Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 13 / Friday, January 19, 2018 / Notices 2859 

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

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

3Rule 7018(a) defines Consolidated Volume to 

mean ‘‘the total consolidated volume reported to all 

consolidated transaction reporting plans by all 

exchanges and trade reporting facilities during a 

month in equity securities, excluding executed 

orders with a size of less than one round lot. For 

purposes of calculating Consolidated Volume and 

the extent of a member’s trading activity the date 

of the annual reconstitution of the Russell 

Investments Indexes shall be excluded from both 

total Consolidated Volume and the member’s 

trading activity.’’ 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–82493; File No. SR– 

NASDAQ–2018–001] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; The 

Nasdaq Stock Market LLC; Notice of 

Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of 

Proposed Rule Change To Amend 

Transaction Credits at Rule 7018(a) 

January 12, 2018. 

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 2, 

2018, The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC 

(‘‘Nasdaq’’ or ‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the 

Securities and Exchange Commission 

(‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule 

change as described in Items I, II, and 

III below, which Items have been 

prepared by the Exchange. The 

Commission is publishing this notice to 

solicit comments on the proposed rule 

change from interested persons. 

I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement of the Terms of Substance of 

the Proposed Rule Change 

The Exchange proposes to a proposal 

to amend transaction credits at Rule 

7018(a) to: (i) Decrease a $0.00295 per 

share executed credit provided under 

paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) of the Rule for 

displayed quotes/orders (other than 

Supplemental Orders or Designated 

Retail Orders) that provide liquidity to 

$0.0029; (ii) include Limit-on-Close 

Orders entered between 3:50 p.m. ET 

and immediately prior to 3:55 p.m. ET 

for purposes of calculating shares of 

liquidity to qualify for a credit tier 

provided under paragraphs (1), (2) and 

(3) of the Rule for displayed quotes/ 

orders (other than Supplemental Orders 

or Designated Retail Orders) that 

provide liquidity; (iii) increase the level 

of Consolidated Volume required to 

receive a $0.0029 per share executed 

credit provided under paragraphs (1), 

(2) and (3) of the Rule for displayed 

quotes/orders (other than Supplemental 

Orders or Designated Retail Orders) that 

provide liquidity; and (iv) delete a 

$0.0029 per share executed credit 

provided under paragraphs (1), (2) and 

(3) of the Rule for displayed quotes/ 

orders (other than Supplemental Orders 

or Designated Retail Orders) that 

provide liquidity. 

The text of the proposed rule change 

is available on the Exchange’s website at 

http://nasdaq.cchwallstreet.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 

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 Rule 7018(a) (the 

‘‘Rule’’): (i) Decrease a $0.00295 per 

share executed credit provided under 

paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) of the Rule for 

displayed quotes/orders (other than 

Supplemental Orders or Designated 

Retail Orders) that provide liquidity to 

$0.0029; (ii) include Limit-on-Close 

Orders entered between 3:50 p.m. ET 

and immediately prior to 3:55 p.m. ET 

for purposes of calculating shares of 

liquidity to qualify for a credit tier 

provided under paragraphs (1), (2) and 

(3) of the Rule for displayed quotes/ 

orders (other than Supplemental Orders 

or Designated Retail Orders) that 

provide liquidity; (iii) increase the level 

of Consolidated Volume 3 required to 

receive a $0.0029 per share executed 

credit provided under paragraphs (1), 

(2) and (3) of the Rule for displayed 

quotes/orders (other than Supplemental 

Orders or Designated Retail Orders) that 

provide liquidity; and (iv) delete a 

$0.0029 per share executed credit 

provided under paragraphs (1), (2) and 

(3) of the Rule for displayed quotes/ 

orders (other than Supplemental Orders 

or Designated Retail Orders) that 

provide liquidity. Rule 7018 sets forth 

the fees and credits for use of the order 

execution and routing services of 

Nasdaq for securities priced at $1 or 

more. Rule 7018(a)(1) sets forth the fees 

and credits for the execution and 

routing of orders in Nasdaq-listed 

securities (‘‘Tape C Securities’’); Rule 

7018(a)(2) sets forth the fees and credits 

for the execution and routing of 

securities listed on the New York Stock 

Exchange LLC (‘‘Tape A Securities’’); 

and Rule 7018(a)(3) sets forth the fees 

and credits for the execution and 

routing of securities listed on exchanges 

other than Nasdaq and NYSE (‘‘Tape B 

Securities’’) (collectively, the ‘‘Tapes’’). 

