28914 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 110 / Thursday, June 6, 1996 / Notices

a majority of the Independent Trustees,

will make a separate finding, reflected

in the Board minutes of the Trust, that

any such change of Money Manager is

in the best interest of the Trust and its

shareholders and does not involve a

conflict of interest from which the

Manager or Affiliated Money Manager

derives an inappropriate advantage.

7. No director, trustee, or officer of a

Trust or the Manager will own directly

or indirectly (other than through a

pooled investment vehicle that is not

controlled by any such director, trustee,

or officer) any interest in a Money

Manager except for ownership of

interests in the Manager or any entity

that controls, is controlled by, or under

common control with the Manager, or

ownership of less than 1% of the

outstanding securities of any class of

equity or debt securities of any publicly

traded company that is either a Money

Manager or controls, is controlled by, or

is under common control with a Money

Manager.

8. Within 90 days of the hiring of any

new Money Manager or the

implementation of any proposed

material change in a Money Manager

Agreement, the affected Fund and

Portfolio will furnish their shareholders

with all information about the new

Money Manager or Money Manager

Agreement that would be included in a

proxy statement. Such information will

include any change in such disclosure

caused by the addition of a new Money

Manager or any proposed material

change in the Money Manager

Agreement of a Fund or a Portfolio. The

Fund and the Portfolio will meet this

condition by providing shareholders,

within 90 days of the hiring of a Money

Manager or the implementation of any

material change to the terms of a Money

Manager Agreement, with an

information statement meeting the

requirements of Regulation 14C and

Schedule 14C under the Securities

Exchange Act of 1934 (the ‘‘Exchange

Act’’). The information statement also

will meet the requirements of Item 22 of

Schedule 14A under the Exchange Act.

For the SEC, by the Division of Investment

Management, under delegated authority.

Jonathan G. Katz,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 96–14178 Filed 6–05–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8010–01–M

[Investment Company Act Release No.

21996; 811–5591]

The Dreyfus/Laurel Investment Series

May 30, 1996.

AGENCY: Securities and Exchange

Commission (‘‘SEC’’).

ACTION: Notice of Application for

Deregistration under the Investment

Company Act of 1940 (the ‘‘Act’’).

APPLICANT: The Dreyfus/Laurel

Investment Series.

RELEVANT ACT SECTION: Section 8(f).

SUMMARY OF APPLICATION: Applicant

requests an order declaring that it has

ceased to be an investment company.

FILING DATES: The application was filed

on April 9, 1996 and amended on May

20, 1996.

HEARING OR NOTIFICATION OF HEARING: An

order granting the application will be

issued unless the SEC orders a hearing.

Interested persons may request a

hearing by writing to the SEC’s

Secretary and serving applicant with a

copy of the request, personally or by

mail. Hearing requests should be

received by the SEC by 5:30 p.m. on

June 24, 1996 and should be

accompanied by proof of service on the

applicant, in the form of an affidavit or,

for lawyers, a certificate of service.

Hearing requests should state the nature

of the writer’s interest, the reason for the

request, and the issues contested.

Persons may request notification of a

hearing by writing to the SEC’s

Secretary.

ADDRESSES: Secretary, SEC, 450 5th

Street, NW., Washington, DC 20549.

Applicant, 200 Park Avenue, New York,

New York 10166.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Sarah A. Buescher, Staff Attorney, at

(202) 942–0573, or David M.

Goldenberg, Branch Chief, at (202) 942–

0564 (Division of Investment

Management, Office of Investment

Company Regulation).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

following is a summary of the

application. The complete application

may be obtained for a fee from the SEC’s

Public Reference Branch.

Applicant’s Representations

1. Applicant is an open-end

management investment company

organized as a Massachusetts business

trust. On May 31, 1988, applicant filed

a Notification of Registration on Form

N–8A pursuant to section 8(a) of the

Act, and a registration statement on

Form N–1A pursuant to section 8(b) of

the Act and the Securities Act of 1933.

