46870 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 193 / Friday, October 6, 2017 / Notices 

19See note 18, supra. 

20 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(iii). 

21 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6). 

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

23 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6). As required under Rule 

19b–4(f)(6)(iii), the Exchange provided the 

Commission with written notice of its intent to file 

the proposed rule change, along with a brief 

description and the text of the proposed rule 

change, at least five business days prior to the date 

of filing of the proposed rule change, or such 

shorter time as designated by the Commission. 

24For purposes only of waiving the 30-day 

operative delay, the Commission has considered the 

proposed rule’s impact on efficiency, competition, 

and capital formation. See 15 U.S.C. 78c(f). 

25 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 

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

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

3See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 81062 

(June 30, 2017), 82 FR 31651. 

the needs of the market and regulators 

(including the IOSCO Principles 19). 

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 that is not 

necessary or appropriate in furtherance 

of the purposes of the Act. The 

proposed rule change will facilitate the 

continued administration of the LBMA 

Silver Price utilizing a fully auditable 

auction process and will promote 

market competition by permitting the 

continued listing and trading of shares 

of the Silver Trusts and the Silver Funds 

utilizing the LBMA Silver Price. 

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 

The Exchange has filed the proposed 

rule change pursuant to Section 

19(b)(3)(A)(iii) of the Act 20 and Rule 

19b–4(f)(6) thereunder.21 Because the 

foregoing proposed rule change does 

not: (i) Significantly affect the 

protection of investors or the public 

interest, (ii) impose any significant 

burden on competition, and (iii) become 

operative for 30 days from the date on 

which it was filed, or such shorter time 

as the Commission may designate, it has 

become effective pursuant to Section 

19(b)(3)(A) of the Act 22 and Rule 19b– 

4(f)(6) thereunder.23

A proposed rule change filed under 

Rule 19b–4(f)(6) normally does not 

become operative prior to 30 days after 

the date of the filing. However, pursuant 

to Rule 19b–4(f)(6)(iii), the Commission 

may designate a shorter time if such 

action is consistent with the protection 

of investors and the public interest. The 

Exchange has asked the Commission to 

waive the 30-day operative delay so that 

the proposal may become operative 

immediately upon filing. As noted 

above, the administrator for the LBMA 

Silver Price will change from CME and 

Thomson Reuters to IBA, effective 

October 2, 2017. The Commission 

believes that waiver of the operative 

delay is consistent with the protection 

of investors and the public interest as it 

will prevent the disruption in the 

trading of the Silver Trust and the Silver 

Fund shares. Therefore, the Commission 

designates the proposed rule change to 

be operative upon filing.24

At any time within 60 days of the 

filing of the proposed rule change, the 

Commission summarily may 

temporarily suspend such rule change if 

it appears to the Commission that such 

action is necessary or appropriate in the 

public interest, for the protection of 

investors, or otherwise in furtherance of 

the purposes of the Act. 

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– 

NYSEArca–2017–113 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–NYSEArca–2017–113. 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 Web site (http://www.sec.gov/ 

rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the 

submission, all subsequent 

amendments, all written statements 

with respect to the proposed rule 

change that are filed with the 

Commission, and all written 

communications relating to the 

proposed rule change between the 

Commission and any person, other than 

those that may be withheld from the 

public in accordance with the 

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

available for Web site viewing and 

printing in the Commission’s Public 

Reference Room, 100 F Street 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; 

the Commission does not edit personal 

identifying information from 

submissions. You should submit only 

information that you wish to make 

available publicly. All submissions 

should refer to File Number SR– 

NYSEArca–2017–113 and should be 

submitted on or before October 27, 

2017. 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.25

Eduardo A. Aleman, 

Assistant Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2017–21536 Filed 10–5–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–81794; File No. SR– 

NYSEArca–2017–56] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE 

Arca, Inc.; Order Instituting 

Proceedings To Determine Whether To 

Approve or Disapprove a Proposed 

Rule Change, as Modified by 

Amendment No. 1, To List and Trade 

Pursuant to NYSE Arca Rule 5.2–E(j)(3) 

Twelve Series of Investment Company 

Units 

DATE: October 2, 2017. 

I. Introduction 

On June 19, 2017, NYSE Arca, Inc. 

(‘‘Exchange’’ or ‘‘NYSE Arca’’) filed 

with the Securities and Exchange 

Commission (‘‘Commission’’), pursuant 

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

Exchange Act of 1934 (‘‘Act’’) 1 and Rule 

19b–4 thereunder,2 a proposed rule 

change to list and trade certain series of 

Investment Company Units listed 

pursuant to NYSE Arca Rule 5.2–E(j)(3). 

The proposed rule change was 

published for comment in the Federal 

Register on July 7, 2017.3 On August 7, 

2017, the Exchange filed Amendment 

No. 1 to the proposed rule change, 

which amended and superseded the 


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4 In Amendment No. 1, the Exchange: (1) 

Described the investment objective of each fund; (2) 

described investment eligibility criteria and 

restrictions for each fund; (3) clarified that the Web 

site for each fund will contain its prospectus and 

additional data; (4) clarified that the Exchange has 

obtained a representation from each fund issuer that 

the applicable net asset value for each fund will be 

calculated daily and made available to all market 

participants at the same time; (5) clarified that none 

of the indexes underlying the funds are maintained 

by a broker-dealer; and (6) made technical changes. 

Amendment No. 1 to the proposed rule change is 

available at: https://www.sec.gov/comments/srnysearca-2017-56/nysearca201756.htm. 

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

6See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 81400, 

82 FR 39643 (August 21, 2017). The Commission 

designated October 5, 2017, as the date by which 

the Commission shall either approve or disapprove, 

or institute proceedings to determine whether to 

disapprove, the proposed rule change. 

7 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2)(B). 

8The Commission notes that, although the Shares 

do not meet the standards set forth in Commentary 

.02 to Rule 5.2–E(j)(3), the Exchange nevertheless 

listed the Shares prior to 2010. 

9See Commentary .02(a)(2) to NYSE Arca Rule 

5.2–E(j)(3). 

