[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 97 (Monday, May 20, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Page 29406]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-11878]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-69575; File Nos. SR-NYSE-2012-57; SR-NYSEMKT-2012-58]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; New York Stock Exchange LLC; NYSE 
MKT LLC; Notice of Designation of Longer Period for Commission Action 
on Proceedings To Determine Whether To Disapprove Proposed Rule Changes 
Deleting NYSE Rules 95(c) and (d) and NYSE MKT Rules 95(c) and (d)--
Equities and Related Supplementary Material

May 14, 2013.
    On October 26, 2012, the New York Stock Exchange LLC (``NYSE'') and 
NYSE MKT LLC (``NYSE MKT'') (collectively, the ``Exchanges'') each 
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission''), 
pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act'') \1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ proposed rule changes 
(``Proposals'') to delete NYSE Rules 95(c) and (d) and related 
Supplementary Material and NYSE MKT Rules 95(c) and (d)--Equities and 
related Supplementary Material, respectively. The Proposals were 
published for comment in the Federal Register on November 15, 2012.\3\ 
The Commission received no comment letters on the Proposals.
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    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
    \2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
    \3\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 68185 (November 8, 
2012), 77 FR 68188 (SR-NYSE-2012-57) (``NYSE Notice''); Release No. 
68186 (November 8, 2012), 77 FR 68191 (SR-NYSEMKT-2012-58) (``NYSE 
MKT Notice'').
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    On December 21, 2012, the Commission extended the time period in 
which to either approve, disapprove, or to institute proceedings to 
determine whether to disapprove the Proposals, to February 13, 2013.\4\ 
On February 13, 2013, the Commission instituted proceedings to 
determine whether to approve or disapprove the Proposals.\5\
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    \4\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 68522, 77 FR 77160 
(December 31, 2012) (SR-NYSE-2012-57); Release No. 68521, 77 FR 
77152 (SR-NYSEMKT-2012-58) (December 31, 2012).
    \5\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 68923 (February 13, 
2013), 78 FR 11928 (February 20, 2013) (``Order Instituting 
Proceedings'').
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    Section 19(b)(2) of the Act \6\ provides that, after initiating 
disapproval proceedings, the Commission shall issue an order approving 
or disapproving the Proposals not later than 180 days after the date of 
publication of notice of the filing of the proposed rule change. The 
Commission may extend the period for issuing an order approving or 
disapproving the Proposals, however, by not more than 60 days if the 
Commission determines that a longer period is appropriate and publishes 
the reasons for such determination. The Proposals were published for 
notice and comment in the Federal Register on November 15, 2012. May 
14, 2013 is 180 days from that date, and July 13, 2013 is an additional 
60 days from that date.
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    \6\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2).
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    The Commission finds it appropriate to designate a longer period 
within which to issue an order approving or disapproving the Proposals 
so that it has sufficient time to consider the Proposals. Specifically, 
as the Commission noted in the Order Instituting Proceedings, the 
Proposals raise the issue that elimination of the Rule 95(c) 
restriction on Floor brokers in connection with intra-day trading, as 
contemplated by the Proposals, may not be consistent with the Act in 
light of other benefits currently conferred by the Exchanges upon Floor 
brokers. For example, under the Exchanges' rules, a Floor broker is 
entitled to a potentially preferential ``parity'' allocation of shares 
of an Exchange execution, as compared with off-Floor market 
participants that place orders on the Exchanges' respective books.\7\ 
Accordingly, a customer of a Floor broker engaged in intra-day trading, 
through an algorithmic proprietary trading strategy or otherwise, may 
have an advantage over market participants pursuing similar strategies 
directly on the Exchanges' respective books, by virtue of the Floor 
broker's parity status. The restrictions contained in Rules 95(c) and 
(d) today may serve to help counterbalance those advantages.\8\
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    \7\ See NYSE Rule 72(c)(ii) (``For the purpose of share 
allocation in an execution, each single Floor broker, the DMM and 
orders collectively represented in Exchange systems (referred to 
herein as ``Book Participant'') shall constitute individual 
participants. The orders represented in the Book Participant in 
aggregate shall constitute a single participant and will be 
allocated shares among such orders by means of time priority with 
respect to entry.''); see also NYSE MKT Rule 72(c)(ii) (same).
    \8\ See Order Instituting Proceedings, supra note 5 at 11929, 
11930.
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    Accordingly, the Commission, pursuant to Section 19(b)(2) of the 
Act,\9\ designates July 12, 2013, as the date by which the Commission 
shall either approve or disapprove the Proposals.\10\
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    \9\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2).
    \10\ The Commission notes that July 13, 2013 is a Saturday and 
is, therefore, designating July 12, 2013 as the date by which the 
Commission shall either approve or disapprove the Proposals.

    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)(57).
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Kevin M. O'Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013-11878 Filed 5-17-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P