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Notice2026-22132

Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE American LLC; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Modify Binary Return Derivatives Rules

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Published
October 30, 2026

Issuing agencies

Securities and Exchange Commission

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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 209 (Friday, October 30, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 209 (Friday, October 30, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68563-68571]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-22132]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-106743; File No. SR-NYSEAMER-2026-96]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE American LLC; Notice of 
Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Modify 
Binary Return Derivatives Rules

October 27, 2026.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act''),\1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given that 
on October 21, 2026, NYSE American LLC (``NYSE American'' or 
``Exchange'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission 
(``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\ 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 modify Rule 900ByRDs (Applicability; 
Definitions), Rule 910ByRDs (Determination of the Settlement Price), 
Rule 915ByRDs (Criteria for Underlying Securities), Rule 916ByRDs 
(Withdrawal of Approval of Underlying Securities), Rule 958ByRDs 
(Maximum Bid-Ask Differentials), Rule 980ByRDs (Automatic Exercise of 
Binary Return Derivatives) and Rule 928.1NYP (Price Reasonability 
Checks--Orders and Quotes) with respect to the trading of Binary Return 
Derivatives (``ByRDs'') on the Exchange. The proposed rule change is 
available on the Exchange's website at <a href="http://www.nyse.com">www.nyse.com</a> and at the 
principal office of the Exchange.

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 those 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 parts 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 proposes to modify Rule 900ByRDs (Applicability; 
Definitions), Rule 910ByRDs (Determination of the Settlement Price), 
Rule 915ByRDs (Criteria for Underlying Securities), Rule 916ByRDs 
(Withdrawal of Approval of Underlying Securities), Rule 958ByRDs 
(Maximum Bid-Ask Differentials), Rule 980ByRDs (Automatic Exercise of 
Binary Return Derivatives) and Rule 928.1NYP (Price Reasonability 
Checks--Orders and Quotes) with respect to trading of ByRDs on the 
Exchange. More specifically, the Exchange proposes to use the closing 
price of the security underlying a ByRD options contract as reported by 
the primary listing market (``Closing Price'') in place of using the 
``composite price'' volume weighted average price (``VWAP'') to 
determine the settlement price of the ByRD options contract on the date 
of expiration and adopt a new initial and continued listing criteria 
for ByRDs whose underlying security is an individual stock. The 
Exchange also proposes to eliminate settlement price rounding 
practices, instead redefining Finish High ByRDs to return the 
settlement amount if the underlying security closes at or above the 
strike price.

[[Page 68564]]

Overview of ByRDs <SUP>3</SUP>
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    \3\ ByRDs have been approved since 2007. See note 5, infra. 
Under the current rules, ByRDs would be available for trading during 
the Exchange's Core Trading Session, i.e., from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 
p.m., and until 4:15 p.m. for certain highly liquid ETPs that are 
approved for trading until such time. While the Exchange does not 
anticipate that ByRDs on such ETPs would trade after 4:00 p.m. on 
the day of expiration, the Exchange's trading system is currently 
configured to allow ByRDs to trade until 4:15 p.m. because the 
Exchange's trading system currently operates ByRDs on the same 
session schedule as standard options and cannot apply a different 
close time for ByRDs on such ETPs. Because ByRDs would be settled on 
the 4:00 p.m. Closing Price, the Exchange does not expect trading in 
ByRDs on such ETPs to occur between 4:00 p.m. and 4:15 p.m. on the 
day of expiration, after the settlement price has been determined. 
The Exchange represents to monitor trading activity after 4:00 p.m. 
on expiration day, and to examine making trading system changes to 
prevent the trading of a ByRDs option contract on such ETPs after 
4:00 p.m. on the day of expiration. The Exchange will submit a 
proposed rule change to reflect such changes to the trading system. 
ByRDs are not currently available for trading during Extended 
Trading Hours (ETH), even if an underlying security is eligible for 
trading during ETH. ByRDs are also not currently available for 
trading as FLEX Options or Complex Options.
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    ByRDs \4\ are European-style option contracts on individual stocks, 
exchange-traded funds (``ETFs'') and Index-Linked Securities that have 
a fixed return in cash based on a set strike price; satisfy specified 
listing criteria; \5\ and are auto-exercised at expiration pursuant to 
the Rules of the Options Clearing Corporation (the ``OCC'').\6\ ByRDs 
are binary options and, as such, differ from traditional options traded 
on U.S. options exchanges by providing a discontinuous or non-linear 
payout. The payout of a ByRD options contract is an amount contingent 
upon the occurrence of the option being in- or at-the-money at 
expiration rather than the degree to which the option is in-the-
money.\7\ An in-the-money ByRD options contract will pay a fixed sum at 
expiration regardless of the magnitude of the difference between the 
option's strike price and the settlement price.\8\ A ``Finish High'' 
ByRD (equivalent to a call option) returns $100 per contract if the 
settlement price of the underlying security is above the strike price 
at expiration, and a ``Finish Low'' ByRD (equivalent to a put option) 
returns $100 per contract if the settlement price of the underlying 
security is below the strike price at expiration.\9\
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    \4\ ByRDs were approved for listing and trading under their 
prior name, Fixed Return Options, or FROs. See Securities Exchange 
Act Release No. 56251 (August 14, 2007), 72 FR 46523 (August 20, 
2007) (Notice of Filing of Amendment No. 4 to a Proposed Rule Change 
and Order Granting Accelerated Approval to a Proposed Rule Change, 
as Modified by Amendment Nos. 2, 3, and 4 Thereto, Relating to the 
Listing and Trading of Fixed Return Options). See also Securities 
Exchange Act Release No. 71957 (April 16, 2014), 79 FR 22563 (April 
22, 2014) (SR-NYSEMKT-2014-06) (Order approving name change from 
FROs to Binary Return Derivatives (ByRDs) and re-launch of these 
products, with certain modification, and amending Obvious Errors 
rules to include ByRDs).
    \5\ For an initial listing of a ByRD, individual stocks must 
meet the criteria set forth in Rule 915 and must also meet the 
following additional criteria: (i) a minimum market capitalization 
of at least $40 billion, (ii) a minimum trading volume (in all 
markets in which the underlying security is traded) of at least 1 
billion shares in the preceding twelve (12) months, (iii) a minimum 
average daily trading volume of 4 million shares, (iv) a minimum 
average daily trading value of at least $200 million during the 
prior six (6) months and (v) an underlying market price per share of 
at least $10 over the previous five (5) consecutive business days 
preceding the date on which the Exchange submits a certificate to 
the OCC for listing and trading, as measured by the closing price 
reported in the primary listed market in which the underlying 
security is traded. See Rule 915ByRDs, Commentary .01. For an 
initial listing of a ByRD, ETFs and Index-Linked Securities must 
also meet the criteria set forth in Rule 915 and must also meet the 
criteria for individual stocks set forth in Commentary .01 except 
for the minimum market capitalization requirement in Commentary 
.01(i). See Rule 915ByRDs, Commentary .02.
    \6\ See Rule 900ByRDs(b)(1).
    \7\ The Exchange proposes to add this sentence to the definition 
of Binary Return Derivatives in Rule 900ByRDs(b)(1). The purpose for 
amending the current definition is to illustrate that a transaction 
in a ByRDs contract is an `all-or-none' proposition.
    \8\ Under Rule 900ByRDs(b)(5), the term ``settlement price'' 
means the all-day VWAP of the composite prices of the security 
underlying the Binary Return Derivatives during regular trading 
hours on the business day of their expiration, or, in the case of an 
option contract expiring on a day that is not a business day, on the 
last trading day prior to expiration.
    \9\ See Rule 900ByRDs(b)(2) and (3). Each of the ``Finish High'' 
or ``Finish Low'' ByRDs option contract may be bought or sold.
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    Currently, Rule 910ByRDs(a) provides that the Exchange will use the 
``composite price'' VWAP during regular trading hours for the entire 
business day of their expiration, or, in the case of an option contract 
expiring on a day that is not a business day, the entire business day 
immediately preceding the expiration date. The rule further provides 
that to calculate the VWAP, the Exchange would use composite prices 
during regular trading hours as reported by industry price vendors.\10\
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    \10\ Composite prices are prices reported to the consolidated 
tape from any participating exchange or market. The OCC currently 
uses composite pricing in connection with the settlement of expiring 
equity options. The composite closing price is the last reported 
sale price from any eligible trade source (i.e., primary listing 
market or participating regional market). It is not an average 
price. See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 49045 (January 8, 
2004), 69 FR 2377 (January 15, 2004) (notice of filing and immediate 
effectiveness of File No. SR-OCC-2003-01).
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    If the security underlying a ByRDs option contract does not trade 
or is unavailable during regular trading hours at expiration, the 
settlement price may be fixed pursuant to the OCC's rules on a basis 
that the OCC believes is appropriate under the circumstances, including 
using the last sale price during regular trading hours on the most 
recent trading day for which a last sale price is available.\11\
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    \11\ See Rule 910ByRDs, Commentary .01.
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    Exchange rules also currently provide that the settlement price is 
calculated such that it will always round up $.01 in those instances 
when the settlement price exactly equals an expiring strike price.\12\ 
For example, if the calculated settlement price is $20.00, and there 
are expiring ByRDs Finish High and Finish Low contracts with a strike 
price of $20.00, the settlement price is rounded up to $20.01 so that 
the Finish High options will pay off. The effect of rounding is to have 
long $20.00 strike Finish High holders receiving $100.00 and long 
$20.00 strike Finish Low holders receiving $0. Absent this rounding, a 
participant may potentially have a position that appears to guarantee a 
pay-off of $100 at expiration but would instead receive $0. For 
example, if an investor holds both a $20.00 strike Finish High contract 
and a $20.00 strike Finish Low contract, the investor will receive $0 
if the settlement price was calculated to exactly equal the $20.00 
strike price. Although the risk of the settlement price equaling the 
strike price is small, the Exchange believes that this could cause 
problems both for hedging and explaining to investors what would happen 
in the unusual circumstance where the settlement price matched the 
strike price of an expiring ByRDs option contract exactly. This 
rounding method ensures that either the Finish High or the Finish Low 
ByRDs option contracts will always pay off at expiration. The Exchange 
believes this results in less opportunity for investor confusion and 
less uncertainty for participants as a whole.
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    \12\ See Rule 910ByRDs, Commentary .02.
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Proposed Rule Change
    The purpose of the proposed rule change is to determine the 
settlement price of a ByRDs options contract by using the underlying 
security's Closing Price, in place of using the security's composite 
price VWAP on the day of expiration. In connection with the proposed 
rule change, the Exchange proposes the following changes to certain of 
the rules that permit the listing and trading of ByRDs.
    First, the Exchange proposes to modify Rule 900ByRDs(b)(1) by 
amending the definition of ``Binary Return Derivatives,'' maintaining 
that ByRDs are European-style, but specifying more clearly via a new 
sentence that ``ByRDs are automatically exercised at expiration 
pursuant to the