10Additional information regarding the Funds 

and their underlying indexes can be found in 

Amendment No. 1. See supra note 4. 

proposed rule change as originally 

filed.4 On August 15, 2017, pursuant to 

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

Commission designated a longer period 

within which to approve the proposed 

rule change, disapprove the proposed 

rule change, or institute proceedings to 

determine whether to disapprove the 

proposed rule change.6 The Commission 

has received no comment letters on the 

proposed rule change. This order 

institutes proceedings under Section 

19(b)(2)(B) of the Act 7 to determine 

whether to approve or disapprove the 

proposed rule change, as modified by 

Amendment No. 1. 

II. Exchange’s Description of the 

Proposed Rule Change, as Modified by 

Amendment No. 1 

The Exchange proposes to list and 

trade pursuant to NYSE Arca Rule 5.2– 

E(j)(3) shares (‘‘Shares’’) of the following 

series of Investment Company Units: (1) 

iShares National Muni Bond ETF; (2) 

iShares Short-Term National Muni Bond 

ETF; (3) VanEck Vectors AMT-Free 

Intermediate Municipal Index ETF; (4) 

VanEck Vectors AMT-Free Long 

Municipal Index ETF; (5) VanEck 

Vectors AMT-Free Short Municipal 

Index ETF; (6) VanEck Vectors HighYield Municipal Index ETF; (7) VanEck 

Vectors Pre-Refunded Municipal Index 

ETF; (8) PowerShares VRDO Tax-Free 

Weekly Portfolio; (9) SPDR Nuveen 

Bloomberg Barclays Short Term 

Municipal Bond ETF; (10) SPDR 

Nuveen Bloomberg Barclays Municipal 

Bond ETF (collectively, the ‘‘Multistate 

Municipal Bond Funds’’); (11) iShares 

California Muni Bond ETF; and (12) 

iShares New York Muni Bond ETF 

(collectively, the ‘‘Single-State 

Municipal Bond Funds’’ and, together 

with the Multistate Municipal Bond 

Funds, the ‘‘Municipal Bond Funds’’).8

The Single-State Municipal Bond Funds 

overlie an index comprised of the fixed 

income municipal bond securities of 

one State; the Multistate Municipal 

Bond Funds overlie an index comprised 

of the fixed income municipal bond 

securities of more than one State. 

Commentary .02 to Rule 5.2(j)(3) sets 

forth the generic listing requirements for 

an index of fixed income securities 

underlying a series of Investment 

Company Units. One of the enumerated 

listing requirements is that component 

fixed income securities that, in the 

aggregate, account for at least 75% of 

the weight of the index each shall have 

a minimum principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more.9

The Exchange states that none of the 

indexes underlying the Municipal Bond 

Funds satisfy this criterion but 

represents that each of the underlying 

indexes meet all of the other 

requirements of such rule. 

A. The Exchange’s Description of the 

Municipal Bond Funds and Their 

Underlying Indexes 10

1. iShares National Muni Bond ETF 

The iShares National Muni Bond ETF 

seeks to track the investment results of 

the S&P National AMT-Free Municipal 

Bond Index, which measures the 

performance of the investment grade 

segment of the U.S. municipal bond 

market. The S&P National AMT-Free 

Municipal Bond Index primarily 

includes municipal bonds from issuers 

that are state or local governments or 

agencies such that the interest on each 

such bond is exempt from U.S. federal 

income taxes and the federal alternative 

minimum tax. Each bond in the S&P 

National AMT-Free Municipal Bond 

Index must have a rating of at least 

BBB¥ by S&P Global Ratings (‘‘S&P’’), 

Baa3 by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. 

(‘‘Moody’s’’), or BBB¥ by Fitch Ratings, 

Inc. (‘‘Fitch’’). Each bond in the S&P 

National AMT-Free Municipal Bond 

Index must be denominated in U.S. 

dollars, must be a constituent of an 

offering where the original offering 

amount was at least $100 million, and 

must have a minimum par amount of 

$25 million. To remain in the S&P 

National AMT-Free Municipal Bond 

Index, bonds must maintain a minimum 

par amount greater than or equal to $25 

million as of the next rebalancing date. 

As of April 1, 2017, the S&P National 

AMT-Free Municipal Bond Index 

included 11,333 component fixed 

income municipal bond securities from 

issuers in 47 different states or U.S. 

territories. The most heavily weighted 

security in the index represented 

approximately 0.25% of the total weight 

of the index and the aggregate weight of 

the top five most heavily weighted 

securities in the index represented less 

than 1% of the total weight of the index. 

Approximately 99.29% of the weight of 

the index components was composed of 

individual maturities that were part of 

an entire municipal bond offering with 

a minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more for 

all maturities in the offering. 

Approximately 31.79% of the weight of 

the components in the index had a 

minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more. In 

addition, the total dollar amount 

outstanding of issues in the index was 

approximately $628,460,731,594, and 

the average dollar amount outstanding 

of issues in the index was 

approximately $55,454,048. 

Generally, the iShares National Muni 

Bond ETF invests at least 90% of its 

assets in the component securities of the 

S&P National AMT-Free Municipal 

Bond Index and may invest up to 10% 

of its assets in certain futures, options 

and swap contracts, cash and cash 

equivalents, including shares of money 

market funds, as well as in securities 

not included in the S&P National AMTFree Municipal Bond Index, but which 

the fund’s investment advisor believes 

will help the fund track the S&P 

National AMT-Free Municipal Bond 

Index. 

2. iShares Short Term National Muni 

Bond ETF 

The iShares Short Term National 

Muni Bond ETF seeks to track the 

investment results of the S&P Short 

Term National AMT-Free Municipal 

Bond Index, which measures the 

performance of the short-term 

investment grade segment of the U.S. 

municipal bond market. The S&P Short 

Term National AMT-Free Municipal 

Bond Index primarily includes 

municipal bonds from issuers that are 

state or local governments or agencies 

such that the interest on each such bond 

is exempt from U.S. federal income 

taxes and the federal alternative 

minimum tax (‘‘AMT’’). Each bond in 

the S&P Short Term National AMT-Free 

Municipal Bond Index must have a 

rating of at least BBB¥ by S&P, Baa3 by 

Moody’s, or BBB¥ by Fitch. Each bond 

in the S&P Short Term National AMTFree Municipal Bond Index must be 


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46872 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 193 / Friday, October 6, 2017 / Notices 

denominated in U.S. dollars, must be a 

constituent of an offering where the 

original offering amount was at least 

$100 million, and must have a 

minimum par amount of $25 million. To 

remain in the S&P Short Term National 

AMT-Free Municipal Bond Index, 

bonds must maintain a minimum par 

amount greater than or equal to $25 

million as of the next rebalancing date. 

