[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 149 (Thursday, August 2, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37853-37854]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-16531]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-83728; File No. SR-BOX-2018-24]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; BOX Options Exchange LLC; Notice 
of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed Rule Change To 
Amend the Fee Schedule on the BOX Market LLC (``BOX'') Options Facility 
To Establish BOX Connectivity Fees for Participants and Non-
Participants Who Connect to the BOX Network

July 27, 2018.
    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 July 19, 2018, BOX Options Exchange LLC (the ``Exchange'') 
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 Exchange filed the 
proposed rule change pursuant to Section 19(b)(3)(A)(ii) of the Act,\3\ 
and Rule 19b-4(f)(2) thereunder,\4\ which renders the proposal 
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)(ii).
    \4\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(2).
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I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of the 
Substance of the Proposed Rule Change

    The Exchange is filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission 
(``Commission'') a proposed rule change to amend the Fee Schedule on 
the BOX Market LLC (``BOX'') options facility. The text of the proposed 
rule change is available from the principal office of the Exchange, at 
the Commission's Public Reference Room and also on the Exchange's 
internet website at http://boxexchange.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 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
    The Exchange proposes to amend Section VI. (Technology Fees) of the 
BOX Fee Schedule to establish BOX Connectivity Fees for Participants 
and non-Participants who connect to the BOX network. Connectivity fees 
will be based upon the amount of bandwidth that will be used by the 
Participant or non-Participant. Further, BOX Participants or non-
Participants connected as of the last trading day of each calendar 
month will be charged the applicable Connectivity Fee for that month. 
The Connectivity Fees will be as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
              Connection type                       Monthly fees
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Non-10 Gb Connection......................  $1,000 per connection.
10 Gb Connection..........................  5,000 per connection.
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    The Exchange also proposes to amend certain language and numbering 
in Section VI.A to reflect the changes discussed above. Specifically, 
BOX proposes to add the title ``Third Party Connectivity Fees'' under 
Section VI.A. Further, the Exchange proposes to add Section VI.A.2 
which details the proposed BOX Connectivity Fees discussed above.
    Participants and non-Participants with ten (10) Gigabit Connections 
will be charged a monthly fee of $5,000 per connection. Participants 
and non-Participants with non-10 Gigabits Connections will be charged a 
monthly fee of $1,000 per connection. The Exchange notes that another 
exchange in the industry has similar connectivity fees.\5\ The Exchange 
also notes that certain fees will continue to be assessed by the 
datacenters and will be billed directly to the market participant.
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    \5\ See Miami International Securities Exchange LLC (``MIAX'') 
Fee Schedule. MIAX charges its Members and non-Members a monthly fee 
of $1,100 for each 1 Gigabit connection and $5,500 for each 10 
Gigabit connection to MIAX's Primary/Secondary Facility. The 
Exchange notes a minor difference between MIAX's connectivity fees 
and BOX's proposal. MIAX prorates their connectivity fees when a 
Member makes a change to their connectivity (by adding or deleting 
connections). BOX notes that, like the Exchange's Port Fees and HSVF 
Fees, Participants or non-Participants connected as of the last 
trading day of each calendar month will be charged the applicable 
Connectivity Fee for that month.
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    Next, the Exchange is amending Section VI.C. High Speed Vendor Feed 
(``HSVF'') of the Fee Schedule. Specifically, BOX is proposing to 
delete Section VI.C. and reclassify the HSVF Connection as a Port Fee. 
The Exchange believes this reclassification is more accurate, as HSVF 
subscription is not dependent on a physical connection to the Exchange. 
Instead, subscribers must be credentialed by BOX to receive the HSVF. 
The HSVF Fee will remain unchanged, BOX will assess a HSVF Port Fee of 
$1,500 per month \6\ for each month a Participant or non-Participant is 
credentialed to use the HSVF Port. The Exchange notes that another

[[Page 37854]]

exchange in the industry charges similar fees.\7\
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    \6\ The Exchange notes that with the proposed change discussed 
herein, Participants and non-Participants credentialed to use the 
HSVF Port who also have physical connections to the BOX system will 
be charged for both the HSVF monthly fee and the applicable amount 
for their physical connections to BOX. For example, if non-
Participant X is credentialed to use the HSVF Port and has three (3) 
physical non-10Gb connections to BOX, non-Participant X will be 
charged $1,500 for the monthly HSVF Port Fee and $3,000 for the 
three non-10Gb physical connections to BOX.
    \7\ See Cboe Data Services, LLC. (``Cboe CDS'') Fee Schedule. 
Cboe CDS charges its Customers that receive data through a direct 
connection to CDS or through a connection to CDS provided by an 
extranet provider $500 per port per month. Cboe CDS's port fee 
applies to receipt of any Cboe Options data feed but is only 
assessed once per data port. In addition to the data port fee, Cboe 
Exchange Inc. (``Cboe'') charges connectivity fees based on the 
bandwidth used to connect to the Exchange to receive such data. See 
Cboe Fee Schedule.
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2. Statutory Basis
    The Exchange believes that the proposal is consistent with the 
requirements of Section 6(b) of the Act, in general, and Section 
6(b)(4) and 6(b)(5)of the Act,\8\ in particular, in that it provides 
for the equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees, and other 
charges among BOX Participants and other persons using its facilities 
and does not unfairly discriminate between customers, issuers, brokers 
or dealers.
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    \8\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4) and (5).
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    The Exchange believes that the proposed Connectivity Fees in 
general constitute an equitable allocation of fees, and are not 
unfairly discriminatory, because they allow the Exchange to recover 
costs associated with offering access through the network connections. 
The proposed Connectivity Fees are also expected to offset the costs 
BOX incurs in maintaining, and implementing ongoing improvements to the 
trading systems, including connectivity costs, costs incurred on 
software and hardware enhancements and resources dedicated to software 
development, quality assurance, and technology support. The Exchange 
believes that its proposed fees are reasonable in that they are 
competitive with those charged by another exchange. Further, the 
Exchange believes that the proposed Connectivity Fees are not unfairly 
discriminatory as they are assessed to all market participants who wish 
to connect to the BOX network.
    The Exchange believes that the proposed HSVF Port Fee is reasonable 
as it is similar to fees assessed at another exchange in the 
industry.\9\ Further, the Exchange believes that charging Participants 
and non-Participants for both the HSVF monthly fee and applicable 
physical connection fees as outlined in the example above is reasonable 
as it is in line with another exchange in the industry.\10\ Further, 
the Exchange believes that the proposed change is equitable and not 
unfairly discriminatory because it allows the Exchange to recoup 
ongoing expenditures made by the Exchange in order to offer such 
services to Participants and non-Participants.
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    \9\ See supra note 7.
    \10\ Id.
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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 not necessary or appropriate in 
furtherance of the purposes of the Act. Unilateral action by BOX in 
establishing fees for services provided to its Participants and others 
using its facilities will not have an impact on competition. As a small 
Exchange in the already highly competitive environment for options 
trading, BOX does not have the market power necessary to set prices for 
services that are unreasonable or unfairly discriminatory in violation 
of the Exchange Act. BOX's proposed fees, as described herein, are 
comparable to and generally lower than fees charged by other options 
exchanges for the same or similar services. Lastly, the Exchange 
believes the proposed change will not impose a burden on intramarket 
competition as the proposed fees are applicable to all Participants and 
others using its facilities that connect to BOX.

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

    No written comments were either solicited or 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 Exchange Act \11\ and Rule 19b-4(f)(2) 
thereunder,\12\ because it establishes or changes a due, or fee.
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    \11\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(ii).
    \12\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(2).
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    At any time within 60 days of the filing of the proposed rule 
change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend the rule 
change if it appears to the Commission that the action is necessary or 
appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or 
would otherwise further the purposes of the Act. If the Commission 
takes such action, the Commission shall institute proceedings to 
determine whether the proposed rule 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 email to [email protected]. Please include 
File Number SR-BOX-2018-24 on the subject line.

Paper Comments

     Send paper comments in triplicate to Secretary, Securities 
and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549-1090.

All submissions should refer to File Number SR-BOX-2018-24. This file 
number should be included on the subject line if email 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 website (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 10:00 a.m. and 
3:00 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. Persons submitting comments are 
cautioned that we do not redact or edit personal identifying 
information from comment submissions. You should submit only 
information that you wish to make available publicly. All submissions 
should refer to File Number SR-BOX-2018-24, and should be submitted on 
or before August 23, 2018.
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    \13\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\13\
Robert W. Errett,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018-16531 Filed 8-1-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 8011-01-P