[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 24 (Monday, February 7, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6490-6492]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-472]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-51118; File No. SR-PCX-2005-07]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; Notice of Filing and Immediate 
Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change by the Pacific Exchange, Inc. 
Relating to the OptiMark System

February 1, 2005.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act'') \1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given that 
on January 20, 2005, the Pacific Exchange, Inc. (``PCX'' or 
``Exchange''), through its wholly owned subsidiary PCX Equities, Inc. 
(``PCXE''), 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 Exchange. The Exchange 
filed the proposed rule change pursuant to Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the 
Act \3\ and Rule 19b-4(f)(6) thereunder,\4\ which renders the proposed 
rule change effective upon filing with the Commission. 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.
    \3\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \4\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6).
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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 rules governing the Archipelago 
Exchange (``ArcaEx''), the equities trading facility of PCXE. The 
Exchange proposes to delete certain rules that have been determined by 
the Exchange as obsolete. The text of the proposed rule change is 
available at the Exchange's Web site (http://www.pacificex.com), at the 
Exchange's office of the secretary, and at the Commission's public 
reference room.

[[Page 6491]]

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
    On December 9, 2003, the Exchange responded to a request from the 
Commission's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations with 
respect to compliance with Section 19(g) of the Act.\5\ The Exchange 
performed a complete review of PCXE rules, as well as the surveillance 
procedures thereto, and found a number of PCXE rules that are obsolete 
or superfluous in the current market structure. Therefore, the Exchange 
proposes to delete these rules at this time.
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    \5\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(g).
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    The proposed rules to be deleted are: (1) PCXE Rule 7.6, Commentary 
.04; (2) PCXE Rule 7.39; and (3) PCXE Rules 7.45-7.54. These rules 
relate to the OptiMark System. The Exchange represents that ETP Holders 
have never had access to the OptiMark System and the OptiMark System 
has never been used on ArcaEx. Hence, according to the Exchange, all 
rules related to the OptiMark System are defunct.
2. Statutory Basis
    The Exchange believes that the proposal is consistent with the 
requirements of Section 6(b) of the Act,\6\ in general, and Section 
6(b)(5) of the Act,\7\ in particular, in that it is designed to promote 
just and equitable principles of trade, to facilitate transactions in 
securities, to remove impediments to and perfect the mechanisms of a 
free and open market and a national market system, and to protect 
investors and the public interest.
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    \6\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
    \7\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
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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.

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

    Written comments on the proposed rule change were neither solicited 
nor received.

III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for 
Commission Action

    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, if consistent with 
the protection of investors and the public interest, and the Exchange 
provided the Commission with written notice of its intent to file the 
proposed rule change at least five business days prior to the date of 
filing of the proposed rule change, it has become effective pursuant to 
Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act \8\ and Rule 19b-4(f)(6) thereunder.\9\ 
At any time within 60 days of the filing of the proposed rule change, 
the Commission may summarily abrogate 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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    \8\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \9\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6).
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    Although Rule 19b-4(f)(6) under the Act \10\ requires that an 
Exchange submit a notice of its intent to file at least five business 
days prior to the filing date, the Commission waived this requirement 
at the Exchange's request. The Exchange has also requested that the 
Commission waive the 30-day operative delay. The Commission believes 
waiving the 30-day operative delay is consistent with the protection of 
investors and the public interest, since the proposed rule change 
deletes provisions from Exchange Rules that relate to a system that the 
Exchange never used. Thus, the Commission designates the proposal to be 
operative upon filing with the Commission.\11\
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    \10\ See id.
    \11\ For purposes only of accelerating the operative date of 
this proposal, the Commission has considered the proposed rule's 
impact on efficiency, competition, and capital formation. 15 U.S.C. 
78c(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 e-mail to [email protected]. Please include 
File Number SR-PCX-2005-07 on the subject line.

Paper Comments

     (Send paper comments in triplicate to Jonathan G. Katz, 
Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 450 Fifth Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20549-0609.

    All submissions should refer to File Number SR-PCX-2005-07. This 
file number should be included on the subject line if e-mail 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 inspection 
and copying in the Commission's Public Reference Room. Copies of such 
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-PCX-2005-07 and should be submitted on or before 
February 28, 2005.


[[Page 6492]]


    For the Commission, by the Division of Market Regulation, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\12\
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    \12\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Jill M. Peterson,
Assistant Secretary.
 [FR Doc. E5-472 Filed 2-4-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8010-01-P