[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 110 (Wednesday, June 8, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33390-33392]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-14036]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-64582; File No. SR-NYSE-2011-23]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; New York Stock Exchange LLC; 
Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To 
Amend the Exchange Price List

June 2, 2011.
    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 May 26, 2011, New York Stock Exchange LLC (``NYSE'' or the 
``Exchange'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the 
``Commission'') the

[[Page 33391]]

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 modify the fees it charges for the 
issuance of trading licenses that are required in order to effect 
transactions on the floor of the Exchange or through any facility of 
the Exchange. The Exchange proposes to amend its 2011 Price List 
(``Price List'') to (i) Create a two-tiered pricing structure for the 
annual fee, under which the fee would continue to be $40,000 per 
license for the first two licenses held by a member organization but 
would be reduced to $25,000 per license for any additional trading 
licenses held by that member organization, (ii) provide a formula for 
proration of the annual fee during a calendar month in which a trading 
license has been in place for less than the full month, (iii) eliminate 
the current $1,000 fee for approval of a new member, and (iv) eliminate 
the $1,000 trading license transfer fee. The Exchange also proposes to 
amend Exchange Rule 300 (Trading Licenses) to be consistent with these 
changes and also to provide that the monthly installments of the annual 
fee be payable in arrears at the end of each month. These changes will 
become operational on June 1, 2011. The text of the proposed rule 
change is available at the Exchange, the Commission's Public Reference 
Room, http://www.sec.gov, and http://www.nyse.com.

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 self-regulatory organization 
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 those 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 parts of such statements.

A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and the 
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

1. Purpose
    The Exchange proposes to modify the fees it charges for the 
issuance of trading licenses that are required in order to effect 
transactions on the floor of the Exchange or through any facility of 
the Exchange. As currently provided in Exchange Rule 300 (Trading 
Licenses), the price per trading license sold in each annual offering 
of such licenses is established each year by the Exchange pursuant to a 
rule filing submitted to the Commission, and that price is published in 
the Exchange's Price List. The Exchange has previously established the 
trading license fee for calendar year 2011 at $40,000 per license, 
which is currently reflected in the Price List.
    The Exchange proposes to modify the structure of its annual fee for 
trading licenses by moving from a single price for all such licenses to 
a two-tiered pricing structure. Under the proposal, the annual fee 
would continue to be $40,000 per license for the first two trading 
licenses held by a member organization but would be reduced to $25,000 
per license for any additional trading licenses held by that member 
organization. The price of each of these two tiers would continue to be 
established each year by the Exchange pursuant to a rule filing 
submitted to the Commission, with the tier prices being published in 
the Price List.
    Pursuant to Exchange Rule 300(e), a buyer of a trading license is 
required to pay the Exchange the trading license fee in equal monthly 
installments in advance over the period during which the trading 
license is in effect. The Exchange proposes to change its billing 
schedule so that the monthly installments are payable in arrears at the 
end of each month.
    In addition, Exchange Rule 300(d) provides that, following the 
annual offering and at any time thereafter during the following 
calendar year, the Exchange shall sell additional trading licenses 
expiring at the end of the calendar year at the price set forth in the 
Price List, but prorated to reflect the amount of time remaining in the 
year. For any such additional trading license that is in place for 15 
calendar days or less in a calendar month, the Exchange proposes that 
the proration for that month will be computed based on a flat rate of 
$100 per day with no tier pricing involved. For any such additional 
trading license that is in place for 16 calendar days or more in a 
calendar month, the Exchange proposes that the proration for that month 
will be computed based on the number of days as applied to the full 
annual fee for the license for the applicable tier.
    Finally, the Exchange proposes to eliminate the current $1,000 fee 
provided for on the Price List for approval of a new member because it 
believes the annual fee adequately covers any costs related to such 
approval. The Exchange further proposes to eliminate the $1,000 trading 
license transfer fee provided for on the Price List. This fee has 
become obsolete due to the fact that trading licenses are no longer 
transferred; instead, they are purchased following expiration or 
termination pursuant to Exchange Rule 300.
    In addition to the proposed changes to the Price List, the Exchange 
also proposes to amend Exchange Rule 300 to be consistent with these 
changes.
    These changes will become operational on June 1, 2011. Licenses 
that are already in place will be billed monthly for the remainder of 
the year at the new tier rates beginning on that date, but there will 
be no retroactive adjustment for the period prior to June 1 for those 
trading licenses that qualify for the new $25,000 tier price. For the 
June 2011 billing, the Exchange will begin invoicing in arrears as 
discussed above.
2. Statutory Basis
    The Exchange believes that the proposed rule change is consistent 
with the provisions of Section 6 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(the ``Act''),\3\ in general, and Section 6(b)(4) of the Act,\4\ in 
particular, in that it is designed to provide for the equitable 
allocation of reasonable dues, fees, and other charges among its 
members and other persons using its facilities. The Exchange believes 
that the proposal does not constitute an inequitable allocation of 
fees, as all similarly situated member organizations will be subject to 
the same fee structure and access to the Exchange's market is offered 
on fair and non-discriminatory terms. Any member organization that 
holds more than two trading licenses will be able to benefit from the 
new $25,000 annual fee tier for the additional licenses. The ability to 
pay monthly installments of the annual fee in arrears instead of in 
advance, as presently required, should be beneficial to all member 
organizations that hold trading licenses.
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    \3\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
    \4\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).

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[[Page 33392]]

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

    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 foregoing rule change is effective upon filing pursuant to 
Section 19(b)(3)(A) \5\ of the Act and subparagraph (f)(2) of Rule 19b-
4 \6\ thereunder, because it establishes a due, fee, or other charge 
imposed by the NYSE.
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    \5\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \6\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(2).
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    At any time within 60 days of the filing of such 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 e-mail to [email protected]. Please include 
File Number SR-NYSE-2011-23 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-NYSE-2011-23. 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 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 
a.m. and 3 p.m. 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 publicly available. All 
submissions should refer to File Number SR-NYSE-2011-23 and should be 
submitted on or before June 29, 2011.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\7\
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    \7\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Cathy H. Ahn,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-14036 Filed 6-7-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P