29766 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 94 / Monday, May 16, 2022 / Notices 

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

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

3Pursuant to Equity 7, Section 3, the term 

‘‘Consolidated Volume’’ means 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 

organization’s trading activity, the date of the 

annual reconstitution of the Russell Investments 

Indexes is excluded from both total Consolidated 

Volume and the member organization’s trading 

activity. 

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

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

become null and void, provided, 

however, that upon written application 

and for good cause shown, such date 

may be extended by order. 

This Order is effective upon issuance. 

For further details with respect to this 

Order, see the written application for 

extension dated February 8, 2022, 

which is available electronically 

through ADAMS in the NRC Library at 

https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/ 

adams.html under Accession No. 

ML22040A068. Persons who encounter 

problems with ADAMS should contact 

the NRC’s Public Document Room 

reference staff by telephone at 1–800– 

397–4209 or 301–415–4737 or by email 

to PDR.Resource@nrc.gov. 

Dated: May 10, 2022. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

/RA/ 

Gregory F. Suber, 

Deputy Director, Division of Operating 

Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor 

Regulation. 

[FR Doc. 2022–10468 Filed 5–13–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–94882; File No. SR–Phlx– 

2022–20] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Nasdaq 

PHLX LLC; Notice of Filing and 

Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed 

Rule Change To Amend Equity 7, 

Section 3 To Add a New Transaction 

Credit 

May 10, 2022. 

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 May 2, 

2022, Nasdaq PHLX LLC (‘‘Phlx’’ or 

‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the Securities 

and Exchange Commission (‘‘SEC’’ or 

‘‘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 amend 

Equity 7, Section 3 to add a new 

transaction credit, as described further 

below. The text of the proposed rule 

change is available on the Exchange’s 

website at https://

listingcenter.nasdaq.com/rulebook/ 

phlx/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 Equity 7, Section 3 

to amend the Exchange’s schedule of 

credits to add a new growth credit for 

displayed orders. 

Pursuant to Equity 7, Section 3, the 

Exchange presently provides a series of 

credits to member organizations that 

enter displayed orders/quotes that 

execute on the Exchange. The Exchange 

presently offers the following credits to 

member organizations that add 

displayed liquidity to the Exchange: (i) 

$0.0035 per share executed for Quotes/ 

Orders entered by a member 

organization that provides 0.10% or 

more of total Consolidated Volume 3

during the month; (ii) $0.0034 per share 

executed for Quotes/Orders entered by a 

member organization that provides 

0.05% or more of total Consolidated 

Volume during the month and removes 

0.02% of total Consolidated Volume 

during the month; (iii) 0.0030 per share 

executed for Quotes/Orders entered by a 

member organization that provides a 

daily average of at least 1 million shares 

of liquidity in all securities on the 

Exchange during the month and 

increases its average daily volume of 

Quotes/Orders added to the Exchange 

by 100% or more during the month 

relative to the month of October 2021; 

and (iv) $0.0020 per share executed for 

all other quotes/orders. 

The Exchange proposes to establish a 

new growth credit that will reward a 

member organization with a credit of 

$0.0032 per share executed to the extent 

that it adds a daily average of at least 2 

million shares of liquidity in all 

securities on the Exchange during the 

month and increases its average daily 

volume of quotes/orders added to the 

Exchange by 75% or more during the 

month relative to the month of March 

2022. 

The proposed new growth credit will 

provide an additional incentive to 

member organizations to add and 

increase the extent to which they add 

liquidity to the Exchange. Insofar as the 

proposed growth credit will require a 

qualifying member organization to 

provide double the daily average 

number of shares of liquidity on the 

Exchange as it must to qualify for the 

existing $0.0030 per share executed 

growth tier credit, the Exchange believes 

it is reasonable for the amount of the 

proposed credit to be larger, at $0.0032 

per share executed. To the extent that 

the proposed new credit succeeds in 

increasing liquidity on the Exchange, 

the Exchange hopes that additional 

liquidity will improve the quality of the 

market and help to grow it over time. 

2. Statutory Basis 

The Exchange believes that its 

proposal is consistent with Section 6(b) 

of the Act,4 in general, and furthers the 

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

of the Act,5 in particular, in that it 

provides for the equitable allocation of 

reasonable dues, fees and other charges 

among member organizations and 

issuers and other persons using any 

facility, and is not designed to permit 

unfair discrimination between 

customers, issuers, brokers, or dealers. 

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 


JSPEARS on DSK121TN23PROD with NOTICES1
Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 94 / Monday, May 16, 2022 / Notices 29767 

6Securities Exchange Act Release No. 51808 

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

(‘‘Regulation NMS Adopting Release’’). 