As of April 1, 2017, the S&P Short 

Term National AMT-Free Municipal 

Bond Index included 3,309 component 

fixed income municipal bond securities 

from issuers in 44 different states or 

U.S. territories. The most heavily 

weighted security in the index 

represented approximately 1% of the 

total weight of the index and the 

aggregate weight of the top five most 

heavily weighted securities in the index 

represented approximately 2% of the 

total weight of the index. 

Approximately 98.22% of the weight of 

the index components was composed of 

individual maturities that were part of 

an entire municipal bond offering with 

a minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more for 

all maturities in the offering. 

Approximately 27.63% of the weight of 

the components in the index had a 

minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more. In 

addition, the total dollar amount 

outstanding of issues in the index was 

approximately $166,147,941,156, and 

the average dollar amount outstanding 

of issues in the index was 

approximately $50,210,922. 

Generally, the iShares National Muni 

Bond ETF invests at least 90% of its 

assets in the component securities of the 

S&P Short Term National AMT-Free 

Municipal Bond Index and may invest 

up to 10% of its assets in certain 

futures, options and swap contracts, 

cash and cash equivalents, including 

shares of money market funds, as well 

as in securities not included in the S&P 

Short Term National AMT-Free 

Municipal Bond Index, but which the 

fund’s investment advisor believes will 

help the fund track the S&P Short Term 

National AMT-Free Municipal Bond 

Index. 

3. VanEck Vectors AMT-Free 

Intermediate Municipal Index ETF 

The VanEck Vectors AMT-Free 

Intermediate Municipal Index ETF seeks 

to replicate as closely as possible, before 

fees and expenses, the price and yield 

performance of the Bloomberg Barclays 

AMT-Free Intermediate Continuous 

Municipal Index. The Bloomberg 

Barclays AMT-Free Intermediate 

Continuous Municipal Index is a market 

size weighted index comprised of 

publicly traded municipal bonds that 

cover the U.S. dollar-denominated 

intermediate term tax-exempt bond 

market. To be included in the 

Bloomberg Barclays AMT-Free 

Intermediate Continuous Municipal 

Index, a bond must be rated Baa3/BBB¥ 

or higher by at least two of the following 

ratings agencies if all three agencies rate 

the security: Moody’s, S&P, and Fitch. If 

only one of the three agencies rates a 

security, the rating must be at least 

Baa3/BBB¥. Constituent securities of 

the Bloomberg Barclays AMT-Free 

Intermediate Continuous Municipal 

Index must have an outstanding par 

value of at least $7 million and be 

issued as part of a transaction of at least 

$75 million. 

As of April 1, 2017, the Bloomberg 

Barclays AMT-Free Intermediate 

Continuous Municipal Index included 

17,272 component fixed income 

municipal bond securities from issuers 

in 50 different states or U.S. territories. 

The most heavily weighted security in 

the index represented less than 0.25% 

of the total weight of the index and the 

aggregate weight of the top five most 

heavily weighted securities in the index 

represented approximately 0.50% of the 

total weight of the index. 

Approximately 96.13% of the weight of 

the index components was composed of 

individual maturities that were part of 

an entire municipal bond offering with 

a minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more for 

all maturities in the offering. 

Approximately 7.75% of the weight of 

the components in the index had a 

minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more. In 

addition, the total dollar amount 

outstanding of issues in the index was 

approximately $340,102,539,050, and 

the average dollar amount outstanding 

of issues in the index was 

approximately $19,690,976. 

Normally, the VanEck Vectors AMTFree Intermediate Municipal Index ETF 

invests at least 80% of its total assets in 

fixed income securities that comprise 

the Bloomberg Barclays AMT-Free 

Intermediate Continuous Municipal 

Index. 

4. VanEck Vectors AMT-Free Long 

Municipal Index ETF 

The VanEck Vectors AMT-Free Long 

Municipal Index ETF seeks to replicate 

as closely as possible, before fees and 

expenses, the price and yield 

performance of the Bloomberg Barclays 

AMT-Free Long Continuous Municipal 

Index. The Bloomberg Barclays AMTFree Long Continuous Municipal Index 

is a market size weighted index 

comprised of publicly traded municipal 

bonds that cover the U.S. dollar 

denominated long-term tax-exempt 

bond market. To be included in the 

Bloomberg Barclays AMT-Free Long 

Continuous Municipal Index, bonds 

must be rated Baa3/BBB¥ or higher by 

at least two of the following ratings 

agencies if all three agencies rate the 

security: Moody’s, S&P, and Fitch. If 

only one of the three agencies rates a 

security, the rating must be at least 

Baa3/BBB¥. Constituent securities of 

the Bloomberg Barclays AMT-Free Long 

Continuous Municipal Index must have 

an outstanding par value of at least $7 

million and be issued as part of a 

transaction of at least $75 million. 

As of April 1, 2017, the Bloomberg 

Barclays AMT-Free Long Continuous 

Municipal Index included 7,657 

component fixed income municipal 

bond securities from issuers in 50 

different states or U.S. territories. The 

most heavily weighted security in the 

index represented less than 0.50% of 

the total weight of the index and the 

aggregate weight of the top five most 

heavily weighted securities in the index 

represented approximately 1.25% of the 

total weight of the index. 

Approximately 93.84% of the weight of 

the index components was composed of 

individual maturities that were part of 

an entire municipal bond offering with 

a minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more for 

all maturities in the offering. 

Approximately 32.34% of the weight of 

the components in the index had a 

minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more. In 

addition, the total dollar amount 

outstanding of issues in the index was 

approximately $279,575,285,082, and 

the average dollar amount outstanding 

of issues in the index was 

approximately $36,512,379. 

Normally, the VanEck Vectors AMTFree Long Municipal Index ETF invests 

at least 80% of its total assets in fixed 

income securities that comprise the 

Bloomberg Barclays AMT-Free Long 

Continuous Municipal Index. 