The registration statement became

effective on October 11, 1988, and the

initial public offering of applicant’s

shares commenced on October 12, 1988.

Applicant’s board of trustees had

authorized both Investor and Class R

shares of the Fund, but only Investor

shares of the Fund were issued.

2. On July 26, 1995, applicant’s board

of trustees approved the liquidation of

the last remaining series of applicant

(the ‘‘Fund’’) and the subsequent

dissolution of applicant. Applicant’s

board approved the liquidation based on

the less than expected growth and

performance of the Fund. The board

also approved the retention by

applicant’s transfer agent of one Investor

share of the Fund following the Fund’s

liquidation so that the transfer agent

could act as shareholder to approve

applicant’s dissolution.

3. On September 15, 1995, applicant

made a liquidating distribution of

$351,113 to shareholders of record at

$11.86 per share. The distribution to

shareholders was based on net asset

value. On September 18, 1995,

applicant’s transfer agent, as the sole

remaining shareholder of the Fund,

approved the dissolution of applicant in

accordance with applicant’s trust

agreement.

4. In connection with its liquidation,

applicant is expected to incur

approximately $7,500 of aggregate

expenses, consisting primarily of legal

expenses, all of which have been or will

be paid by The Dreyfus Corporation,

applicant’s investment adviser.

Applicant’s portfolio securities were

sold at market prices and no brokerage

commissions were incurred.

5. As of the date of the application,

applicant had no assets, no liabilities,

and no shareholders. Applicant is not a

party to any litigation or administrative

proceeding. Applicant is not engaged,

nor proposes to engage, in any business

activities other than those necessary for

the winding-up of its affairs.

6. Applicant intends to file a notice of

termination with the appropriate

Massachusetts authorities.

For the Commission, by the Division of

Investment Management, pursuant to

delegated authority.

Jonathan G. Katz,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 96–14181 Filed 6–5–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8010–01–M
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 110 / Thursday, June 6, 1996 / Notices 28915

[Release No. 34–37252; File No. SR–Amex–

96–18]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Notice

of Filing of Proposed Rule Change by

American Stock Exchange, Inc.

Relating to the Listing and Trading of

a Narrow-Based Domestic Index

Warrants

May 30, 1996.

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

Securities Exchange Act of 1934, 15

U.S.C. 78s(b)(1), notice is hereby given

that on May 20, 1996, the American

Stock Exchange, Inc. (‘‘Amex’’ or

‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the Securities

and Exchange Commission the proposed

rule change as described in Items, I, II,

and III below, which Items have been

prepared by the Amex. 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 list and

trade, under Section 106 of the Amex

Company Guide, index warrants based

on a portfolio of equity securities

(‘‘Index’’), and equal-dollar weighted

narrow-based index developed by an

issuer comprised of actively traded

equity securities which are traded on

the Amex, New York Stock Exchange

(‘‘NYSE’’), or through the facilities of

the National Association of Securities

Dealers Automated Quotation system

and are reported national market system

securities (‘‘NASDAQ/NMS’’). The text

of the proposed rule change is available

at the Office of the Secretary, Amex and

at the Commission.

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

Amex 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 Amex 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

Under Section 106 (Currency and

Index Warrants) of the Amex Company

Guide, the Exchange may approve for

listing index warrants based on foreign

and domestic market indices. While the

Exchange currently lists and trades

warrants on a number of foreign market

indices and broad-based domestic

market indices, it now proposes to list

and trade a warrant on a narrow-based

domestic market index. The listing and

trading of warrants on the A portfolio of

value equity securities will comply in

all respects to Exchange Rules 1100

through 1110 for the trading of stock

index and currency warrants.