7NetCoalition v. SEC, 615 F.3d 525 (D.C. Cir. 

2010). 

8 Id. at 539 (quoting Securities Exchange Act 

Release No. 59039 (December 2, 2008), 73 FR 

74770, 74782–83 (December 9, 2008) (SR– 

NYSEArca–2006–21)). 9 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(ii). 

broader forms that are most important to 

investors and listed companies.’’ 6

Likewise, in NetCoalition v. Securities 

and Exchange Commission 7

(‘‘NetCoalition’’) the D.C. Circuit stated 

as follows: ‘‘[n]o one disputes that 

competition for order flow is ‘fierce.’ 

. . . As the SEC explained, ‘[i]n the U.S. 

national market system, buyers and 

sellers of securities, and the brokerdealers that act as their order-routing 

agents, have a wide range of choices of 

where to route orders for execution’; 

[and] ‘no exchange can afford to take its 

market share percentages for granted’ 

because ‘no exchange possesses a 

monopoly, regulatory or otherwise, in 

the execution of order flow from broker 

dealers’. . . .’’ 8

The Exchange believes that its 

proposal to add a new growth credit tier 

of $0.0032 per share executed is 

reasonable, equitable, and not unfairly 

discriminatory. The Exchange assesses a 

particular need to increase the extent to 

which its member organizations add 

liquidity to the Exchange as a means of 

improving market quality. The proposal 

serves that purpose by adding a new 

credit to reward member organizations 

that add a substantial amount of 

liquidity to the Exchange, and which 

grow the extent to which they add such 

liquidity by a substantial percentage 

relative to a baseline month of March 

2022. Although the proposal will benefit 

net adders of liquidity, the Exchange 

believes that this is equitable and not 

unfairly discriminatory because all 

market participants stand to benefit to 

the extent that the proposal is successful 

in increasing liquidity on the Exchange 

and improving market quality. Insofar as 

the proposed growth credit will require 

a qualifying member organization to 

provide double the daily average 

number of shares of liquidity on the 

Exchange as it must to qualify for the 

existing $0.0030 per share executed 

growth tier credit, the Exchange believes 

it is reasonable, equitable, and not 

unfairly discriminatory for the amount 

of the proposed credit to be larger, at 

$0.0032 per share executed. 

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. 

Intramarket Competition 

The Exchange does not believe that its 

proposal will place any category of 

Exchange participants at a competitive 

disadvantage. As noted above, all 

member organizations of the Exchange 

will benefit from an increase in activity 

on the exchange. Moreover, member 

organizations are free to trade on other 

venues to the extent they believe that 

the discounted fee provided is not 

attractive. As one can observe by 

looking at any market share chart, price 

competition between exchanges is 

fierce, with liquidity and market share 

moving freely between exchanges in 

reaction to fee and credit changes. 

Intermarket Competition 

The Exchange believes that its 

proposed new credit will not impose a 

burden on competition because the 

Exchange’s execution services are 

completely voluntary and subject to 

extensive competition both from the 

other live exchanges and from offexchange venues, which include 

alternative trading systems that trade 

national market system stock. 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 

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 

credits and fees in response, and 

because market participants may readily 

adjust their order routing practices, the 

Exchange believes that the degree to 

which credit changes in this market may 

impose any burden on competition is 

extremely limited. 

The proposed new growth credit is 

reflective of this competition because, as 

a threshold issue, the Exchange is a 

relatively small market so its ability to 

burden intermarket competition is 

limited. In this regard, even the largest 

U.S. equities exchange by volume only 

has 17–18% market share, which in 

most markets could hardly be 

categorized as having enough market 

power to burden competition. Moreover, 

as noted above, price competition 

between exchanges is fierce, with 

liquidity and market share moving 

freely between exchanges in reaction to 

fee and credit changes. This is in 

addition to free flow of order flow to 

and among off-exchange venues which 

comprises more than 40% of industry 

volume in recent months. 

In sum, the Exchange intends for the 

proposed credit to incent member 

organizations to add liquidity to the 

Exchange and to thereby contribute to 

market quality, which is reflective of 

fierce competition for order flow noted 

above; however, if the change proposed 

herein is unattractive to market 

participants, it is likely that the 

Exchange will either fail to increase its 

market share or even lose market share 

as a result. Accordingly, the Exchange 

does not believe that the proposed 

change will impair the ability of 

member organizations 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.9

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– 

Phlx–2022–20 on the subject line. 


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29768 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 94 / Monday, May 16, 2022 / Notices 

10 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. 

4 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1). 

5 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

6 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A). 

