Notice2025-20692
Self-Regulatory Organizations; Nasdaq BX, Inc.; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To amend Rule Equity 7, Section 115 To Establish Port and Disaster Recovery Fees for CORE FIX Order Entry Ports, Amend Rule Equity 7, Section 130 To Waive the BX Testing Facility Fee for CORE FIX Entry Ports, and Amend the Language in Sections of 115 and 130 To Remove the Temporary Fee Waiver Language Pertaining to OUCH 5.0
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Published
November 24, 2025
Issuing agencies
Securities and Exchange Commission
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 224 (Monday, November 24, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 224 (Monday, November 24, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53016-53018]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-20692]
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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-104229; File No. SR-BX-2025-023]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; Nasdaq BX, Inc.; Notice of Filing
and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To amend Rule
Equity 7, Section 115 To Establish Port and Disaster Recovery Fees for
CORE FIX Order Entry Ports, Amend Rule Equity 7, Section 130 To Waive
the BX Testing Facility Fee for CORE FIX Entry Ports, and Amend the
Language in Sections of 115 and 130 To Remove the Temporary Fee Waiver
Language Pertaining to OUCH 5.0
November 19, 2025.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) \1\ of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934 (the ``Act'') \2\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\3\ notice is hereby
given that, on September 25, 2025, Nasdaq BX, Inc. (``BX'' or
``Exchange'') 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 the Exchange. 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\ 15 U.S.C. 78a.
\3\ 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 (1) amend Rule Equity 7, Section 115
(Ports and Services) to establish port and disaster recovery fees for
newly added CORE FIX Order entry ports and to make a non-substantive
change to add a symbol that was inadvertently removed from this
section, (2) amend Rule Equity 7, Section 130 (Other Services) to waive
the BX testing facility fee for the newly added CORE FIX entry ports,
and (3) amend the language in Sections of 115 and 130 to remove the
temporary fee waiver language pertaining to OUCH 5.0, as described
further below.
The text of the proposed rule change is available on the Exchange's
website at <a href="https://listingcenter.nasdaq.com/rulebook/bx/rulefilings">https://listingcenter.nasdaq.com/rulebook/bx/rulefilings</a>,
and at the principal office of the Exchange.
II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and the
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 the
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
1. Purpose
The Exchange recently established CORE FIX, a new Order \4\ entry
protocol that will cater to the customer segment that currently uses
FIX but does not have a need for its routing capabilities.\5\ CORE FIX
will utilize the same standardized protocol as FIX but eliminate the
intricate RASH-based software layer that provides for Order routing
functionality. Currently, BX charges a $500/port/month port fee and a
$25/port/month disaster recovery port fee for similar Order entry
protocols such as OUCH and RASH.\6\
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\4\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 103891(Sept. 5,
2025), 90 FR 43705 (Sept. 10, 2025) (SR-BX-2025-017). The term
``Order'' means an instruction to trade a specified number of shares
in a specified System Security submitted to the System by a
Participant. An ``Order Type'' is a standardized set of instructions
associated with an Order that define how it will behave with respect
to pricing, execution, and/or posting to the Exchange Book when
submitted to the System. An ``Order Attribute'' is a further set of
variable instructions that may be associated with an Order to
further define how it will behave with respect to pricing,
execution, and/or posting to the Exchange Book when submitted to the
System. The available Order Types and Order Attributes, and the
Order Attributes that may be associated with particular Order Types,
are described in Rules 4702 and 4703. One or more Order Attributes
may be assigned to a single Order; provided, however, that if the
use of multiple Order Attributes would provide contradictory
instructions to an Order, the System will reject the Order or remove
non-conforming Order Attributes. See Equity 1, Section 1(a)(11).
\5\ The CORE FIX Order entry protocol is a proprietary protocol
that allows subscribers that do not utilize routing strategies to
gain faster direct access to quickly enter orders into the System
and receive executions. CORE FIX accepts limit Orders from members,
and if there are matching Orders, they will execute. Nonmatching
Orders are added to the Limit Order Book, a database of available
limit Orders, where they are matched in price-time priority. CORE
FIX only provides a method for members to send Orders and receive
status updates on those Orders.
\6\ The OUCH Order entry protocol is a proprietary protocol that
allows members to enter, replace, and cancel orders and receive
executions. OUCH is intended to allow participants and their
software developers to integrate NASDAQ into their proprietary
trading systems or to build custom front ends. The RASH (Routing and
Special Handling) Order entry protocol is a proprietary protocol
that allows members to enter Orders, cancel existing Orders and
receive executions. RASH allows participants to use advanced
functionality, including discretion, random reserve, pegging and
routing. See <a href="https://www.nasdaqtrader.com/Trader.aspx?id=rash">https://www.nasdaqtrader.com/Trader.aspx?id=rash</a>.
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The Exchange proposes to amend Equity 7, Section 115 to adopt a fee
of $500/port/month and a disaster recovery port fee of $25/port/month
for the newly added CORE FIX order protocol, which is similar to other
current port fees. Additionally, the Exchange proposes a 30-day waiver
of the CORE FIX production port fee for up to five (5) newly added CORE
FIX ports. The fee waiver would be offered for a three-month period,
beginning on the date when CORE FIX first becomes available on the
Exchange, which such date the Exchange shall announce in an Equity
Trader Alert. At the end of the three-month period, users would no
longer be eligible for the waiver. A user may only receive the 30-day
waiver once per port (up to a maximum of five ports) within the three-
month window. The Exchange proposes to offer this temporary waiver to
encourage new, prospective customers to adopt, and returning customers
to utilize, the CORE FIX Order entry protocol.
The Exchange also proposes to amend Equity 7, Section 130 to
provide a 30-day waiver for the $300 Testing Facility fee in Section
130(d)(1) for up to five \7\ newly added CORE FIX Testing Facility
ports. This fee waiver would be offered for a three-month period,
beginning on
[[Page 53017]]
the date when CORE FIX first becomes available on the Exchange, which
such date the Exchange shall announce in an Equity Trader Alert. At the
end of the three-month period, users would no longer be eligible for
the waiver. A user may only receive the 30-day waiver once per port (up
to a maximum of five ports) within the three-month window. The Testing
Facility provides subscribers with a virtual System test environment
that closely approximates the production environment on which they may
test their automated systems that integrate with the Exchange. For
example, the Testing Facility provides subscribers with a virtual
System environment for testing upcoming releases and product
enhancements, as well as testing firm software prior to implementation.
The Exchange proposes to offer this temporary waiver to encourage
customers to test the updated version of the CORE FIX Order entry
protocol free of charge.
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\7\ The fee waiver is limited to a maximum of five CORE FIX
ports per CRD membership.
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The Exchange is also proposing to make a two technical change to
Equity 7, Sections 115 and 130 to remove the temporary waiver provided
to the OUCH Order entry ports. Similar to the proposed waiver for CORE
FIX, the OUCH production port fee waiver was for a three-month period,
which began in November 2022. The three-month waiver period for OUCH is
no longer applicable. Therefore, the Exchange is proposing to amend the
rules to remove the language. Additionally, the Exchange is adding a
footnote symbol next to the title of Section 115 that was inadvertently
removed from the fee schedule. The symbol provides clarity to the
footnote at the end of Section 115.\8\
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\8\ The footnote at the end of Section 115 provides that fees
are prorated for the first month of service under this section. Upon
cancellation, participants are required to pay for service for the
remainder of the month, regardless of whether it is the first month
of service.
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2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes that its proposal is consistent with Section
6(b) of the Act,\9\ in general, and furthers the objectives of Sections
6(b)(4) and 6(b)(5) of the Act,\10\ in particular, in that it provides
for the equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees and other charges
among members and issuers and other persons using any facility, and is
not designed to permit unfair discrimination between customers,
issuers, brokers, or dealers.
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\9\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
\10\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4) and (5).
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The Exchange's proposed changes to its fee schedule are reasonable
in several respects. As a threshold matter, the Exchange is subject to
significant competitive forces in the market for equity securities
transaction services that constrain its pricing determinations in that
market. The Commission and the courts have repeatedly expressed their
preference for competition over regulatory intervention in determining
prices, products, and services in the securities markets. In Regulation
NMS, while adopting a series of steps to improve the current market
model, the Commission highlighted the importance of market forces in
determining prices and SRO revenues and, also, recognized that current
regulation of the market system ``has been remarkably successful in
promoting market competition in its broader forms that are most
important to investors and listed companies.'' \11\
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\11\ Securities Exchange Act Release No. 51808 (June 9, 2005),
70 FR 37496, 37499 (June 29, 2005) (``Regulation NMS Adopting
Release'').
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BX believes that it is reasonable, equitable and not unfairly
discriminatory to establish a port fee and a disaster recovery port fee
for CORE FIX and to provide a temporary fee waiver for up to five newly
added CORE FIX order entry ports (production and Testing Facility
environments). As described above, the proposed fees are similar to the
fees charged for other similar ports such as RASH and OUCH.
Participants are not required to use the CORE FIX port. The Exchange
also believes it is important to provide users an opportunity to test
CORE FIX free of charge. The temporary fee waivers would encourage
users to test and adopt the enhanced CORE FIX Order entry protocol.
Additionally, the Exchange believes that it is reasonable and not
unfairly discriminatory to remove the language in Sections 115 and 130
referencing the fee waiver for OUCH 5.0 because the three-month time
period for the waiver has lapsed and is no longer applicable to OUCH
5.0 subscribers. The removal of the temporary fee waiver would be
applicable to all market participants. The Exchange believes that it is
necessary to make non-technical changes to the fee schedule to ensure
that the fees are clear and accurately reflect the Exchange's intent.
Therefore, the Exchange believes that it is reasonable to add the
footnote symbol to Section 115.
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.
Intermarket Competition
The Exchange believes that the proposed fee and temporary fee
waivers will not impose an undue burden on competition because
utilization of the Exchange's ports and services are completely
voluntary and subject to competition both from the other live exchanges
and from off-exchange venues, which include alternative trading systems
that trade national market system stock. Moreover, the proposed fees
and waivers would facilitate adoption of a new Order entry protocol,
which is pro-competitive because the new protocol bolsters the
efficiency, functionality, and overall attractiveness of the Exchange
in an absolute sense and relative to its peers. Accordingly, the
Exchange does not believe that the proposed change will impair the
ability of members, participants, or competing order execution venues
to maintain their competitive standing in the financial markets.
Additionally, the removal of the temporary OUCH fee waivers and
adding a footnote symbol are technical changes to ensure that the
Exchange's rulebook is current and accurately reflects the current fee
offerings. Therefore, the Exchange does not believe that there is any
burden on competition.
Intramarket Competition
In terms of intramarket competition, the proposed change to the fee
available to a member does not impose a burden on competition and will
not place any category of Exchange participant at a competitive
disadvantage. The proposed fees and the change to temporarily waive
fees for newly added CORE FIX order entry ports (production and Testing
Facility environments) will apply uniformly to all similarly situated
participants. The temporary fee waivers are available to all users and
would enable users to test the CORE FIX enhancements at no cost. The
Exchange notes that its members are free to trade on other venues to
the extent they believe that these proposals are not attractive.
Additionally, the removal of the temporary OUCH fee waivers and
addition of a footnote symbol are non-substantive changes that will not
impose any burden on competition because the waivers are no longer
applicable and the removal of the expired waivers will apply to all
market participants.
[[Page 53018]]
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 is effective upon filing pursuant to
Section 19(b)(3)(A) \12\ of the Act and subparagraph (f)(2) of Rule
19b-4 \13\ thereunder, because it establishes a due, fee, or other
charge imposed by the Exchange.
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\12\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
\13\ 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 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
<bullet> Use the Commission's internet comment form (<a href="https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml">https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml</a>); or
<bullet> Send an email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#becccbd2db93ddd1d3d3dbd0cacdfecddbdd90d9d1c8"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="582a2d343d753b3735353d362c2b182b3d3b763f372e">[email protected]</span></a>. Please include
file number SR-BX-2025-023 on the subject line.
Paper Comments
<bullet> 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-BX-2025-023. 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 (<a href="https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml">https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml</a>). Copies of the filing will be available for inspection and
copying at the principal office of the Exchange. Do not include
personal identifiable information in submissions; you should submit
only information that you wish to make available publicly. We may
redact in part or withhold entirely from publication submitted material
that is obscene or subject to copyright protection. All submissions
should refer to file number SR-BX-2025-023 and should be submitted on
or before December 15, 2025.
For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\14\
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\14\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Sherry R. Haywood,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2025-20692 Filed 11-21-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P
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