As noted above, the Exchange is 

proposing to make identical changes to 

each of the related tiers for each of the 

Tapes. 

First Change 

The purpose of the first change is to 

reduce the credit provided for a credit 

tier under Rules 7018(a)(1), (2) and (3). 

Specifically, under Rules 7018(a)(1), (2) 

and (3) the Exchange provides a 

$0.00295 per share executed credit to a 

member for displayed quotes/orders 

(other than Supplemental Orders or 

Designated Retail Orders) in Tape C, A 

and B securities, respectively, that 

provide liquidity. To be eligible to 

receive the credit under each of the 

rules, a member must add Customer, 

Professional, Firm, Non-NOM Market 

Maker and/or Broker-Dealer liquidity in 

Penny Pilot Options and/or Non-Penny 

Pilot Options of 1.15% or more of total 

industry ADV in the customer clearing 

range for Equity and ETF option 

contracts per day in a month on The 

Nasdaq Options Market. The Exchange 

is proposing to reduce the credit 

provided by the credit tier under 

paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) to $0.0029 per 

share executed. 

Second Change 

The purpose of the second change is 

to include Limit-on-Close Orders 

entered between 3:50 p.m. ET and 

immediately prior to 3:55 p.m. ET for 

purposes of calculating shares of 

liquidity to qualify for a $0.0028 per 

share executed credit for displayed 

quotes/orders (other than Supplemental 

Orders or Designated Retail Orders) that 

provide liquidity under paragraphs (1), 

(2) and (3) of the Rule. The credit is 

provided to a member that has shares of 

liquidity provided in the Opening and 

Closing Crosses, excluding Market-onClose, Limit-on-Close, Market-on-Open, 

Limit-on-Open, Good-til-Cancelled, and 

Immediate-or-Cancel orders, through 

one or more of its Nasdaq Market Center 

MPIDs that represent more than 0.01% 

of Consolidated Volume during the 

month. The Exchange is proposing to 

include Limit-on-Close orders entered 


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2860 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 13 / Friday, January 19, 2018 / Notices 

4 ‘‘Imbalance’’ means the number of shares of buy 

or sell MOC or LOC Orders that cannot be matched 

with other MOC or LOC, or IO Order shares at a 

particular price at any given time. See Rule 

4754(a)(2). 

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

6 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4) and (5). 

7See, e.g., Securities Exchange Act Release No. 

72810 (August 11, 2014), 79 FR 48281 (August 15, 

2014) (SR–NASDAQ–2014–078). 

between 3:50 p.m. ET and immediately 

prior to 3:55 p.m. ET for purposes of 

calculating the members shares of 

liquidity, and therefore eligibility for the 

credit under paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) 

of the Rule. By including these Limiton-Close orders, the credit will be more 

attainable to a member because fewer 

shares will be excluded from the shares 

of liquidity calculation used in 

comparison to the member’s 

Consolidated Volume during the month. 

The Exchange believes that the 

proposed change may provide incentive 

to members to increase their Limit-onClose order activity between 3:50 p.m. 

ET and immediately prior to 3:55 p.m. 

ET for participation in the Nasdaq 

Closing Cross, thereby reducing 

Imbalances,4 and increasing the quality 

of the cross. 

Third Change 

The purpose of the third change is to 

increase the level of Consolidated 

Volume required to receive a $0.0029 

per share executed credit under 

paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) of the Rule for 

displayed quotes/orders (other than 

Supplemental Orders or Designated 

Retail Orders) that provide liquidity. 

Currently, under Rules 7018(a)(1), (2) 

and (3), the Exchange provides a 

$0.0029 per share executed credit to a 

member for displayed quotes/orders 

(other than Supplemental Orders or 

Designated Retail Orders) in Tape C, A 

and B securities, respectively, that 

provide liquidity. To qualify for the 

credit, a member must have shares of 

liquidity provided in all securities 

through one or more of its Nasdaq 

Market Center MPIDs that represent 

more than 0.30% of Consolidated 

Volume during the month, including 

shares of liquidity provided with 

respect to securities that are listed on 

exchanges other than Nasdaq or NYSE 

that represent more than 0.10% of 

Consolidated Volume. The Exchange is 

proposing to increase the level of total 

Consolidated Volume required to 

qualify for the to $0.0029 per share 

executed credit tier under paragraphs 

(1), (2) and (3) from 0.30% to 0.40% per 

month. 

Fourth Change 

The purpose of the fourth change is to 

delete a $0.0029 per share executed 

credit provided for displayed quotes/ 

orders (other than Supplemental Orders 

or Designated Retail Orders) that 

provide liquidity. Currently under Rules 

7018(a)(1), (2) and (3), the Exchange 

provides a $0.0029 per share executed 

credit to a member for displayed quotes/ 

orders (other than Supplemental Orders 

or Designated Retail Orders) in Tape C, 

A and B securities, respectively, that 

provide liquidity. To qualify for the 

credit, a member must have shares of 

liquidity accessed in all securities 

through one or more of its Nasdaq 

Market Center MPIDs representing more 

than 0.80% of Consolidated Volume 

during the month; provided that the 

member also provides a daily average of 

at least 2 million shares of liquidity in 

all securities through one or more of its 

Nasdaq Market Center MPIDs during the 

month. The Exchange has observed that 

the credit tier has not been successful in 

significantly improving market quality 

as very few members qualify for the 

credit tier. Accordingly, the Exchange is 

eliminating the credit tier under Rules 

7018(a)(1), (2) and (3). 

2. Statutory Basis 

The Exchange believes that its 

proposal is consistent with Section 6(b) 

of the Act,5 in general, and furthers the 

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

of the Act,6 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. 

First Change 

The Exchange believes that decreasing 

the $0.00295 per share executed credit 

under paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) of the 

Rule provided for displayed quotes/ 

orders (other than Supplemental Orders 

or Designated Retail Orders) that 

provide liquidity is reasonable because 

the amount of the credit is either 

comparable or identical to other credits 

that the Exchange offers pursuant to 

Rule 7018(a), and it believes that the 

requirements are comparable to other 

requirements needed to qualify for other 

credits. For example, under paragraphs 

(1), (2) and (3) of the Rule the Exchange 

currently provides a $0.0029 per share 

executed credit to members for 

displayed quotes/orders (other than 

Supplemental Orders or Designated 

Retail Orders) that provide liquidity if 

the member has shares of liquidity 

provided in all securities through one or 

more of its Nasdaq Market Center MPIDs 

that represent more than 0.60% of 

Consolidated Volume during the month. 

Consequently, the Exchange believes 

that proposed credit is consistent with 

other credits offered by the Exchange 

and therefore reasonable. 

The Exchange believes that the 

amended credit will continue to be 

equitably allocated and not unfairly 

discriminatory. The proposed reduction 

in the credit provided is reflective of the 

Exchange’s need to balance the 

incentives that it provides in return for 

the market improving behavior it seeks 

to incentivize. The Exchange notes that 

the proposed change applies to 

securities of all Tapes and it will apply 

to all members of Nasdaq. A member is 

free to determine whether the amended 

credit is adequate for it to continue 

NOM Market Maker and/or BrokerDealer liquidity in Penny Pilot Options 

and/or Non- Penny Pilot Options 

required by the credit tier. As discussed 

above, a member has other 

opportunities to qualify for the same or 

similar credits based on different 

criteria. 

Second Change 

The Exchange believes that the 

proposed change to include Limit-onClose Orders entered between 3:50 p.m. 

ET and immediately prior to 3:55 p.m. 

ET for purposes of calculating shares of 

liquidity in a credit tier under 

paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) of the Rule 

provided for displayed quotes/orders 

(other than Supplemental Orders or 

Designated Retail Orders) that provide 

liquidity is reasonable because the 

Exchange is not changing the amount of 

the credit, which has been addressed in 

previous filings,7 and it believes that the 

amount of the credit continues to be 

reasonable because it remains 

unchanged. Including Limit-on-Close 

Orders entered between 3:50 p.m. ET 

and immediately prior to 3:55 p.m. ET 

for purposes of calculating shares of 

liquidity is reasonable because it 

provides incentive to members to 

improve the market by increasing 

liquidity in the Nasdaq Closing Cross. 

Moreover, the Exchange does not 

currently exclude Imbalance Only 

Orders from the calculation of shares of 

liquidity, and the Exchange believes 

that LOC Orders entered between 3:50 

p.m. ET and immediately prior to 3:55 

p.m. ET provide a similar function as 

Imbalance Only Orders in that they help 

avoid order Imbalances and, 

consequently they should be included 

in the calculation of shares of liquidity. 

The Exchange believes that proposed 

change to include Limit-on-Close orders 

entered between 3:50 p.m. ET and 


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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 13 / Friday, January 19, 2018 / Notices 2861 

8See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 81930 

(October 24, 2017), 82 FR 50198 (October 30, 2017) 

(SR–NASDAQ–2017–107). 

9 Id. 

10See, e.g., Securities Exchange Act Release No. 

64453 (May 10, 2011), 76 FR 28252 (May 16, 2011) 

(SR–NASDAQ–2011–062). 

immediately prior to 3:55 p.m. ET for 

purposes of calculating shares of 

liquidity in a credit tier provided under 

paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) of the Rule for 

displayed quotes/orders (other than 

Supplemental Orders or Designated 

Retail Orders) that provide liquidity is 

an equitable allocation and is not 

unfairly discriminatory because the 

Exchange will apply the same credit 

qualification criteria to all similarly 

situated members. The Exchange 

recently amended Rule 4702(b)(12) to 

allow entry of LOC orders between 3:50 

p.m. ET and immediately prior to 3:55 

p.m. ET.8 Prior to the change, between 

3:50 p.m. ET and immediately prior to 

3:55 p.m. ET an LOC order could only 

be cancelled, and only if the member 

requests that Nasdaq correct a legitimate 

error in the Order (e.g., Side, Size, 

Symbol, or Price, or duplication of an 

Order). As described in greater detail in 

its proposal, the Exchange believes that 

permitting members to enter LOC orders 

later in the trading day encourages 

additional participation in the Nasdaq 

Closing Cross, thereby reducing 

Imbalances, and increasing the quality 

of the cross.9 The proposed change to 

the credit tier under paragraphs (1), (2) 

and (3) of the Rule is designed to 

provide incentive to members to enter 

LOCs later in the trading day by 

including them in the eligibility 

calculation to receive the credit. 

Third Change 

The Exchange believes that the 

proposed change to increase the level of 

Consolidated Volume to qualify for a 

$0.0029 per share executed credit 

provided for displayed quotes/orders 

(other than Supplemental Orders or 

Designated Retail Orders) that provide 

liquidity is reasonable because the 

Exchange is not changing the amount of 

the credit, which has been addressed in 

previous filings,10 and it believes that 

the credit continues to be reasonable 

because it remains unchanged. As 

discussed above, the Exchange provides 

other $0.0029 per share executed credits 

under paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) of the 

Rule. 