7 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

8See IEX Rule 1.160(t). 9See IEX Rule 1.160(bb). 10See IEX Rule 1.160(p). 11See IEX Rule 11.230(a)(4)(D). 

12See IEX Rule 1.160(nn). 

13See, e.g., Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc. (‘‘Cboe 

BZX’’) Rule 11.9(g)(4); MIAX PEARL LLC (‘‘MIAX 

PEARL’’) Rule 2614(g)(2). 

14Currently, a non-displayed limit order can 

check past the Midpoint Price on entry, but cannot 

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–Phlx–2022–20. This file 

number should be included on the 

subject line if email is used. To help the 

Commission process and review your 

comments more efficiently, please use 

only one method. The Commission will 

post all comments on the Commission’s 

internet website (https://www.sec.gov/ 

rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the 

submission, all subsequent 

amendments, all written statements 

with respect to the proposed rule 

change that are filed with the 

Commission, and all written 

communications relating to the 

proposed rule change between the 

Commission and any person, other than 

those that may be withheld from the 

public in accordance with the 

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

available for website viewing and 

printing in the Commission’s Public 

Reference Room, 100 F Street NE, 

Washington, DC 20549, on official 

business days between the hours of 

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

filing also will be available for 

inspection and copying at the principal 

office of the Exchange. All comments 

received will be posted without change. 

Persons submitting comments are 

cautioned that we do not redact or edit 

personal identifying information from 

comment submissions. You should 

submit only information that you wish 

to make available publicly. All 

submissions should refer to File 

Number SR–Phlx–2022–20 and should 

be submitted on or before June 6, 2022. 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.10

J. Matthew DeLesDernier, 

Assistant Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2022–10416 Filed 5–13–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–94884; File No. SR–IEX– 

2022–04] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; 

Investors Exchange LLC; Notice of 

Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of 

Proposed Rule Change To Remove the 

Midpoint Price Constraint on NonDisplayed Limit Orders and Make 

Conforming Changes 

May 10, 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 April 29, 

2022, the Investors Exchange LLC 

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

Securities and Exchange Commission 

(the ‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule 

change as described in Items I and II 

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 the Substance 

of the Proposed Rule Change 

Pursuant to the provisions of Section 

19(b)(1) under the Act,4 and Rule 19b– 

4 thereunder,5 the Exchange is filing 

with the Commission a proposed rule 

change to remove the midpoint price 

constraint on non-displayed limit orders 

and make conforming changes to several 

rules. The Exchange has designated this 

rule change as ‘‘non-controversial’’ 

under Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act 6

and provided the Commission with the 

notice required by Rule 19b–4(f)(6) 

thereunder.7

The text of the proposed rule change 

is available at the Exchange’s website at 

www.iextrading.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 the 

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 statement 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 the 

Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule 

Change 

1. Purpose 

Currently, IEX Rule 11.190(h)(2) 

(Non-Displayed Price Sliding) adjusts 

the price of any non-displayed limit 

order priced more aggressively than the 

Midpoint Price 8 to be priced at the 

Midpoint Price (the ‘‘Midpoint Price 

Constraint’’). The Exchange proposes to 

amend its non-displayed price sliding 

rule to allow non-displayed limit orders 

to be priced more aggressively than the 

Midpoint Price. Specifically, the 

Exchange proposes to amend IEX Rule 

11.190(h)(2) to remove the Midpoint 

Price Constraint on non-displayed limit 

orders, thereby allowing non-displayed 

limit orders to be priced as aggressively 

as the contra-side Protected Quotation,9

provided it does not lock IEX’s Order 

Book.10 Because this rule change should 

result in there being more aggressively 

priced non-displayed liquidity resting 

on the Exchange, IEX also proposes to 

amend its Order Execution Recheck 11

rule to increase the circumstances in 

which a resting non-displayed order 

may be invited by the System 12 to 

execute against eligible contra-side 

liquidity. Additionally, the Exchange 

proposes to make related changes to IEX 

Rules 11.190(b) and 11.230(a)(4)(C) to 

prevent aggressively priced nondisplayed limit orders locking or 

crossing IEX’s displayed Order Book. 

Finally, the Exchange proposes to make 

conforming changes to IEX Rules 

11.190, 11.220, 11.230, 11.231, 11.232, 

and 11.340. This proposal would align 

IEX’s non-displayed price sliding rules 

with those of other national securities 

exchanges that trade equities, as 

detailed below.13

I. Midpoint Price Constraint Removal 

Currently, IEX restricts non-displayed 

limit orders such that they cannot be 

booked and ranked at a price any more 

aggressive than the Midpoint Price.14


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