 

also will be available for inspection and 

copying at the principal office of the 

Exchange. All comments received will 

be posted without change; the 

Commission does not edit personal 

identifying information from 

submissions. You should submit only 

information that you wish to make 

available publicly. All submissions 

should refer to File Number SR–BX– 

2011–020 and should be submitted on 

or before May 3, 2011. 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.9

Cathy H. Ahn, 

Deputy Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2011–8582 Filed 4–11–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–64195; File No. SR– 

NYSEAmex–2011–21] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE 

Amex LLC; Notice of Filing and 

Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed 

Rule Change Amending the Exchange 

Price List 

April 5, 2011. 

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 March 

29, 2011, NYSE Amex LLC (‘‘NYSE 

Amex’’ 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. 

I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement of the Terms of Substance of 

the Proposed Rule Change 

The Exchange proposes to amend its 

2011 Price List (‘‘Price List’’) for equities 

to amend the fees charged for taking 

liquidity in Nasdaq securities priced at 

$1.00 or more and traded pursuant to 

unlisted trading privileges (‘‘UTP’’). The 

Exchange proposes to create a new tier 

with a reduced ‘‘take’’ fee of $0.0019 per 

share (compared with $0.0027 

currently) for market participants and 

Designated Market Makers (‘‘DMMs’’) 

that meet certain average daily executed 

volume requirements in either shares or 

a combination of shares and contracts 

traded on the NYSE Amex options 

market. Market participants and DMMs 

who meet these executed volume 

requirements will also qualify for a 

reduced routing fee of $0.0019 per share 

(compared with $0.0029 currently) for 

executions on other markets as a result 

of routing. The Exchange also proposes 

to eliminate all fees shown in the Price 

List for Supplemental Liquidity 

Providers (‘‘SLPs’’), regardless of price, 

for taking liquidity and for routing 

because those categories are not 

applicable to SLPs. The amended 

pricing will become operative on April 

1, 2011. The text of the proposed rule 

change is available at the Exchange, on 

the Exchange’s Web site at http:// 

www.nyse.com, on the Commission’s 

Web site at http://www.sec.gov, 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 its 

Price List for equities to modify the fees 

charged to market participants and 

DMMs for taking liquidity in Nasdaq 

securities traded pursuant to UTP 

whose share price is $1.00 or more. The 

corresponding fees for such securities 

whose share price is below $1.00 will 

remain unchanged from the current 

formulation regardless of whether the 

volume requirements described below 

are met. 

Currently, market participants and 

DMMs are charged a fee of $0.0027 per 

share for orders in Nasdaq securities 

traded pursuant to unlisted trading 

privileges and priced at $1.00 or more 

that take liquidity. Under the proposal, 

the fee will be reduced to $0.0019 per 

share for orders that take liquidity if 

either of the following volume 

requirements is met: 

• Execution of an average daily volume 

(‘‘ADV’’) in the current month of greater than 

three million shares when taking liquidity 

and routing to other markets for execution 

(combined); or 

• Execution of an ADV in the current 

month of greater than 1 million shares when 

taking liquidity and routing to other markets 

for execution (combined) and execution of an 

ADV of 130,000 total contracts or more on 

the NYSE Amex options market. 


srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES