Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 20 / Tuesday, January 30, 2024 / Notices 5971 

6 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(31). 

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

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

3The Exchange initially filed the proposed 

pricing change on January 2, 2024 (SR–ISE–2024– 

01). On January 12, 2024, the Exchange withdrew 

that filing and submitted this filing. 

4The PIM is a process by which an Electronic 

Access Member can provide price improvement 

opportunities for a transaction wherein the 

Electronic Access Member seeks to facilitate an 

order it represents as agent, and/or a transaction 

wherein the Electronic Access Member solicited 

interest to execute against an order it represents as 

agent. See Options 3, Section 13. 

5 ‘‘Non-Priority Customers’’ include Market 

Makers, Non-Nasdaq ISE Market Makers (FarMMs), 

Firm Proprietary/Broker-Dealers, and Professional 

Customers. See Options 7, Section 1(c). 

6The term ‘‘Market Makers’’ refers to 

‘‘Competitive Market Makers’’ and ‘‘Primary Market 

Makers’’ collectively. See Options 1, Section 

1(a)(21). 

7A ‘‘Firm Proprietary’’ order is an order 

submitted by a member for its own proprietary 

account. See Options 7, Section 1(c). 

8A ‘‘Broker-Dealer’’ order is an order submitted 

by a member for a broker-dealer account that is not 

its own proprietary account. See Options 7, Section 

1(c). 

9A ‘‘Professional Customer’’ is a person or entity 

that is not a broker/dealer and is not a Priority 

Customer. See Options 7, Section 1(c). 

10 ‘‘Select Symbols’’ are options overlying all 

symbols listed on the Nasdaq ISE that are in the 

Penny Interval Program. See Options 7, Section 

1(c). 

11 ‘‘Non-Select Symbols’’ are options overlying all 

symbols excluding Select Symbols. See Options 7, 

Section 1(c). 

12A ‘‘Priority Customer’’ is a person or entity that 

is not a broker/dealer in securities, and does not 

place more than 390 orders in listed options per day 

on average during a calendar month for its own 

beneficial account(s), as defined in Nasdaq ISE 

Options 1, Section 1(a)(37). Unless otherwise noted, 

when used in this Pricing Schedule the term 

‘‘Priority Customer’’ includes ‘‘Retail’’ as defined 

below. See Options 7, Section 1(c). 

13See note 11 of Options 7, Section 4. 

disapprove, the proposed rule change 

(File No. SR–NASDAQ–2023–045). 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.6

Sherry R. Haywood, 

Assistant Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2024–01749 Filed 1–29–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

Sunshine Act Meetings 

FEDERAL REGISTER CITATION OF PREVIOUS

ANNOUNCEMENT: Publishing in the FR of 

1/29/24. 

PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED TIME AND DATE OF

THE MEETING: Wednesday, January 31, 

2024, at 10:00 a.m. 

CHANGES IN THE MEETING: The Open 

Meeting scheduled for Wednesday, 

January 31, 2024, at 10:00 a.m., has been 

changed to Wednesday, January 31, 

2024, at 9:00 a.m. 

CONTACT PERSON FOR MORE INFORMATION: 

For further information; please contact 

Vanessa A. Countryman from the Office 

of the Secretary at (202) 551–5400. 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552b. 

Dated: January 25, 2024. 

J. Matthew DeLesDernier, 

Deputy Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2024–01865 Filed 1–26–24; 11:15 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–99424; File No. SR–ISE– 

2024–04] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Nasdaq 

ISE, LLC; Notice of Filing and 

Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed 

Rule Change To Amend Options 7, 

Section 4 

January 24, 2024. 

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 January 

12, 2024, Nasdaq ISE, LLC (‘‘ISE’’ or 

‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the Securities 

and Exchange Commission (‘‘SEC’’ or 

‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule 

change as described in Items I and II 

below, which Items have been prepared 

by the Exchange. The Commission is 

publishing this notice to solicit 

comments on the proposed rule change 

from interested persons. 

I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement of the Terms of Substance of 

the Proposed Rule Change 

The Exchange proposes to amend the 

Exchange’s Pricing Schedule at Options 

7.3

The text of the proposed rule change 

is available on the Exchange’s website at 

https://listingcenter.nasdaq.com/ 

rulebook/ise/rules, 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 

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 purpose of the proposed rule 

change is to amend the Exchange’s 

Pricing Schedule at Options 7, Section 

4, Complex Order Fees and Rebates, to 

amend note 9 related to the Complex 

Order Fee for PIM Orders.4

Today, the Exchange assesses a $0.10 

per contract Complex Order Fee for PIM 

Orders to all Non-Priority Customer 5

market participants (Market Makers,6

Firm Proprietary 7/Broker Dealers,8 and 

Professional Customers,9) in Select 10

and Non-Select 11 Symbols. Today, 

Priority Customers 12 are not assessed 

Complex Order Fee for PIM Orders in 

Select and Non-Select Symbols. Today, 

note 9 to Options 7, Section 4, reduces 

the $0.10 per contract fee to $0.05 per 

contract for all Non-Priority Customer 

orders provided Members execute an 

average daily volume (‘‘ADV’’) of 7,500 

or more contracts in the PIM in a given 

month. Further, the $0.10 per contract 

Complex Order Fee for PIM Orders is 

reduced to $0.00 per contract for all 

Member orders provided the Members 

execute an ADV of 12,500 or more 

contracts in the Complex PIM. The 

Exchange applies the discounted fees 

retroactively to all eligible Complex PIM 

volume in that month once the 

threshold has been reached. 

Additionally, Complex Order Fees for 

PIM Orders (including Complex PIM 

Orders) apply to the originating and 

contra order.13

Proposal 

At this time, the Exchange proposes to 

amend note 9 of Options 7, Section 4 to 

revise the second sentence to instead 

provide that ‘‘Other than for Priority 

Customer orders, Members that execute 

an ADV of 12,500 or more contracts in 

a given month in the Complex PIM will 

be charged a $0.02 per contract fee.’’ 

The Exchange will continue to reduce 

the Complex Order Fees for PIM Orders 

from $0.10 to $0.05 per contract for all 

Non-Priority Customers that execute an 

ADV of 7,500 or more contracts in the 

Complex PIM in a given month. At this 

time, the Exchange would decrease the 

reduction for Complex Order Fees for 

Complex PIM Orders for Non-Priority 


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5972 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 20 / Tuesday, January 30, 2024 / Notices 

14See Options 7, Section 3, Regular Order Fees 

and Rebates. 

15See Options 7, Section 4, Complex Order Fees 

and Rebates. 

16 15 U.S.C. 78f(b). 

17 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4) and (5). 

18NetCoalition 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)). 

19Securities Exchange Act Release No. 51808 

(June 9, 2005), 70 FR 37496, 37499 (June 29, 2005) 

(‘‘Regulation NMS Adopting Release’’). 

20See BOX’s Fee Schedule. 

21See MIAX’s Fee Schedule. 

Customers that execute an ADV of 

12,500 or more contracts in a given 

month in the Complex PIM. Today, 

Priority Customers pay no Complex 

Order Fees for PIM Orders. Today, 

Members that execute an ADV of 12,500 

or more contracts in a given month in 

the Complex PIM pay no Complex 

Order Fees for PIM Orders, except for 

Priority Customers who pay no Complex 

Order Fees for any PIM Orders. With 

this change, Non-Priority Customers 

would pay a $0.02 per contract fee for 

Complex Order Fees for Complex PIM 

Orders, provided they execute an ADV 

of 12,500 or more contracts in a given 

month in the Complex PIM. 

The Exchange proposes to amend note 

9 of Options 7, Section 4 to add the 

words ‘‘Complex Fee for PIM Orders’’ in 

place of ‘‘fee’’ to make clear the 

applicable fee. Today, the Exchange 

assesses Regular Order 14 and Complex 

Order 15 PIM Fees. The addition of the 

words ‘‘Complex Fee for PIM Orders’’ 

clarifies that the fee in note 9 is a 

Complex Order fee. The Exchange 

proposes to add the words ‘‘Other than 

for Priority Customer orders,’’ to the 

beginning of the second sentence, 

similar to the first sentence, because 

Priority Customers pay no Complex 

Order Fee for PIM Orders today and 

would not have a fee to reduce. 

Additionally, the Exchange proposes to 

add the words ‘‘in a given month’’ to the 

second sentence, similar to the first 

sentence, to make clear the time period 

in which Members must execute the 

required ADV. Finally, the Exchange 

proposes to amend note 9 of Options 7, 

Section 4 to add the word ‘‘Complex’’ 

before ‘‘PIM’’ to make clear the note 

applies to Complex PIM Orders. 

Despite the decrease in the discount, 

the Exchange will continue to offer NonPriority Customers an opportunity to 

pay a lower Complex Order Fees for 

PIM Orders. 

2. Statutory Basis 

The Exchange believes that its 

proposal is consistent with Section 6(b) 

of the Act,16 in general, and furthers the 

objectives of Sections 6(b)(4) and 6(b)(5) 

of the Act,17 in particular, in that it 

provides for the equitable allocation of 

reasonable dues, fees, and other charges 

among members and issuers and other 

persons using any facility, and is not 

designed to permit unfair 

discrimination between customers, 

issuers, brokers, or dealers. 

The Exchange’s proposed changes to 

its Pricing Schedule are reasonable in 

several respects. As a threshold matter, 

the Exchange is subject to significant 

competitive forces in the market for 

options securities transaction services 

that constrain its pricing determinations 

in that market. The fact that this market 

is competitive has 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’. 

. . .’’ 18

The Commission and the courts have 

repeatedly expressed their preference 

for competition over regulatory 

intervention in determining prices, 

products, and services in the securities 

markets. In Regulation NMS, while 

adopting a series of steps to improve the 

current market model, 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.’’ 19

Numerous indicia demonstrate the 

competitive nature of this market. For 

example, clear substitutes to the 

Exchange exist in the market for options 

security transaction services. The 

Exchange is only one of seventeen 

options exchanges to which market 

participants may direct their order flow. 

Within this environment, market 

participants can freely and often do shift 

their order flow among the Exchange 

and competing venues in response to 

changes in their respective pricing 

schedules. As such, the proposal 

represents a reasonable attempt by the 

Exchange to increase its liquidity and 

market share relative to its competitors. 

The Exchange’s proposal to amend 

note 9 of Options 7, Section 4 to 

decrease the reduction in the Complex 

Order Fee for PIM Orders for NonPriority Customers that execute an ADV 

of 12,500 or more contracts in a given 

month in the Complex PIM from paying 

no fee to paying $0.02 per contract is 

reasonable because, despite the decrease 

in the discount, the Exchange will 

continue to offer Non-Priority 

Customers an opportunity to pay a 

lower Complex Order Fees for PIM 

Orders from $0.10 to $0.02 per contract. 

Additionally, the Exchange will 

continue to reduce the Complex Order 

Fees for Complex PIM Orders from 

$0.10 to $0.05 per contract for all NonPriority Customers that execute an ADV 

of 7,500 or more contracts in the 

Complex PIM in a given month. Unlike 

other market participants, Priority 

Customers pay no Complex Order Fee 

for PIM Orders. The proposed $0.02 per 

contract Complex Order Fee for PIM 

Orders for Non-Priority Customers that 

execute an ADV of 12,500 or more 

contracts in a given month in the 

Complex PIM is competitive and 

remains lower than comparable fees at 

other options exchanges. BOX Exchange 

LLC (‘‘BOX’’) assesses a $0.05 per 

contract fee to its Professional Customer 

or Broker-Dealer and Market Maker for 

Complex Order Price Improvement 

Period (‘‘COPIP’’) Orders.20

Additionally, Miami International 

Securities Exchange, Inc. (‘‘MIAX’’) 

assesses a $0.30 per contract fee to 

Public Customers that are not a Priority 

Customer, MIAX Market Maker, NonMIAX Market Maker, Non-Member 

Broker-Dealer and Firm in its Complex 

Price Improvement Mechanism 

(‘‘cPRIME’’).21

The Exchange’s proposal to amend 

note 9 of Options 7, Section 4 to 

decrease the reduction in the Complex 

Order Fee for PIM Orders for NonPriority Customers that execute an ADV 

of 12,500 or more contracts in a given 

month in the Complex PIM from paying 

no fee to paying $0.02 per contract is 

equitable and not unfairly 

discriminatory because all Non-Priority 

Customers are eligible for the discount 

and would uniformly be assessed the 

lower fee provided they executed the 

requisite volume in a given month in 

the Complex PIM. Priority Customers 

are not eligible for the discount because 

they pay no Complex Order Fee for PIM 

Orders. Priority Customer liquidity 

benefits all market participants by 

providing more trading opportunities 

which attracts market makers. An 


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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 20 / Tuesday, January 30, 2024 / Notices 5973 

22 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(ii). 

23 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(2). 

increase in the activity of these market 

participants (particularly in response to 

pricing) in turn facilitates tighter 

spreads which may cause an additional 

corresponding increase in order flow 

from other market participants. 

Attracting more liquidity from Priority 

Customers will benefit all market 

participants that trade on the ISE. 

The Exchange’s proposal to amend 

note 9 of Options 7, Section 4 to add the 

words ‘‘Complex Fee for PIM Orders’’ in 

place of ‘‘fee’’ to make clear the 

applicable fee is reasonable because the 

addition of these words makes clear that 

the fees in note 9 are Complex Order 

fees as compared to Regular Order fees. 

The Exchange’s proposal to add the 

words ‘‘Other than for Priority Customer 

orders,’’ to the beginning of the second 

sentence, similar to the first sentence, is 

reasonable because Priority Customers 

pay no Complex Order Fee for PIM 

Orders today and would not have a fee 

to reduce. The addition of the language 

makes clear that the fees apply to NonPriority Customers. The Exchange’s 

proposal to add the words ‘‘in a given 

month’’ to the second sentence, similar 

to the first sentence, is reasonable 

because it makes clear the time period 

in which Members must execute the 

required ADV. Finally, the Exchange’s 

proposal to amend note 9 of Options 7, 

Section 4 to add the word ‘‘Complex’’ 

before ‘‘PIM’’ is reasonable because it 

makes clear the note applies to Complex 

PIM Orders and not Regular PIM Orders. 

The technical amendments to the rule 

text of note 9 are intended to clarify the 

current rule text and do not 

substantively amend the rule text. The 

Exchange also believes the 

aforementioned technical amendments 

to the rule text of note 9 are equitable 

and not unfairly discriminatory as the 

rule text does not impact any Member. 

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. 

In terms of inter-market competition, 

the Exchange notes that it operates in a 

highly competitive market in which 

market participants can readily favor 

competing venues if they deem fee 

levels at a particular venue to be 

excessive, or rebate opportunities 

available at other venues to be more 

favorable. In such an environment, the 

Exchange must continually adjust its 

fees to remain competitive with other 

exchanges. Because competitors are free 

to modify their own fees in response, 

and because market participants may 

readily adjust their order routing 

practices, the Exchange believes that the 

degree to which fee changes in this 

market may impose any burden on 

competition is extremely limited. In 

sum, if the changes proposed herein are 

unattractive to market participants, it is 

likely that the Exchange will lose 

market share as a result. Accordingly, 

the Exchange does not believe that the 

proposed changes will impair the ability 

of members or competing order 

execution venues to maintain their 

competitive standing in the financial 

markets. 

In terms of intra-market competition, 

the Exchange does not believe that this 

proposal will place any category of 

market participant at a competitive 

disadvantage. The Exchange’s proposal 

to amend note 9 of Options 7, Section 

4 to decrease the reduction in the 

Complex Order Fee for PIM Orders for 

Non-Priority Customers that execute an 

ADV of 12,500 or more contracts in a 

given month in the Complex PIM from 

paying no fee to paying $0.02 per 

contract does not impose an undue 

burden on competition because all NonPriority Customers are eligible for the 

discount and would uniformly be 

assessed the lower fee provided they 

executed the requisite volume in a given 

month in the Complex PIM. Unlike 

other market participants, Priority 

Customers are not eligible for the 

discount because they pay no Complex 

Order Fee for PIM Orders. Priority 

Customer liquidity benefits all market 

participants by providing more trading 

opportunities which attracts market 

makers. An increase in the activity of 

these market participants (particularly 

in response to pricing) in turn facilitates 

tighter spreads which may cause an 

additional corresponding increase in 

order flow from other market 

participants. Attracting more liquidity 

from Priority Customers will benefit all 

market participants that trade on the 

ISE. 

The Exchange’s proposal to amend 

note 9 of Options 7, Section 4 to add the 

words ‘‘Complex Fee for PIM Orders’’ in 

place of ‘‘fee’’ to make clear the 

applicable fee does not impose an 

undue burden on competition because 

the addition of these words makes clear 

that the fees in note 9 are Complex 

Order fees as compared to Regular Order 

fees. The Exchange’s proposal to add the 

words ‘‘Other than for Priority Customer 

orders,’’ to the beginning of the second 

sentence, similar to the first sentence, 

does not impose an undue burden on 

competition because Priority Customers 

pay no Complex Order Fee for PIM 

Orders today and would not have a fee 

to reduce. Further, the addition of the 

language makes clear that the fees apply 

to Non-Priority Customers. The 

Exchange’s proposal to add the words 

‘‘in a given month’’ to the second 

sentence, similar to the first sentence, 

does not impose an undue burden on 

competition because it makes clear the 

time period in which Members must 

execute the required ADV. Finally, the 

Exchange’s proposal to amend note 9 of 

Options 7, Section 4 to add the word 

‘‘Complex’’ before ‘‘PIM’’ does not 

impose an undue burden on 

competition because it makes clear the 

note applies to Complex PIM Orders 

and not Regular PIM Orders. These 

technical amendments to the rule text of 

note 9 are intended to clarify the current 

rule text. The technical amendments do 

not substantively amend the rule text 

and do not impact any Member. 

C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement on Comments on the 

Proposed Rule Change Received From 

Members, Participants, or Others 

No written comments were either 

solicited or received. 

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 22 and Rule 

19b–4(f)(2) 23 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: (i) 

necessary or appropriate in the public 

interest; (ii) for the protection of 

investors; or (iii) otherwise in 

furtherance of the purposes of the Act. 

If the Commission takes such action, the 

Commission shall institute proceedings 

to determine whether the proposed rule 

should be approved or disapproved. 

IV. Solicitation of Comments 

Interested persons are invited to 

submit written data, views and 

arguments concerning the foregoing, 

including whether the proposed rule 

change is consistent with the Act. 

Comments may be submitted by any of 

the following methods: 

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– 

ISE–2024–04 on the subject line. 


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5974 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 20 / Tuesday, January 30, 2024 / Notices 

24 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 

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

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

3The Existing Accord was previously approved 

by the Commission. See Securities Exchange Act 

Release Nos. 81266, 81260 (July 31, 2017) (File Nos. 

SR–NSCC–2017–007; SR–OCC–2017–013), 82 FR 

36484 (Aug. 4, 2017). 

4OCC By-Laws are available at https://

www.theocc.com/getmedia/3309eceb-56cf-48fcb3b3-498669a24572/occ_bylaws.pdf and OCC Rules 

are available at https://www.theocc.com/getmedia/ 

9d3854cd-b782-450f-bcf7-33169b0576ce/occ_

rules.pdf. 

5OCC initially filed a proposed rule change 

concerning the proposed Phase 1 changes on 

August 10, 2023. See Securities Exchange Act 

Release No. 98215 (Aug. 24, 2023), 88 FR 59976 

(Aug. 30, 2023) (File No. SR–OCC–2023–007) 

(‘‘Initial Filing’’). OCC subsequently submitted a 

partial amendment to clarify the proposed 

implementation plan for the Initial Filing. See 

Securities Exchange Act Release No. 98932 (Nov. 

14, 2023), 88 FR 80781 (Nov. 20, 2023) (File No. 

SR–OCC–2023–007) (‘‘Amendment No. 1’’). NSCC 

also has filed a proposed rule change with the 

Commission in connection with this proposal. See 

Securities Exchange Act Release No. 98213 (Aug. 

24, 2023), 88 FR 59968 (Aug. 30, 2023) (File No. 

SR–NSCC–2023–007); Securities Exchange Act 

Release No. 98930 (Nov. 14, 2023), 88 FR 80790 

(Nov. 20, 2023) (Partial Amendment No. 1 to File 

No. SR–NSCC–2023–007). 