The Exchange believes that proposed 

change to increase the level of 

Consolidated Volume to qualify for a 

$0.0029 per share executed credit 

provided for displayed quotes/orders 

(other than Supplemental Orders or 

Designated Retail Orders) that provide 

liquidity is an equitable allocation and 

is not unfairly discriminatory because 

the amended criteria will apply to all 

members. Specifically, increasing the 

qualification criteria of the credit will 

apply all members uniformly, with each 

member free to determine whether 

providing the increased level of 

Consolidated Volume to qualify for the 

credit is appropriate for its business. 

Although some members may no longer 

qualify for the credit tier based on the 

amended qualification criteria, the 

Exchange notes that there are other 

$0.0029 per share executed credits 

available for securities of all the Tapes 

for which a member may qualify if it 

cannot qualify under the amended 

credit tier qualification requirement. 

Moreover, the proposed increase in 

Consolidated Volume will bring the 

credit’s qualification requirements 

closer to the next higher credit tier of 

$0.0030 per share executed, which is 

provided to members that have shares of 

liquidity provided in all securities 

through one or more of its Nasdaq 

Market Center MPIDs that represent 

0.575% or more of Consolidated 

Volume during the month, including 

shares of liquidity provided with 

respect to securities that are listed on 

exchanges other than Nasdaq or NYSE 

that represent 0.10% or more of 

Consolidated Volume. Accordingly, the 

Exchange believes that the proposed 

change is an equitable allocation and is 

not unfairly discriminatory. 

Fourth Change 

Elimination of the $0.0029 per share 

executed credit provided to a member 

for displayed quotes/orders (other than 

Supplemental Orders or Designated 

Retail Orders) that provide liquidity in 

securities of each of the Tapes is 

reasonable because the credit has been 

unsuccessful at providing an incentive 

to members and in turn it has not 

provided a significant improvement to 

market quality on Nasdaq. 

Consequently, the Exchange believes 

that it should eliminate the credit to 

focus its limited funds on other 

incentives to improve market quality. 

The Exchange notes that members will 

continue to have the opportunity to 

qualify for credits of $0.0029 per share 

executed in securities of each of the 

Tapes. Accordingly, the Exchange 

believes eliminating this credit is 

reasonable. 

The Exchange believes that 

elimination of the $0.0029 per share 

executed credit provided to a member 

for displayed quotes/orders (other than 

Supplemental Orders or Designated 

Retail Orders) that provide liquidity in 

securities of each of the Tapes is an 

equitable allocation and is not unfairly 

discriminatory because it has been 

ineffective at significantly improving 

market quality as very few members 

qualify for the credit. Consequently, the 

credit is no longer needed. As noted 

above, the Exchange has limited funds 

to apply toward incentives, and 

although an incentive may not 

significantly achieve its goal of 

improving market quality, it may 

nonetheless result in a cost to the 

Exchange. Eliminating the credit will 

allow the Exchange deploy its limited 

funds to incentives in securities or other 

areas designed to improve market 

quality. Members will continue to have 

the opportunity to receive the same or 

similar rebates based on similar criteria 

as required by the tier that is being 

eliminated. For example, the Exchange 

provides a credit of $0.0025 per share 

executed to a member for displayed 

quotes/orders (other than Supplemental 

Orders or Designated Retail Orders) that 

provide liquidity if the member has 

shares of liquidity accessed in all 

securities through one or more of its 

Nasdaq Market Center MPIDs 

representing more than 0.45% of 

Consolidated Volume during the month; 

provided that the member also provides 

a daily average of at least 2 million 

shares of liquidity in all securities 

through one or more of its Nasdaq 

Market Center MPIDs during the month. 

Accordingly, the Exchange believes that 

eliminating the credit is an equitable 

allocation and is not unfairly 

discriminatory. 

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 and credits to 

remain competitive with other 

exchanges and with alternative trading 

systems that have been exempted from 

compliance with the statutory standards 

applicable to exchanges. Because 

competitors are free to modify their own 

fees and credits in response, and 

because market participants may readily 

adjust their order routing practices, the 

Exchange believes that the degree to 

which fee and credit changes in this 


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2862 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 13 / Friday, January 19, 2018 / Notices 

11 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(ii). 12 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 

market may impose any burden on 

competition is extremely limited. 

