Self-Regulatory Organizations; EDGA Exchange, Inc.; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change Relating to Amendments to the EDGA Exchange, Inc. Fee Schedule

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Federal RegisterDec 15, 2010
75 Fed. Reg. 78334 (Dec. 15, 2010)
December 8, 2010.

Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Act”), and Rule 19b-4 thereunder, notice is hereby given that on December 1, 2010, the EDGA Exchange, Inc. (the “Exchange” or the “EDGA”) 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 self-regulatory organization. The Commission is publishing this notice to solicit comments on the proposed rule change from interested persons.

17 CFR 240.19b-4.

I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance of the Proposed Rule Change

The Exchange proposes to amend its fees and rebates applicable to Members of the Exchange pursuant to EDGA Rule 15.1(a) and (c) by making an amendment to its fee schedule.

A Member is any registered broker or dealer, or any person associated with a registered broker or dealer, that has been admitted to membership in the Exchange.

All of the changes described herein are applicable to EDGA Members. The text of the proposed rule change is available on the Exchange's Internet Web site at http://www.directedge.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 these statements may be examined at the places specified in Item IV below. The self-regulatory organization 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

Currently, for orders routed to Nasdaq BX in Tape A and C Securities and that remove liquidity, a rebate of $0.0001 per share is provided to Members (yielding Flag “C”). The Exchange proposes to increase the rebate to $0.0002 per share to reflect an increase in rebate provided by Nasdaq BX. The Exchange also proposes to delete the reference to Tape A and C securities in the Flag C description and thus, provide the rebate for orders in securities on all Tapes. A conforming amendment is proposed to the text of footnote 3 to reflect this amendment.

Currently, the “O” flag describes orders that are routed to the Nasdaq's opening cross. Since the Exchange routes to multiple trading centers for the opening cross, such as NYSE, the Exchange proposes to amend the description of the “O” flag to state that it applies to orders routed to the primary exchange's opening cross.

The Exchange proposes to add an additional rebate and corresponding new flag to its fee schedule. Orders that are routed to BATS BYX Exchange that remove liquidity using order types ROUC or ROBY will yield a “BY” flag and be rebated $0.0003 per share.

Finally, the Exchange proposes to clarify in the Flag K description that the BATS Exchange referred to is the BATS BZX Exchange.

EDGA Exchange proposes to implement these amendments to the Exchange fee schedule on December 1, 2010.

2. Statutory Basis

The Exchange believes that the proposed rule change is consistent with the objectives of Section 6 of the Act, in general, and furthers the objectives of Section 6(b)(4), in particular, as 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 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 rule change reflects a competitive pricing structure designed to incent market participants to direct their order flow to the Exchange. The Exchange believes that the proposed rates are equitable in that they apply uniformly to all Members. The Exchange believes the fees and credits remain competitive with those charged by other venues and therefore continue to be reasonable and equitably allocated to Members.

15 U.S.C. 78f.

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

The proposed rule change does not 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

The Exchange has not solicited, and does not intend to solicit, comments on this proposed rule change. The Exchange has not received any unsolicited written comments from members or other interested parties.

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) of the Act and Rule 19b-4(f)(2) thereunder. 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.

17 CFR 19b-4(f)(2).

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 rule-comments@sec.gov. Please include File Number SR-EDGA-2010-21 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-EDGA-2010-21. 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 the 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 available publicly. All submissions should refer to File Number SR-EDGA-2010-21 and should be submitted on or before January 5, 2011.

The text of the proposed rule change is available on Exchange's Web site at http://www.directedge.com , on the Commission's Web site at http://www.sec.gov,, at EDGA, and at the Commission's Public Reference Room.

For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated authority.

Florence E. Harmon,

Deputy Secretary.

[FR Doc. 2010-31433 Filed 12-14-10; 8:45 am]

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