5. VanEck Vectors AMT-Free Short 

Municipal Index ETF 

The VanEck Vectors AMT-Free Short 

Municipal Index ETF seeks to replicate 

as closely as possible, before fees and 

expenses, the price and yield 

performance of the Bloomberg Barclays 

AMT-Free Short Continuous Municipal 

Index. The Bloomberg Barclays AMTFree Short Continuous Municipal Index 

is a market size weighted index 

comprised of publicly traded municipal 

bonds that cover the U.S. dollar 

denominated short-term tax-exempt 

bond market. To be included in the 


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Bloomberg Barclays AMT-Free Short 

Continuous Municipal Index, bonds 

must be rated Baa3/BBB¥ or higher by 

at least two of the following ratings 

agencies if all three agencies rate the 

security: Moody’s, S&P, and Fitch. If 

only one of the three agencies rates a 

security, the rating must be at least 

Baa3/BBB¥. Constituent securities of 

the Bloomberg Barclays AMT-Free Short 

Continuous Municipal Index must have 

an outstanding par value of at least $7 

million and be issued as part of a 

transaction of at least $75 million. 

As of April 1, 2017, the Bloomberg 

Barclays AMT-Free Short Continuous 

Municipal Index included 7,229 

component fixed income municipal 

bond securities from issuers in 48 

different states or U.S. territories. The 

most heavily weighted security in the 

index represented approximately 1% of 

the total weight of the index and the 

aggregate weight of the top five most 

heavily weighted securities in the index 

represented approximately 2.25% of the 

total weight of the index. 

Approximately 94.4% of the weight of 

the index components was composed of 

individual maturities that were part of 

an entire municipal bond offering with 

a minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more for 

all maturities in the offering. 

Approximately 13.60% of the weight of 

the components in the index had a 

minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more. In 

addition, the total dollar amount 

outstanding of issues in the index was 

approximately $152,020,140,995, and 

the average dollar amount outstanding 

of issues in the index was 

approximately $21,026,299. 

Normally, the VanEck Vectors AMTFree Short Municipal Index ETF invests 

at least 80% of its total assets in fixed 

income securities that comprise the 

Bloomberg Barclays AMT-Free Short 

Continuous Municipal Index. 

6. VanEck Vectors High-Yield 

Municipal Index ETF 

The VanEck Vectors High-Yield 

Municipal Index ETF seeks to replicate 

as closely as possible, before fees and 

expenses, the price and yield 

performance of the Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Custom High Yield 

Composite Index. The Bloomberg 

Barclays Municipal Custom High Yield 

Composite Index is a market size 

weighted index composed of publicly 

traded municipal bonds that cover the 

U.S. dollar denominated high yield 

long-term tax-exempt bond market. The 

Bloomberg Barclays Municipal Custom 

High Yield Composite Index is 

calculated using a market value 

weighting methodology, provided that 

the total allocation to issuers from each 

individual territory of the United States 

(including Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. 

Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and 

the Northern Mariana Islands) does not 

exceed 4%. The Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Custom High Yield 

Composite Index tracks the high yield 

municipal bond market with a 75% 

weight in non-investment grade 

municipal bonds and a targeted 25% 

weight in Baa/BBB rated investment 

grade municipal bonds. 

As of April 1, 2017, the Bloomberg 

Barclays Municipal Custom High Yield 

Composite Index included 4,702 

component fixed income municipal 

bond securities from issuers in 50 

different states or U.S. territories. The 

most heavily weighted security in the 

index represented approximately 1.25% 

of the total weight of the index, and the 

aggregate weight of the top five most 

heavily weighted securities in the index 

represented approximately 6% of the 

total weight of the index. 

Approximately 75.16% of the weight of 

the index components was composed of 

individual maturities that were part of 

an entire municipal bond offering with 

a minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more for 

all maturities in the offering. 

Approximately 43.26% of the weight of 

the components in the index had a 

minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more. In 

addition, the total dollar amount 

outstanding of issues in the index was 

approximately $224,318,153,150, and 

the average dollar amount outstanding 

of issues in the index was 

approximately $47,706,966. 

Normally, the VanEck Vectors HighYield Municipal Index ETF invests at 

least 80% of its total assets in securities 

that comprise the Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Custom High Yield 

Composite Index. 

7. VanEck Vectors Pre-Refunded 

Municipal Index ETF 

The VanEck Vectors Pre-Refunded 

Municipal Index ETF seeks to replicate 

as closely as possible, before fees and 

expenses, the price and yield 

performance of the Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Pre-Refunded—TreasuryEscrowed Index. The Bloomberg 

Barclays Municipal Pre-Refunded— 

Treasury-Escrowed Index is a market 

size weighted index comprised of 

publicly traded municipal bonds that 

cover the U.S. dollar denominated taxexempt bond market. The Bloomberg 

Barclays Municipal Pre-Refunded— 

Treasury-Escrowed Index is comprised 

of pre-refunded and/or escrowed-tomaturity municipal bonds. To be 

included in the Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Pre-Refunded—TreasuryEscrowed Index, bonds must have an 

explicit or implicit credit rating of AAA. 

Constituent securities of the Bloomberg 

Barclays Municipal Pre-Refunded— 

Treasury-Escrowed Index must have an 

outstanding par value of at least $7 

million and be issued as part of a 

transaction of at least $75 million in 

market value. 

As of April 1, 2017, the Bloomberg 

Barclays Municipal Pre-RefundedTreasury-Escrowed Index included 

3,691 component fixed income 

municipal bond securities from issuers 

in 50 different states or U.S. territories. 

The most heavily weighted security in 

the index represented approximately 

0.50% of the total weight of the index 

and the aggregate weight of the top five 

most heavily weighted securities in the 

index represented approximately 2.25% 

of the total weight of the index. 

Approximately 93.70% of the weight of 

the index components was composed of 

individual maturities that were part of 

an entire municipal bond offering with 

a minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more for 

all maturities in the offering. 

Approximately 19.23% of the weight of 

the components in the index had a 

minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more. In 

addition, the total dollar amount 

outstanding of issues in the index was 

approximately $94,289,476,486, and the 

average dollar amount outstanding of 

issues in the index was approximately 

$25,545,780. 

Normally, the VanEck Vectors PreRefunded Municipal Index ETF invests 

at least 80% of its total assets in 

securities that comprise the Bloomberg 

Barclays Municipal Pre-Refunded— 

Treasury-Escrowed Index. 

8. PowerShares VRDO Tax-Free Weekly 

Portfolio 

The PowerShares VRDO Tax-Free 

Weekly Portfolio seeks investment 

results that generally correspond (before 

fees and expenses) to the price and yield 

of the Bloomberg U.S. Municipal AMTFree Weekly VRDO Index. The 

Bloomberg U.S. Municipal AMT-Free 

Weekly VRDO Index is comprised of 

municipal securities issued in the 

primary market as variable rate demand 

obligation (‘‘VRDO’’) bonds. Only 

VRDOs whose interest rates are reset 

weekly are included in the Bloomberg 

U.S. Municipal AMT-Free Weekly 

VRDO Index, and the Bloomberg U.S. 

Municipal AMT-Free Weekly VRDO 

Index excludes secondary or derivative 

VRDOs (tender option bonds). To be 


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46874 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 193 / Friday, October 6, 2017 / Notices 

included in the Bloomberg U.S. 

Municipal AMT-Free Weekly VRDO 

Index, constituents must be rated by at 

least one of the following statistical 

rating agencies at the following 

minimum ratings: Moody’s as A¥3 for 

long-term bonds or Prime-2 for shortterm bonds; by S&P as A¥ for long-term 

bonds or A¥2 for short-term bonds; and 

by Fitch as A¥ for long-term bonds or 

F¥2 for short-term bonds. 

As of April 1, 2017, the Bloomberg US 

Municipal AMT-Free Weekly VRDO 

Index included 1,494 component fixed 

income municipal bond securities from 

issuers in 49 different states or U.S. 

territories. The most heavily weighted 

security in the index represented 

approximately 0.75% of the total weight 

of the index and the aggregate weight of 

the top five most heavily weighted 

securities in the index represented 

approximately 2.75% of the total weight 

of the index. Approximately 44.76% of 

the weight of the index components was 

composed of individual maturities that 

were part of an entire municipal bond 

offering with a minimum original 

principal amount outstanding of $100 

million or more for all maturities in the 

offering. Approximately 34.88% of the 

weight of the components in the index 

had a minimum original principal 

amount outstanding of $100 million or 

more. In addition, the total dollar 

amount outstanding of issues in the 

index was approximately 

$68,489,564,000, and the average dollar 

amount outstanding of issues in the 

index was approximately $45,843,082. 

Generally, the PowerShares VRDO 

Tax-Free Weekly Portfolio invests at 

least 80% of its total assets in VRDO 

bonds that are exempt from federal 

income tax with interest rates that reset 

weekly that comprise the Bloomberg 

U.S. Municipal AMT-Free Weekly 

VRDO Index. 

9. SPDR Nuveen Bloomberg Barclays 

Short Term Municipal Bond ETF 

The SPDR Nuveen Bloomberg 

Barclays Short Term Municipal Bond 

ETF seeks to provide investment results 

that, before fees and expenses, 

correspond generally to the price and 

yield performance of the Bloomberg 

Barclays Managed Money Municipal 

Short Term Index which tracks the short 

term tax exempt municipal bond 

market. The Bloomberg Barclays 

Managed Money Municipal Short Term 

Index is designed to track the publicly 

traded municipal bonds that cover the 

U.S. dollar denominated short term tax 

exempt bond market, including state 

and local general obligation bonds, 

revenue bonds, pre-refunded bonds, and 

insured bonds. All bonds in the 

Bloomberg Barclays Managed Money 

Municipal Short Term Index must be 

rated Aa3/AA¥ or higher by at least 

two of the following statistical ratings 

agencies: Moody’s, S&P, or Fitch. If only 

one of the agencies rates the security, 

the rating must be at least Aa3/AA¥. 

Each security in the Bloomberg Barclays 

Managed Money Municipal Short Term 

Index must have an outstanding par 

value of at least $7 million and be 

issued as part of a transaction of at least 

$75 million. 

As of April 1, 2017, the Bloomberg 

Barclays Managed Money Municipal 

Short Term Index included 4,263 

component fixed income municipal 

bond securities from issuers in 44 

different states or U.S. territories. The 

most heavily weighted security in the 

index represented approximately 0.75% 

of the total weight of the index, and the 

aggregate weight of the top five most 

heavily weighted securities in the index 

represented approximately 2% of the 

total weight of the index. 

Approximately 94.54% of the weight of 

the index components was composed of 

individual maturities that were part of 

an entire municipal bond offering with 

a minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more for 

all maturities in the offering. 

Approximately 10.82% of the weight of 

the components in the index had a 

minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more. In 

addition, the total dollar amount 

outstanding of issues in the index was 

approximately $85,187,709,681, and the 

average dollar amount outstanding of 

issues in the index was approximately 

$19,983,042. 

Under normal market conditions, the 

SPDR Nuveen Bloomberg Barclays Short 

Term Municipal Bond ETF generally 

invests substantially all, but at least 

80%, of its total assets in the securities 

comprising the Bloomberg Barclays 

Managed Money Municipal Short Term 

Index or in securities that the fund’s 

sub-adviser determines have economic 

characteristics that are substantially 

identical to the economic characteristics 

of the securities that comprise the 

Bloomberg Barclays Managed Money 

Municipal Short Term Index. In 

addition, the SPDR Nuveen Bloomberg 

Barclays Short Term Municipal Bond 

ETF may invest in debt securities that 

are not included in the Bloomberg 

Barclays Managed Money Municipal 

Short Term Index, cash and cash 

equivalents or money market 

instruments, such as repurchase 

agreements and money market funds. 

10. SPDR Nuveen Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Bond ETF 

The Exchange states that, according to 

its prospectus, the SPDR Nuveen 

Bloomberg Barclays Municipal Bond 

ETF seeks to provide investment results 

that, before fees and expenses, 

correspond generally to the price and 

yield performance of the Bloomberg 

Barclays Municipal Managed Money 

Index which tracks the U.S. municipal 

bond market. The Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Managed Money Index is 

designed to track the U.S. long term taxexempt bond market, including state 

and local general obligation bonds, 

revenue bonds, pre-refunded bonds, and 

insured bonds. The Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Managed Money Index is 

comprised of tax-exempt municipal 

securities issued by states, cities, 

counties, districts and their respective 

agencies. The Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Managed Money Index also 

includes municipal lease obligations, 

which are securities issued by state and 

local governments and authorities to 

finance the acquisition of equipment 

and facilities. All bonds in the 

Bloomberg Barclays Municipal Managed 

Money Index must be rated Aa3/AA¥ 

or higher by at least two of the following 

statistical ratings agencies: Moody’s, 

S&P, and Fitch. If only one of the 

agencies rates the security, the rating 

must be at least Aa3/AA¥. Each 

security in the Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Managed Money Index must 

have an outstanding par value of at least 

$7 million and be issued as part of a 

transaction of at least $75 million. 

As of April 1, 2017, the Bloomberg 

Barclays Municipal Managed Money 

Index included 22,247 component fixed 

income municipal bond securities from 

issuers in 48 different states or U.S. 

territories. The most heavily weighted 

security in the index represented less 

than 0.25% of the total weight of the 

index, and the aggregate weight of the 

top five most heavily weighted 

securities in the index represented 

approximately 0.50% of the total weight 

of the index. Approximately 95.05% of 

the weight of the index components was 

composed of individual maturities that 

were part of an entire municipal bond 

offering with a minimum original 

principal amount outstanding of $100 

million or more for all maturities in the 

offering. Approximately 13.35% of the 

weight of the components in the index 

had a minimum original principal 

amount outstanding of $100 million or 

more. In addition, the total dollar 

amount outstanding of issues in the 

index was approximately 

$496,240,108,998, and the average 


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dollar amount outstanding of issues in 

the index was approximately 

$22,305,934. 

Under normal market conditions, the 

SPDR Nuveen Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Bond ETF generally invests 

substantially all, but at least 80%, of its 

total assets in the securities comprising 

the Bloomberg Barclays Municipal 

Managed Money Index or in securities 

that the fund’s sub-adviser determines 

have economic characteristics that are 

substantially identical to the economic 

characteristics of the securities that 

comprise the Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Managed Money Index. In 

addition, the SPDR Nuveen Bloomberg 

Barclays Municipal Bond ETF may 

invest in debt securities that are not 

included in the Bloomberg Barclays 

Municipal Managed Money Index, cash 

and cash equivalents or money market 

instruments, such as repurchase 

agreements and money market funds. 

11. iShares California Muni Bond ETF 

The iShares California Muni Bond 

ETF seeks to track the investment 

results of the S&P California AMT-Free 

Municipal Bond Index, which measures 

the performance of the investment grade 

segment of the California municipal 

bond market. The S&P California AMTFree Municipal Bond Index is a subset 

of the S&P National AMT-Free 

Municipal Bond Index and is comprised 

of municipal bonds issued in the State 

of California. The S&P California AMTFree Municipal Bond Index primarily 

includes municipal bonds from issuers 

in California that are California state or 

local governments or agencies whose 

interest payments are exempt from U.S. 

federal and California state income taxes 

and the federal alternative minimum 

tax. Each bond in the S&P California 

AMT-Free Municipal Bond Index must 

have a rating of at least BBB¥ by S&P, 

Baa3 by Moody’s, or BBB¥ by Fitch. 

Each bond in the S&P California AMTFree Municipal Bond Index must be 

denominated in U.S. dollars, must be a 

constituent of an offering where the 

original offering amount was at least 

$100 million, and must have a 

minimum par amount of $25 million. To 

remain in the S&P California AMT-Free 

Municipal Bond Index, bonds must 

maintain a minimum par amount greater 

than or equal to $25 million as of the 

next rebalancing date. 

As of April 1, 2017, the S&P 

California AMT-Free Municipal Bond 

Index included 2,115 component fixed 

income municipal bond securities from 

more than 150 distinct municipal bond 

issuers in the State of California. The 

most heavily weighted security in the 

index represented approximately 0.50% 

of the total weight of the index, and the 

aggregate weight of the top five most 

heavily weighted securities in the index 

represented approximately 2.75% of the 

total weight of the index. 

Approximately 96.31% of the weight of 

the index components was composed of 

individual maturities that were part of 

an entire municipal bond offering with 

a minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more for 

all maturities in the offering. 

Approximately 38.89% of the weight of 

the components in the index had a 

minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more. In 

addition, the total dollar amount 

outstanding of issues in the index was 

approximately $137,796,471,640, and 

the average dollar amount outstanding 

of issues in the index was 

approximately $65,151,996. 

Generally, the iShares California 

Muni Bond ETF invests at least 90% of 

its assets in the component securities of 

the S&P California AMT-Free Municipal 

Bond Index and may invest up to 10% 

of its assets in certain futures, options 

and swap contracts, cash and cash 

equivalents, including shares of money 

market funds, as well as in securities 

not included in the S&P California 

AMT-Free Municipal Bond Index, but 

which the fund’s investment advisor 

believes will help the fund track the 

S&P California AMT-Free Municipal 

Bond Index. 

12. iShares New York Muni Bond ETF 

The iShares New York Muni Bond 

ETF seeks to track the investment 

results of the S&P New York AMT-Free 

Municipal Bond Index, which measures 

the performance of the investment grade 

segment of the New York municipal 

bond market. The S&P New York AMTFree Municipal Bond Index is a subset 

of the S&P National AMT-Free 

Municipal Bond Index and is comprised 

of municipal bonds issued in the State 

of New York. The S&P New York AMTFree Municipal Bond Index primarily 

includes municipal bonds from issuers 

in New York that are New York state or 

local governments or agencies whose 

interest payments are exempt from U.S. 

federal and New York State personal 

income taxes and the federal alternative 

minimum tax. Each bond in the S&P 

New York AMT-Free Municipal Bond 

Index must have a rating of at least 

BBB¥ by S&P, Baa3 by Moody’s, or 

BBB¥ by Fitch. Each bond in the S&P 

New York AMT-Free Municipal Bond 

Index must be denominated in U.S. 

dollars, must be a constituent of an 

offering where the original offering 

amount was at least $100 million, and 

must have a minimum par amount of 

$25 million. To remain in the S&P New 

York AMT-Free Municipal Bond Index, 

bonds must maintain a minimum par 

amount greater than or equal to $25 

million as of the next rebalancing date. 

As of April 1, 2017, the S&P New 

York AMT-Free Municipal Bond Index 

included 2,191 component fixed income 

municipal bond securities from more 

than 20 distinct municipal bond issuers 

in the State of New York. The most 

heavily weighted security in the index 

represented approximately 1.50% of the 

total weight of the index, and the 

aggregate weight of the top five most 

heavily weighted securities in the index 

represented approximately 4.25% of the 

total weight of the index. 

Approximately 98.63% of the weight of 

the index components was composed of 

individual maturities that were part of 

an entire municipal bond offering with 

a minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more for 

all maturities in the offering. 

Approximately 34.50% of the weight of 

the components in the index had a 

minimum original principal amount 

outstanding of $100 million or more. In 

addition, the total dollar amount 

outstanding of issues in the index was 

approximately $124,381,556,872, and 

the average dollar amount outstanding 

of issues in the index was 

approximately $56,769,309. 

Generally, the iShares New York 

Muni Bond ETF invests at least 90% of 

its assets in the component securities of 

the S&P New York AMT-Free Municipal 

Bond Index and may invest up to 10% 

of its assets in certain futures, options 

and swap contracts, cash and cash 

equivalents, including shares of money 

market funds, as well as in securities 

not included in the S&P New York 

AMT-Free Municipal Bond Index x, but 

which the fund’s investment advisor 

believes will help the fund track the 

S&P New York AMT-Free Municipal 

Bond Index. 

B. The Continued Listing and Trading of 

the Shares 

The Exchange states that it is 

appropriate to continue to list and trade 

the Shares based on the characteristics 

of the indexes underlying the Municipal 

Bond Funds. According to the 

Exchange, each index underlying the 

Municipal Bond Funds satisfies all of 

the generic listing requirements for 

Investment Company Units based on a 

fixed income index, except for the 

minimum principal amount outstanding 

requirement of Commentary .02(a)(2) to 

Rule 5.2(j)(3). The Exchange asserts that 

a fundamental purpose behind the 

minimum principal amount outstanding 

requirement is to ensure that component 


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11See Amendment No. 1, supra note 4, at 16. 

12See Commentary .02(a)(5) to NYSE Arca Rule 

5.2–E(j)(3). 

13See Commentary .02(a)(4) to NYSE Arca Rule 

5.2–E(j)(3). 

14See Amendment No. 1, supra note 4, at 17. 

15 17 CFR 240.10A–3. 

16An IIV for each Municipal Bond Fund will be 

widely disseminated by one or more major market 

data vendors at least every 15 seconds during the 

Exchange’s Core Trading Session of 9:30 a.m. to 

4:00 p.m., Eastern time. See Amendment No. 1, 

supra note 4, at 18, n.10. The Exchange states that 

currently it understands that several major market 

data vendors display and/or make widely available 

IIVs taken from the Consolidated Tape Association 

or other data feeds. 

17 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2)(B). 

18 Id. 

19 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5). 

20See supra Section II.A. 

21See supra note 3, 82 FR at 31652. 

22See supra note 3, 82 FR at 31653. 

securities of an index are sufficiently 

liquid such that the potential for index 

manipulation is reduced.11 The 

Exchange asserts that each index 

underlying the Municipal Bond Funds 

is a broad-based index of fixed income 

municipal bond securities that is not 

readily susceptible to manipulation. 

With respect to the Multistate 

Municipal Bond Funds, the Exchange 

states: (1) Each underlying index is 

broad-based and currently includes, on 

average, more than 8,000 component 

securities; (2) currently each underlying 

index includes securities issued by 

municipal entities in more than 40 

states or U.S. territories, and notes that 

the applicable generic listing criterion 

requires that an index contain securities 

issued by at least 13 non-affiliated 

issuers; 12 and (3) no single security 

currently represents more than 

approximately 1.5% of the weight of 

any underlying index, the aggregate 

weight of the five most heavily weighted 

securities in each index does not exceed 

approximately 6% of the weight of the 

index, and notes the applicable generic 

listing criterion permits a single 

component security to represent up to 

30% of the weight of an index and the 

top five component securities to, in 

aggregate, represent up to 65% of the 

weight of an index.13 The Exchange 

asserts that this index diversification is 

significant, and that the absence of 

constituent concentration in the 

underlying indexes provides a strong 

degree of protection against 

manipulation of the indexes.14

With respect to the Single-State 

Municipal Bond Funds, the Exchange 

states that each underlying index is 

well-diversified to protect against index 

manipulation. To support this, the 

Exchange states: (1) On average, the 

underlying indexes include more than 

1,500 securities; (2) each underlying 

index includes securities from at least 

20 distinct municipal bond issuers; and 

(3) the most heavily weighted security 

in any of the underlying indexes 

represents approximately 2% of the 

weight of the index, and the aggregate 

weight of the five most heavily weighted 

securities in any of the indexes 

represents approximately 6.25% of the 

total index weight. 

The Exchange represents that: (1) On 

a continuous basis, each index 

underlying a Municipal Bond Fund will 

contain at least 500 component 

securities; (2) currently, each index 

satisfies all of the generic listing 

requirements under NYSE Arca Rule 

5.2–E(j)(3) except for Commentary 

.02(a)(2); (3) the continued listing 

criteria under Rules 5.2(j)(3) (except for 

Commentary .02(a)(2)) and 5.5(g)(2) 

applicable to Investment Company 

Units will apply to the Shares; and (4) 

the issuer of each Municipal Bond Fund 

is required to comply with Rule 

10A–3 15 under the Act for the initial 

and continued listing of the Shares of 

each Municipal Bond Fund. In addition, 

the Exchange represents that the Shares 

will comply with all other requirements 

applicable to Investment Company 

Units including, but not limited to, 

requirements relating to the 

dissemination of key information such 

as the value of the underlying index and 

the applicable Intraday Indicative Value 

(‘‘IIV’’),16 rules governing the trading of 

equity securities, trading hours, trading 

halts, surveillance, information barriers 

and the Information Bulletin to Equity 

Trading Permit Holders, as set forth in 

Exchange rules applicable to Investment 

Company Units and prior Commission 

orders approving the generic listing 

rules applicable to the listing and 

trading of Investment Company Units. 

III. Proceedings To Determine Whether 

To Approve or Disapprove SR– 

NYSEArca–2017–56, as Modified by 

Amendment No. 1, and Grounds for 

Disapproval Under Consideration 

The Commission is instituting 

proceedings pursuant to Section 

19(b)(2)(B) of the Act 17 to determine 

whether the proposed rule change, as 

modified by Amendment No. 1, should 

be approved or disapproved. Institution 

of such proceedings is appropriate at 

this time in view of the legal and policy 

issues raised by the proposed rule 

change. Institution of proceedings does 

not indicate that the Commission has 

reached any conclusions with respect to 

any of the issues involved. Rather, as 

described below, the Commission seeks 

and encourages interested persons to 

provide comments on the proposed rule 

change, as modified by Amendment 

No. 1. 

Pursuant to Section 19(b)(2)(B) of the 

Act,18 the Commission is providing 

notice of the grounds for disapproval 

under consideration. The Commission is 

instituting proceedings to allow for 

additional analysis of the proposal’s 

consistency with Section 6(b)(5) of the 

Act, which requires, among other 

things, that the rules of a national 

securities exchange be ‘‘designed to 

prevent fraudulent and manipulative 

acts and practices, to promote just and 

equitable principles of trade,’’ and ‘‘to 

protect investors and the public 

interest.’’ 19

As noted above, the Exchange has 

submitted this proposed rule change 

because the Shares of the Municipal 

Bond Funds do not meet all of the 

generic listing requirements set forth in 

Commentary.02 to NYSE Arca Rule 5.2– 

E(j)(3). In the proposal, the Exchange 

describes certain characteristics of the 

underlying indexes as of April 1, 

2017,20 and asserts that those 

characteristics demonstrate that ‘‘each 

. . . fund is based on a broad-based 

index that is not readily susceptible to 

manipulation.’’ 21 Further, the Exchange 

contends that the ‘‘significant 

diversification and the lack of 

concentration among constituent 

securities provides a strong degree of 

protection against index 

manipulation.’’ 22 For purposes of 

continued listing of the Shares, 

however, apart from the representation 

that each index will have at least 500 

component securities on an ongoing 

basis, the Exchange has not provided 

any criteria governing the extent to 

which the indexes may deviate from the 

initial set of characteristics that the 

Exchange relies on to determine the 

susceptibility of the indexes to 

manipulation. Accordingly, the 

Commission seeks commenters’ views 

on whether the Exchange’s statements 

and representations support a 

determination that the continued listing 

and trading of the Shares of the 

Municipal Bond Funds would be 

consistent with Section 6(b)(5) of the 

Act, which, among other things, 

requires that the rules of an exchange be 

designed to prevent fraudulent and 

manipulative acts and practices, to 

promote just and equitable principles of 

trade, and to protect investors and the 

public interest. 


asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES
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23Section 19(b)(2) of the Act, as amended by the 

Securities Acts Amendments of 1975, Public Law 

94–29 (June 4, 1975), grants the Commission 

flexibility to determine what type of proceeding— 

either oral or notice and opportunity for written 

comments—is appropriate for consideration of a 

particular proposal by a self-regulatory 

organization. See Securities Acts Amendments of 

1975, Senate Comm. on Banking, Housing & Urban 

Affairs, S. Rep. No. 75, 94th Cong., 1st Sess. 30 

(1975). 

24See supra note 3. 

25 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(57). 

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

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

IV. Procedure: Request for Written 

Comments 

The Commission requests that 

interested persons provide written 

submissions of their views, data, and 

arguments with respect to the issues 

identified above, as well as any other 

concerns they may have with the 

proposal. In particular, the Commission 

invites the written views of interested 

persons concerning whether the 

proposal is consistent with Section 

6(b)(5) or any other provision of the Act, 

or the rules and regulations thereunder. 

Although there do not appear to be any 

issues relevant to approval or 

disapproval that would be facilitated by 

an oral presentation of views, data, and 

arguments, the Commission will 

consider, pursuant to Rule 19b–4, any 

request for an opportunity to make an 

oral presentation.23

Interested persons are invited to 

submit written data, views, and 

arguments regarding whether the 

proposal should be approved or 

disapproved by October 27, 2017. Any 

person who wishes to file a rebuttal to 

any other person’s submission must file 

that rebuttal by November 13, 2017. The 

Commission asks that commenters 

address the sufficiency of the 

Exchange’s statements in support of the 

proposal, which are set forth in 

Amendment No. 1,24 in addition to any 

other comments they may wish to 

submit about the proposed rule change. 

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– 

NYSEArca–2017–56 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–NYSEArca–2017–56. 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 Web site (http://www.sec.gov/ 

rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the 

submission, all subsequent 

amendments, all written statements 

with respect to the proposed rule 

change that are filed with the 

Commission, and all written 

communications relating to the 

proposed rule change between the 

Commission and any person, other than 

those that may be withheld from the 

public in accordance with the 

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

available for Web site viewing and 

printing in the Commission’s Public 

Reference Room, 100 F Street 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; 

the Commission does not edit personal 

identifying information from 

submissions. You should submit only 

information that you wish to make 

available publicly. All submissions 

should refer to File Number SR– 

NYSEArca–2017–56 and should be 

submitted on or before October 27, 

2017. Rebuttal comments should be 

submitted by November 13, 2017. 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.25

Eduardo A. Aleman, 

Assistant Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2017–21537 Filed 10–5–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–81798; File No. SR– 

NASDAQ–2017–097] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; The 

NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; Notice of 

Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of 

Proposed Rule Change To Amend the 

Exchange’s Connectivity Fees at Rule 

7051 

October 2, 2017. 

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 

September 18, 2017, The NASDAQ 

Stock Market LLC (‘‘Nasdaq’’ 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 

Rule 7051, which sets forth the schedule 

of fees that the Exchange charges to its 

clients for connecting directly to the 

Exchange’s data centers and/or 

receiving third party market data feeds 

and other non-Exchange services from 

the Exchange via circuits provided by 

third party telecommunications 

providers. 

While these amendments are effective 

upon filing, the Exchange has 

designated the proposed amendments to 

be operative on October 1, 2017. 

The text of the proposed rule change 

is available on the Exchange’s Web site 

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 Exchange proposes to amend 

Rule 7051, which sets forth the schedule 

of fees that the Exchange charges to its 

clients for connecting directly to the 

Exchange’s data centers and/or 

receiving third party market data feeds 

and other non-Exchange services from 

the Exchange via circuits provided by 

third party telecommunications 

providers. 

Subscribers may use the connectivity 

provided under Rule 7051 to link them 


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