[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 41 (Wednesday, March 4, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9456-9457]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-4556]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-59452; File No. SR-BX-2009-012]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; NASDAQ OMX BX, Inc.; Notice of 
Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Modify 
Fees for Members Using the NASDAQ OMX BX Equities System

February 25, 2009.
    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 February 19, 2009, NASDAQ OMX BX, Inc. (``BX'') 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 Exchange. The Commission is publishing this notice 
to solicit comments on the proposed rule 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

    BX proposes to modify pricing for BX members using the NASDAQ OMX 
BX Equities System. BX will implement this rule change on March 2, 
2009. The text of the proposed rule change is attached as Exhibit 5 \3\ 
and is available at http://nasdaqomxbx.cchwallstreet.com.
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    \3\ The Commission notes that while provided in Exhibit 5 to the 
filing, the text of the proposed rule change is not attached to this 
notice but is available at the Commission's Public Reference Room 
and at http://nasdaqomxbx.cchwallstreet.com.
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II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and 
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

    In its filing with the Commission, BX 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. BX has prepared summaries, set forth in Sections A, B,

[[Page 9457]]

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
    BX is proposing to reduce its fee to access liquidity posted on the 
BX book from $0.0022 per share executed to $0.0014 per share executed. 
Since its launch on January 16, 2009, BX has begun to acquire market 
share in U.S. equities trading. However, in a highly competitive 
environment in which routing decisions are affected by execution costs 
and the likelihood of accessing liquidity, BX believes that a fee 
reduction will increase the likelihood of BX receiving orders ahead of 
other venues posting the same prices, thereby encouraging further 
liquidity provision through BX and enhancing its market quality through 
greater depth of book.
2. Statutory Basis
    BX believes that the proposed rule change is consistent with the 
provisions of Section 6 of the Act,\4\ in general, and with Section 
6(b)(4) of the Act,\5\ in particular, in that it provides for the 
equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees and other charges among 
members and issuers and other persons using any facility or system 
which BX operates or controls. The proposed fee change applies 
uniformly to all BX members. The impact of the changes upon the net 
fees paid by a particular market participant will depend upon the order 
types that it uses and the prices of its quotes and orders (i.e., its 
propensity to add or remove liquidity). BX notes that it operates in a 
highly competitive market in which market participants can readily 
direct order flow to competing venues if they deem fee levels at a 
particular venue to be excessive. The proposed changes will lower the 
cost of accessing liquidity through BX.
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    \4\ 15 U.S.C. 78f.
    \5\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).
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B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition

    BX does not believe that the proposed rule change will result in 
any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate in 
furtherance of the purposes of the Act, as amended.

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

    Written comments were neither solicited nor received.

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

    The foregoing rule change has become effective pursuant to Section 
19(b)(3)(A)(ii) of the Act \6\ and subparagraph (f)(2) of Rule 19b-4 
thereunder.\7\ 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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    \6\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(ii).
    \7\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(2).
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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-BX-2009-012 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-BX-2009-012. 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, 100 F Street, NE., 
Washington, DC 20549, on official business days between the hours of 10 
a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of the filing will also be available for 
inspection and copying at the principal office of the self-regulatory 
organization. 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-BX-
2009-012 and should be submitted on or before March 25, 2009.

    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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Florence E. Harmon,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. E9-4556 Filed 3-3-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P