[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 240 (Wednesday, December 15, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 78316-78318]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-31480]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-63503; File No. SR-FINRA-2010-064]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; Financial Industry Regulatory 
Authority, Inc.; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of 
Proposed Rule Change To Extend the Effective Date of the Trading Pause 
Pilot

December 9, 2010.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act'') \1\ and Rule 19b-4 \2\ thereunder, notice is hereby given 
that on December 7, 2010, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. 
(``FINRA'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the 
``Commission'') the proposed rule change as described in Items I and II 
below, which Items have been prepared by FINRA. 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

    FINRA is proposing to amend FINRA Rule 6121 (Trading Halts Due to 
Extraordinary Market Volatility) to extend the effective date of the 
pilot, which is currently scheduled to expire on December 10, 2010, 
until April 11, 2011.
    The text of the proposed rule change is available on FINRA's Web 
site at

[[Page 78317]]

http://www.finra.org, at the principal office of FINRA 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, FINRA 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. FINRA 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
    FINRA proposes to amend FINRA Rule 6121.01 to extend the effective 
date of the pilot by which such rule operates, which is currently 
scheduled to expire on December 10, 2010, until April 11, 2011.
    FINRA Rule 6121.01 provides that if a primary listing market has 
issued an individual stock trading pause under its rules, FINRA will 
halt trading otherwise than on an exchange in that security until 
trading has resumed on the primary listing market. The pilot was 
developed and implemented as a market-wide initiative by FINRA and 
other self-regulatory organizations (``SROs'') in consultation with 
Commission staff, and is currently applicable to the S&P 500[supreg] 
Index,\3\ the Russell 1000[supreg] Index and a pilot list of Exchange 
Traded Products.\4\
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    \3\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 62251 (June 10, 
2010), 75 FR 34183 (June 16, 2010) (Order Approving File No. SR-
FINRA-2010-025).
    \4\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 62883 (September 10, 
2010), 75 FR 56608 (September 16, 2010) (Order Approving File No. 
SR-FINRA-2010-033).
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    The extension proposed herein would allow the pilot to continue to 
operate without interruption while FINRA and the other SROs further 
assess the effect of the pilot on the marketplace and whether other 
initiatives should be adopted in lieu of the current pilot.
2. Statutory Basis
    FINRA believes that the proposed rule change is consistent with the 
provisions of Section 15A(b)(6) of the Act,\5\ which requires, among 
other things, that FINRA rules must be designed to prevent fraudulent 
and manipulative acts and practices, to promote just and equitable 
principles of trade and, in general, to protect investors and the 
public interest. FINRA believes that the proposed rule change meets 
these requirements in that it promotes uniformity across markets 
concerning decisions to pause trading in a security when there are 
significant price movements.
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    \5\ 15 U.S.C. 78o-3(b)(6).
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    Additionally, extension of the pilot to April 11, 2011 would allow 
the pilot to continue to operate without interruption while FINRA and 
the other SROs further assess the effect of the pilot on the 
marketplace and whether other initiatives should be adopted in lieu of 
the current pilot.

B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition

    FINRA 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.

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

    Because the foregoing proposed rule change does not: (1) 
Significantly affect the protection of investors or the public 
interest; (2) impose any significant burden on competition; and (3) 
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, it has become 
effective pursuant to Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act \6\ and Rule 19b-
4(f)(6) thereunder.\7\
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    \6\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \7\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6). When filing a proposed rule change 
pursuant to Rule 19b-4(f)(6) under the Act, a self-regulatory agency 
is required to give the Commission written notice of its intent to 
file the proposed rule change, along with a brief description and 
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. The Commission notes that 
FINRA has satisfied this requirement.
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    A proposed rule change filed under Rule 19b-4(f)(6) normally may 
not become operative prior to 30 days after the date of filing.\8\ 
However, Rule 19b-4(f)(6) \9\ permits the Commission to designate a 
shorter time if such action is consistent with the protection of 
investors and the public interest. FINRA has requested that the 
Commission waive the 30-day operative delay.
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    \8\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6)(iii).
    \9\ Id.
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    The Commission has considered FINRA's request to waive the 30-day 
operative delay. The Commission believes that waiving the 30-day 
operative delay is consistent with the protection of investors and the 
public interest, as it will allow the pilot program to continue 
uninterrupted, thereby avoiding the investor confusion that could 
result from a temporary interruption in the pilot program.\10\ 
Therefore, the Commission designates the proposed rule change to be 
operative upon filing.
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    \10\ For the purposes only of waiving the operative date of this 
proposal, the Commission has considered the proposed rule's impact 
on efficiency, competition, and capital formation. See 15 U.S.C. 
78c(f).
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    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. If the Commission 
takes such action, the Commission shall institute proceedings to 
determine whether the proposed rule change should be approved or 
disapproved.

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-FINRA-2010-064 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-FINRA-2010-064. 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

[[Page 78318]]

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 website 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 a.m. and 3 
p.m. Copies of the filing also will be available for inspection and 
copying at the principal office of FINRA. 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-FINRA-2010-064 and should be submitted 
on or before January 5, 2011.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\11\
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    \11\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Florence E. Harmon,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2010-31480 Filed 12-14-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P