In this instance, the proposed changes 

to the credits available to members for 

execution of securities in securities of 

all three Tapes do not impose a burden 

on competition because the Exchange’s 

execution services are completely 

voluntary and subject to extensive 

competition both from other exchanges 

and from off-exchange venues. The 

Exchange is proposing to decrease the 

amount of credit provided, increase the 

qualification requirement to receive a 

credit, eliminate a credit that has been 

unsuccessful at improving market 

quality significantly, and ease the 

criteria of a credit in an effort to 

improve market quality in the Nasdaq 

Closing Cross. These changes are 

reflective of the Exchange’s need to 

balance the incentives that it provides 

in return for the market improving 

behavior it seeks to incentivize. As 

discussed above, the Exchange has 

limited funds to apply toward 

incentives, and therefore must adjust 

the amount of credit provided, change 

credit tier qualification criteria, and in 

some cases discontinue credits 

altogether, to ensure that it has applied 

those limited funds most efficiently. 

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. 

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.11

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 (http://www.sec.gov/ 

rules/sro.shtml); or 

• Send an email to rule-comments@

sec.gov. Please include File Number SR– 

NASDAQ–2018–001 on the subject line. 

Paper Comments 

• Send paper comments in triplicate 

to Secretary, Securities and Exchange 

Commission, 100 F Street NE, 

Washington, DC 20549–1090. 

All submissions should refer to File 

Number SR–NASDAQ–2018–001. 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 (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 website viewing and 

printing in the Commission’s Public 

Reference Room, 100 F Street NE, 

Washington, DC 20549, on official 

business days between the hours of 

10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Copies of the 

filing also will be available for 

inspection and copying at the principal 

office of the Exchange. All comments 

received will be posted without change. 

Persons submitting comments are 

cautioned that we do not redact or edit 

personal identifying information from 

comment submissions. You should 

submit only information that you wish 

to make available publicly. All 

submissions should refer to File 

Number SR–NASDAQ–2018–001, and 

should be submitted on or before 

February 9, 2018. 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.12

Eduardo A. Aleman, 

Assistant Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2018–00850 Filed 1–18–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION 

Data Collection Available for Public 

Comments 

ACTION: 60-Day notice and request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: As required by the Paperwork 

Reduction Act (PRA) the Small Business 

Administration (SBA) announces its 

intention to request approval from the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) of the reporting requirements 

described below. Under the PRA federal 

agencies are required to publish a notice 

in the Federal Register concerning each 

collection of information before it is 

submitted to OMB for review and 

approval, and to allow 60 days for 

public comment on the notice. This 

notice complies with that requirement. 

DATES: Submit comments on or before 

March 15, 2018. 

ADDRESSES: Send all comments to 

Michael Donadieu, Director, Office of 

SBIC Examinations, Office of 

Investment and Innovation, Small 

Business Administration, 409 3rd Street, 

6th Floor, Washington, DC 20416. 

Email: michael.donadieu@sba.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Curtis B. Rich, Management Analyst, 

202–205–7030, curtis.rich@sba.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Small 

Business Investment Act of 1958, as 

amended, requires SBA to examine 

small business investment companies, 

(‘‘SBICs’’ or ‘‘Licensees’’). The statute 

requires examination at least every two 

years; however, generally SBA aims to 

examine SBICs more frequently. 

Specifically, SBA’s goal is to examine 

Leveraged licensees (SBICs with 

outstanding leverage, commitments, or 

earmarked assets) on a 12-month cycle 

and Non-leveraged licensees on a 18- 

month cycle. For newly licensed SBICs, 

the initial examination generally is 

conducted within six months of 

licensing. 

At the time SBA notifies the SBIC of 

the pending examination, the agency 

also identifies certain information the 

SBIC will be required to submit at the 

commencement of the examination 

process to assist examiners in planning 

the examination. Additionally, the 

information will provide a basis for: (a) 


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