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–ISE–2024–04. 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 

a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of the filing also 

will be available for inspection and 

copying at the principal office of the 

Exchange. Do not include personal 

identifiable information in submissions; 

you should submit only information 

that you wish to make available 

publicly. We may redact in part or 

withhold entirely from publication 

submitted material that is obscene or 

subject to copyright protection. All 

submissions should refer to file number 

SR–ISE–2024–04 and should be 

submitted on or before February 20, 

2024. 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.24

Sherry R. Haywood, 

Assistant Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2024–01750 Filed 1–29–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–99426; File No. SR–OCC– 

2023–007] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; The 

Options Clearing Corporation; Notice 

of Filing of Amendment No. 2 to 

Proposed Rule Change by The Options 

Clearing Corporation Concerning 

Modifications to the Amended and 

Restated Stock Options and Futures 

Settlement Agreement Between the 

Options Clearing Corporation and the 

National Securities Clearing 

Corporation 

January 24, 2024. 

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

Securities Exchange Act of 1934 

(‘‘Exchange Act’’ or ‘‘Act’’),1 and Rule 

19b–4 thereunder,2 notice is hereby 

given that on January 23, 2024, The 

Options Clearing Corporation (‘‘OCC’’) 

filed with the Securities and Exchange 

Commission (‘‘SEC’’ or ‘‘Commission’’) 

this amendment (‘‘Amendment No. 2’’) 

to the proposed rule change as 

described in Items I, II, and III below, 

which Items have been prepared 

primarily by OCC. The Commission is 

publishing this notice to solicit 

comments on the proposed rule change 

from interested persons. 

I. Clearing Agency’s Statement of the 

Terms of Substance of the Proposed 

Rule Change 

This Amendment No. 2 to the 

proposed rule change SR–OCC–2023– 

007 would (1) modify the Amended and 

Restated Stock Options and Futures 

Settlement Agreement dated August 5, 

2017 between OCC and National 

Securities Clearing Corporation 

(‘‘NSCC,’’ and together with OCC, the 

‘‘Clearing Agencies’’) (‘‘Existing 

Accord’’) 3 to permit OCC to elect to 

make a cash payment to NSCC following 

the default of a common clearing 

participant that would cause NSCC’s 

central counterparty trade guaranty to 

attach to certain obligations of that 

participant and to make certain related 

revisions to OCC By-Laws, OCC Rules,4

OCC’s Comprehensive Stress Testing & 

Clearing Fund Methodology, and 

Liquidity Risk Management Description 

and OCC’s Liquidity Risk Management 

Framework (‘‘Phase 1’’) and (2) to 

improve information sharing between 

the Clearing Agencies to facilitate the 

upcoming transition to a T+1 standard 

securities settlement cycle and allow 

OCC, after the compliance date under 

amended Exchange Act Rule 15c6–1(a), 

to provide certain assurances to NSCC 

prior to the default of a common 

clearing participant that would enable 

NSCC to begin processing E&A/Delivery 

Transactions (defined below) before the 

central counterparty trade guaranty 

attaches to certain obligations of that 

participant (‘‘Phase 2’’).5 This 

Amendment No. 2 would amend and 

replace the Initial Filing and 

Amendment No. 1 in their entirety. 

The proposed changes are included in 

Exhibits 5A and 5B and confidential 

Exhibits 5C, 5D, and 5E of Amendment 

No. 2 to File No. SR–OCC–2023–007. 

Material proposed to be added is 

underlined and material proposed to be 

deleted is marked in strikethrough text. 

II. Clearing Agency’s Statement of the 

Purpose of, and Statutory Basis for, the 

Proposed Rule Change 

In its filing with the Commission, 

OCC 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. OCC has prepared 

summaries, set forth in sections (A), (B), 

and (C) below, of the most significant 

aspects of these statements. 

(A) Clearing Agency’s Statement of the 

Purpose of, and Statutory Basis for, the 

Proposed Rule Change 

(1) Purpose 

Executive Summary 

NSCC is a clearing agency that 

provides clearing, settlement, risk 

management, and central counterparty 

services for trades involving equity 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES