Document ID: SEC-2012-2098-0001
Agency: sec
Document Type: Notice
Title: Self-Regulatory Organizations; Proposed Rule Changes: C2 Options Exchange, Inc.
Posted Date: 2012-12-19T05:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 244 (Wednesday, December 19, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 75235-75237]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-30495]

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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-68422; File No. SR-C2-2012-042]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; C2 Options Exchange, Incorporated; 
Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed Rule Change 
To Amend the Fees Schedule

December 13, 2012.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(the ``Act'') \1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given 
that on December 6, 2012, C2 Options Exchange, Incorporated 
(``Exchange'' or ``C2'') filed with the Securities and Exchange 
Commission (``Commission'') the proposed rule change as described in 
Items I, II, and III below, which Items have been prepared by the self-
regulatory organization. The Commission is publishing this notice to 
solicit comments on the proposed rule change from interested persons.
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    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
    \2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
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I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance 
of the Proposed Rule Change

    The Exchange proposes to amend its Fees Schedule. The text of the 
proposed rule change is available on the Exchange's Web site (http://www.c2exchange.com/Legal/), at the Exchange's Office of the Secretary, 
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

[[Page 75236]]

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 the WebCRD\SM\ fees listed on its 
Fees Schedule. Such fees are collected and retained by the Financial 
Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (``FINRA'') via the WebCRD\SM\ 
registration system for the registration of associated persons of 
Exchange Trading Permit Holder (``TPH'') and TPH organizations that are 
not also FINRA members. The Exchange merely lists such fees on its Fees 
Schedule. FINRA recently filed a proposed rule change to increase a 
number of these fees (the ``FINRA Fee Change'').\3\ The FINRA Fee 
Change increases the FINRA Non-Member Processing Fee from $85 to $100, 
the FINRA Annual System Processing Fee Assessed only during Renewals 
from $30 to $45, and the FINRA Disclosure Processing Fee from $95 to 
$110. The FINRA Fee Change also applies the FINRA Disclosure Processing 
Fee (which already applied to Form U-4 and U-5 filings and their 
amendments) to Form BD filings and corresponding amendments.
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    \3\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 67247 (June 25, 
2012) 77 FR 38866 (June 29, 2012) (SR-FINRA-2012-030). These new 
fees and fee amounts are discussed in FINRA Regulatory Notice 12-32, 
available at http://www.finra.org/Industry/Regulation/Notices/2012/P127240, and are listed in the listing of FINRA's 2013 Regulatory 
Fees, available on the FINRA Web site at http://www.finra.org/Industry/Compliance/Registration/CRD/FilingGuidance/P197266.
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    The FINRA Fee Change also amended FINRA's Fingerprint Processing 
Fees. In 2012, FINRA only offered one set of fees ($27.50 for the 
initial submission, $13.00 for the second submission, and $27.50 for 
the third submission). For 2013, FINRA is offering two sets of fees. 
For fingerprints submitted on paper card, the fees will be $44.50 per 
initial submission, $30.00 per second submission, and $44.50 per third 
submission. For fingerprints submitted electronically, the fees will be 
$29.50 per initial submission, $15.00 per second submission, and $29.50 
per third submission. The FINRA Fee Change also increases from $13.00 
to $30.00 the fingerprint processing fee for those submitted by TPHs or 
TPH organizations on behalf of their associated persons who had had 
their prints processed through a self-regulatory organization other 
than FINRA.
    The proposed fee changes are to be added to the Fees Schedule for 
January 1, 2013 (while they are not to be implemented until January 2, 
2013 (according to the FINRA Fee Change), the Exchange prefers to 
update its Fees Schedule as of the first day of a given month; 
moreover, January 1, 2013 is a national holiday and the Exchange is 
closed, so January 2, 2013 is the first business day on which the 
proposed fee changes would be effective regardless).
2. Statutory Basis
    The Exchange believes the proposed rule change is consistent with 
the Act and the rules and regulations thereunder applicable to the 
Exchange and, in particular, the requirements of Section 6(b) of the 
Act.\4\ Specifically, the Exchange believes the proposed rule change is 
consistent with the Section 6(b)(4) of the Act,\5\ which provides that 
Exchange rules may provide for the equitable allocation of reasonable 
dues, fees, and other charges among its Trading Permit Holders and 
other persons using its facilities. The proposed fee changes are 
reasonable from the Exchange's position because the amounts are those 
provided by FINRA, and the Exchange does not collect or retain these 
fees. The proposed fee changes are equitable and not unfairly 
discriminatory from the Exchange's position because the Exchange will 
not be collecting or retaining these fees, and therefore will not be in 
a position to apply them in an inequitable or unfairly discriminatory 
manner.
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    \4\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
    \5\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).
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B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition

    C2 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.

C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed 
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others

    The Exchange neither solicited nor received comments on the 
proposed rule change.

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) \6\ of the Act and paragraph (f) of Rule 19b-4 \7\ 
thereunder. At any time within 60 days of the filing of the proposed 
rule change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule 
change if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or 
appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or 
otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act.
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    \6\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \7\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f).
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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-C2-2012-042 on the subject line.

Paper Comments

     Send paper comments in triplicate to Elizabeth M. Murphy, 
Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street NE., 
Washington, DC 20549-1090.

All submissions should refer to File Number SR-C2-2012-042. 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 such filing also will be available 
for inspection and copying at the principal office of the Exchange. All 
comments

[[Page 75237]]

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 publicly available. All 
submissions should refer to File Number SR-C2-2012-042 and should be 
submitted on or before January 9, 2013.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\8\
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    \8\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Kevin M. O'Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2012-30495 Filed 12-18-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P