Warrant issues on the Index will

conform to the listing guidelines under

Section 106, which provide, among

other things, that (1) the issuer shall

have tangible net worth in excess of

$250,000,000 and otherwise

substantially exceed size and earnings

requirements in Section 101(A) of the

Company Guide or meet the alternate

guideline in paragraph (a); (2) the term

of the warrants shall be for a period

ranging from one to three years from

date of issuance; and (3) the minimum

public distribution of such issues shall

be 1,000,000 warrants, together with a

minimum of 400 public holders, and

have an aggregate market value of

$4,000,000.

Index warrants will be direct

obligations of their issuer subject to

cash-settlement during their term, and

either exercisable throughout their life

(i.e., American style) or exercisable only

on their expiration date (i.e., European

style). Upon exercise, or at the warrant

expiration date (if not exercisable prior

to such date), the holder of a warrant

structured as a ‘‘put’’ would receive

payment in U.S. dollars to the extent

that the Index has declined below a prestated cash settlement value.

Conversely, holders of a warrant

structured as a ‘‘call’’ would, upon

exercise or at expiration, receive

payment in U.S. dollars to the extent

that the Index has increased above the

pre-stated cash settlement value. If ‘‘outof-the-money’’ at the time of expiration,

the warrants would expire worthless. In

addition, the Amex, prior to the

commencement of trading, will

distribute a circular to its membership

calling attention to specific risks

associated with warrants on the Index.

The Index

The Amex is proposing to list index

warrants based on a popular portfolio of

ten large actively traded equity

securities. The portfolio will be

designed as an equal dollar weighted

index. Each of the component securities

in the Index will have a market value of

at least $75 Million and trading volume

in each of the last six months of not less

than 1,000,000 shares. At least 90% of

the securities in the Index will meet the

current criteria for standardized option

trading. If the Index includes foreign

securities or American Depositary

Receipts on foreign securities that are

traded in countries with which the

Exchange does not have comprehensive

surveillance agreements with the

appropriate regulatory authorities, such

components will not represent more

than 20% of the Index. All of the

component securities in the Index will

be listed on the Amex, the New York

Stock Exchange or trade through the

facilities of NASDAQ.

The Index will be set with a

benchmark value of 100 on the date the

warrant is priced for initial offering to

the public. Similar to other stock index

values published by the Exchange, the

value of the Index will be calculated

continuously and disseminate every 15

second over the Consolidated Tape

Association’s Network B.

The Exchange will monitor the

components in the portfolio on a

monthly basis and will advise the

Commission whenever (1) less than

75% of the components are eligible for

standardized option trading, (2) the

number of components in the index

decreases to less than nine, (3) the three

highest weighted components represent

more than 60% of the weight of the

Index or (4) the trading volume of any

of the components falls below 500,000

shares for each of the last six months.

The Index will be monitored daily for

certain types of corporate actions such

as the payment of a dividend other than

an ordinary cash dividend, stock

distribution, stock split, reverse stock

split, rights offering, distribution,

reorganization, recapitalization, or

similar event which may require a

multiplier adjustment to maintain

continuity of the Index’s value. In the

event of a merger, consolidation,

dissolution or liquidation of an issuer or

in certain other events such as the

distribution of property by an issuer to

shareholders, components in the Index

may be deleted or replaced. Shares of a

component security may be replaced (or

supplemented) with other securities

under certain other circumstances, such

as the conversion of a component
28916 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 110 / Thursday, June 6, 1996 / Notices

1 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).

1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1) (1988).

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4

3The IPC is a broad-based, capitalizationweighted index comprised of 35 of the largest and

most liquid stocks (issued by 28 issuers) on the

Mexican Stock Exchange (‘‘Bolsa’’).

4See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 37189

(May 9, 1996). 61 FR 24982 (May 17, 1996) (order

approving the listing and trading of options on the

IPC).

security into another class of security or

the spin-off of a subsidiary. If the

security remains in the Index, the

multiplier may be adjusted to maintain

the continuity of the Index’s value. In

the event that a security in the Index is

removed due to a corporate

consolidation and the holders of such

security receive cash, the cash value of

such security will be included in the

index and will accrue interest at LIBOR

to term.

(2) Basis

The proposed rule change is

consistent with Section 6(b) of the Act

in general and furthers the objectives of

Section 6(b)(5) in particular in that it is

designed to prevent fraudulent and

manipulative acts and practices, to

promote just and equitable principles of

trade, and is not designed to permit

unfair discrimination between

customers, issuers, brokers or dealers.

B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s

Statement on Burden on Competition

The proposed rule change will impose

no burden on competition.

C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s

Statement on Comments on the

Proposed Rule Change Received from

Members, Participants or Others

No written comments were solicited

or received with respect to the proposed

rule change.

III. Date of Effectiveness of the

Proposed Rule Change and Timing for

Commission Action

Within 35 days of the date of

publication of this notice in the Federal

Register or within such longer period (i)

as the Commission may designate up to

90 days of such date if it finds such

longer period to be appropriate and

publishes its reasons for so finding or

(ii) as to which the self-regulatory

organization consents, the Commission

will:

(A) By order approve such proposed

rule change, or

(B) Institute proceedings to determine

whether the proposed rule change

should be disapproved.

IV. Solicitation of Comments

Interested persons are invited to

submit written data, views and

arguments concerning the foregoing.

Persons making written submissions

should file six copies thereof with the

Secretary, Securities and Exchange

Commission, 450 Fifth Street, N.W.,

Washington, D.C. 20549. 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 inspection and copying at

the Commission’s Public Reference

Section, 450 Fifth Street, N.W.,

Washington, D.C. 20549. Copies of such

filing will also be available for

inspection and copying at the principal

office of the Amex. All submissions

should refer to SR-Amex-96–18 and

should be submitted by June 27, 1996.

For the Commission, by the Division of

Market Regulation, pursuant to delegated

authority.1

Jonathan G. Katz,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 96–14179 Filed 6–5–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8010–01–M

[Release No. 34–37251; International Series

Release No. 987; File No. SR–CBOE–96–

32]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Notice

of Filing and Order Granting

Accelerated Approval of Proposed

Rule Change by the Chicago Board

Options Exchange, Inc., To Change the

Method for Determining the Exercise

Settlement Value of Options on the

Mexican Indice de Precios y

Cotizaciones

May 29, 1996.

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 16,

1996, the Chicago Board Options

Exchange, Inc. (‘‘CBOE’’ or ‘‘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 CBOE has requested

accelerated approval for the proposal.

This order approves the CBOE’s

proposal on an accelerated basis and

solicits comments from interested

persons.

I. Self-Regulatory Organizations’s

Statement of the Terms of Substance of

the Proposed Rule Change

The CBOE is proposing to allow for an

alternative method of determining the

settlement value of options on the

Mexican Indice de Precios y

Cotizaciones (‘‘IPC’’ or ‘‘Index’’).3

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

CBOE 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 III below. The CBOE 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 Exchange Rule 24.9

to provide the Mexican Stock Exchange

(‘‘Bolsa’’) with the discretion to utilize

either the closing prices of the

component securities or a weighted

average of the prices for each of the

component securities in determining the

exercise settlement value of IPC options.

Currently, the settlement value of the

IPC is determined based upon the

closing prices of the component stocks

on the regular Friday trading sessions in

Mexico.4

If the Bolsa elects to use the weighted

average methodology, the IPC’s

settlement value will be determined by

reference to transactions in the

component securities during a period of

time at the end of the trading day

immediately preceding expiration, or in

the cases described below on the

Thursday before expiration. The

Exchange notes, however, that if a stock

fails to open for trading or if a stock fails

to trade during the time period when its

value is determined, the stock’s last

available price will be used in the

calculation of the IPC. In addition, when

expirations are moved in accordance

with Exchange holidays, such as when

the CBOE is closed on the Friday before

expiration, the last trading day for

expiring IPC Index options will be the

regular Thursday trading session in

Mexico even if the Mexican markets are

open on Friday. Similarly, if the