Notice2026-01207
Self-Regulatory Organizations; Investors Exchange LLC; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Amend IEX's Fee Schedule Concerning Certain FINRA Fees
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
January 23, 2026
Issuing agencies
Securities and Exchange Commission
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 15 (Friday, January 23, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 15 (Friday, January 23, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2976-2978]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-01207]
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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-104634; File No. SR-IEX-2026-01]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; Investors Exchange LLC; Notice of
Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Amend
IEX's Fee Schedule Concerning Certain FINRA Fees
January 20, 2026.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) \1\ of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934 (``Act'') \2\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\3\ notice is hereby given
that, on January 7, 2026, the Investors Exchange LLC (``IEX'' or
``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 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\ 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
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 19(b)(1) under the Act,\4\
and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\5\ the Exchange is filing with the
Commission a proposed rule change to amend the Exchange's fee schedule
applicable to Members \6\ (the ``Fee Schedule'' \7\) pursuant to IEX
Rule 15.110(a) and (c) to reflect adjustments to system processing fees
for the Central Registration Depository (``CRD''), which are collected
and retained by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc.
(``FINRA''). Changes to the Fee Schedule pursuant to this proposal are
immediately effective.\8\
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\4\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
\5\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
\6\ See IEX Rule 1.160(s).
\7\ See Investors Exchange Fee Schedule, available at <a href="https://www.iexexchange.io/resources/trading/fee-schedule">https://www.iexexchange.io/resources/trading/fee-schedule</a>.
\8\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(ii).
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The text of the proposed rule change is available at the Exchange's
website at <a href="https://www.iexexchange.io/resources/regulation/rule-filings">https://www.iexexchange.io/resources/regulation/rule-filings</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 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 the
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
1. Purpose
FINRA collects and retains certain regulatory fees via the CRD
system for the registration of associated persons of IEX Members who
are not FINRA members.\9\ One such fee is the CRD system processing
fee, which until January 1, 2026, was a flat fee of $70 per registered
person associated with a Member. In 2024, FINRA amended certain fees,
including the CRD system processing fee, with implementation dates in
2026 and 2028.\10\ Beginning on January 1, 2026, FINRA replaced the
flat fee with a tiered fee structure where the CRD system processing
fee is calculated based on the number of securities regulators with
which each registered person of a Member is registered, excluding
registration as an investment adviser representative.\11\
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\9\ FINRA operates the CRD, the central licensing and
registration system for the U.S. securities industry. Through the
CRD system, FINRA maintains the qualification, employment, and
disciplinary histories of registered associated persons of broker-
dealers.
\10\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 101696 (November
21, 2024), 89 FR 93709 (November 27, 2024) (SR-FINRA-2024-019).
\11\ See id.
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Accordingly, the Exchange proposes to amend the Registration and
processing fee section of its Fee Schedule to remove the $70 CRD system
processing fee and replace it with the tiered fee structure set forth
below based on the number of securities regulators that each registered
representative and principal is registered with:
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Number of securities regulators Fees
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1-5..................................................... $70
6-20.................................................... 95
[[Page 2977]]
21-40................................................... 110
41+..................................................... 125
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These amendments are being made in accordance with FINRA's rule
change amending its CRD system processing fees.\12\
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\12\ See supra, note 10.
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Because FINRA separately collects the CRD system processing fee for
any IEX Member that is also a FINRA member,\13\ the CRD system
processing fee on the Exchange's Fee Schedule applies only to IEX
Members that are not FINRA members. The Exchange merely lists these CRD
system processing fees on its Fee Schedule; it does not collect or
retain these fees. Although the Exchange does not currently have any
Members that are not FINRA members, the Exchange proposes to amend the
CRD system processing fees in its Fee Schedule to align with FINRA's
revised CRD system processing fees, which became operative on January
1, 2026.
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\13\ IEX Members that are also FINRA members are charged CRD
system processing fees according to Section 4 of Schedule A to the
FINRA By-Laws.
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2. Statutory Basis
IEX believes that the proposed rule change is consistent with the
provisions of Section 6(b) \14\ of the Act in general, and furthers the
objectives of Sections 6(b)(4) and 6(b)(5) \15\ of the Act, in
particular, in that it provides for the equitable allocation of
reasonable fees and charges among its members, and is not designed to
permit unfair discrimination between customers, issuers, brokers, and
dealers.
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\14\ 15 U.S.C. 78f.
\15\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4) and (5).
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As described in the Purpose section, the proposed fee change is
being made in response to amendments made by FINRA to the same fees.
The proposed fee is reasonable because it is identical to the fee
adopted by FINRA as of January 1, 2026 for use of the CRD system for
each of the FINRA member's registered representatives and principals
for system processing.\16\ The costs of operating and improving the CRD
system are similarly borne by FINRA when a non-FINRA IEX Member uses
the CRD system; accordingly, the fees collected for such use should, as
proposed by the Exchange, mirror the fees assessed to FINRA members.
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\16\ See supra, note 10.
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The Exchange also believes the proposed fee change is reasonable
because, as noted in FINRA's fee filing, FINRA is increasing the CRD
system fees to provide enough revenue to enable it to continue
fulfilling its regulatory mission.\17\ In addition, the Exchange
believes that the tiered fee structure is also reasonable because, as
FINRA noted in its fee filing, the fees correlate with the components
that drive FINRA's regulatory costs, to the extent feasible.\18\ The
Exchange further believes that the change is reasonable because, to the
extent the Exchange has any non-FINRA IEX Members in the future, the
proposed fee will provide greater specificity regarding the CRD system
fees that would be applicable to any such Members.
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\17\ See id.
\18\ See id.
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The Exchange believes the proposed fee increase is equitable and
not designed to permit unfair discrimination because FINRA charges the
equivalent system processing fee to all users of the CRD system,
whether or not they are FINRA members. The proposed fee applies equally
to all IEX Members required to report information in the CRD system,
and the proposed fee will result in the same regulatory fees being
charged to all Members required to report information to CRD regardless
of whether such Members are FINRA members. Therefore, all users of the
CRD system--regardless of whether they are FINRA members--equally bear
the cost of maintaining the system. Further, the Exchange will not be
collecting or retaining these fees, and therefore will not be in a
position to apply them in an inequitable or unfairly discriminatory
manner.
As noted in the Purpose section, although the Exchange does not
currently have any Members that are not FINRA members, the Exchange
believes it is appropriate and consistent with the Act to amend the CRD
system processing fees in its Fee Schedule to align with FINRA's
revised CRD system processing fees, which became operative on January
1, 2026, to provide clarity and transparency for any Member that might
in the future not be a FINRA member.
B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition
IEX does not believe that the proposed rule change will result in
any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate in
furtherance of the purposes of the Act. Because the proposed change is
being made in response to a fee amendment made by FINRA, these changes
are not designed to serve any competitive purpose, let alone create any
burden on competition. Rather, they are designed to ensure that FINRA's
CRD system processing fee applies on the Exchange in the same manner as
it does on any other national securities exchange. Thus, the Exchange
does not believe that the proposed rule change will impose any burden
on intermarket competition, let alone a burden on intermarket
competition that is not necessary or appropriate in furtherance of the
purposes of the Act.
The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule change will
impose any burden on intramarket competition because these changes are
being made in response to a FINRA fee amendment and will apply equally
to all Members of the Exchange that are non-FINRA members.
C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others
Written comments were neither solicited nor 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) \19\ of the Act.
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\19\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(ii).
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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. If the Commission
takes such action, the Commission shall institute proceedings under
Section 19(b)(2)(B) \20\ of the Act to determine whether the proposed
rule change should be approved or disapproved.
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\20\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2)(B).
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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#592b2c353c743a3634343c372d2a192a3c3a773e362f"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="4133342d246c222e2c2c242f3532013224226f262e37">[email protected]</span></a>. Please include
file number SR-IEX-2026-01 on the subject line.
Paper Comments
<bullet> Send paper comments in triplicate to Secretary, Securities
and Exchange
[[Page 2978]]
Commission, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549-1090.
All submissions should refer to file number SR-IEX-2026-01. 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-IEX-2026-01 and should be submitted on
or before February 13, 2026.
For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\21\
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\21\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Sherry R. Haywood,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2026-01207 Filed 1-22-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P
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