[[Page 68565]]

Rules of the Options Clearing Corporation, returning the settlement 
amount, equal to $100, if the underlying security closes (1) at or 
above the strike price at expiration for Finish High ByRDs or (2) below 
the strike price at expiration for Finish Low ByRDs.'' The Exchange 
also proposes to modify Rule 900ByRDs(b)(2) and Rule 900ByRDs(b)(3) to 
reflect the elimination of settlement price rounding practices, 
specifying instead that ``Finish High'' ByRDs return $100 if the 
underlying security closes at or above the strike price at expiration 
(i.e., in- or at-the-money) and ``Finish Low'' ByRDs return $100 if the 
underlying security closes below the strike price at expiration (i.e., 
in-the-money).
    The Exchange next proposes to modify current Rule 900ByRDs(b)(5) by 
amending the definition of ``Settlement Price'' to mean the closing 
price of the security underlying the Binary Return Derivatives as 
reported by the primary listing market on the business day of their 
expiration, or, in the case of an option contract expiring on a day 
that is not a business day, on the last trading day prior to 
expiration. In connection with this change, the Exchange also proposes 
to delete Rule 900ByRDs(b)(4) in its entirety and renumber current Rule 
900ByRDs(b)(5) and current Rule 900ByRDs(b)(6) (while also implementing 
minor language changes to current Rule 900ByRDs(b)(6) to further 
specify that the ByRDs settlement amount is a fixed amount in cash 
equal to $100) as Rule 900ByRDs(b)(4) and Rule 900ByRDs(b)(5), 
respectively.
    Next, the Exchange proposes to modify the first sentence of Rule 
910ByRDs(a) to specify that ByRDs are ``at-the-money,'' ``in-the-
money,'' or ``out-of-the-money'' as a function of the settlement price 
of the underlying security in relation to the type of ByRDs option 
(i.e., Finish High or Finish Low) and the exercise price. The Exchange 
also proposes to revise the second sentence of Rule 900ByRDs(a). As 
proposed, the revised sentence would be as follows: ``The Exchange will 
use the closing price of the security underlying the Binary Return 
Derivative as reported by the primary listing market on the business 
day of their expiration, or, in the case of an option contract expiring 
on a day that is not a business day, the business day immediately 
preceding the expiration date as reported by industry price vendors.''
    Next, the Exchange proposes to delete current rule text in Rule 
910ByRDs, Commentary .02, which discusses current settlement price 
rounding practices, and replace it with proposed new rule text on how 
Finish High ByRDs will instead return the settlement amount if the 
underlying security closes at or above the strike price, while Finish 
Low ByRDs will return the settlement amount if the underlying security 
closes below the strike price.
    The Exchange also proposes to amend Rule 915ByRDs, Commentary .01, 
to (a) raise the minimum market capitalization requirement in Rule 
915ByRDs, Commentary .01(i) from $40 billion to $290 billion; and (b) 
adopt a new listing standard in Rule 915ByRDs, Commentary .01(vi), 
which would require a newly listed ByRDs option contract to ``maintain 
an average daily trading value in the primary listing market's closing 
auction of at least $10 million over the prior six months.'' The 
Exchange proposes to adopt the same listing criteria as a continued 
listing requirement in Rule 916ByRDs, Commentary .01(vi), for a ByRDs 
option contract.
    Pursuant to Rule 958ByRDs, a Market Maker appointed to a ByRDs 
option contract is expected to quote with no more than $0.25 between 
the bid and the offer for each ByRDs contract, except during the last 
trading day prior to expiration, when the maximum width may be 
$0.50.\13\ The Exchange proposes to adopt new Commentary .02 under Rule 
958ByRDs, which would provide that a Market Maker is not required to 
enter quotations in the ByRDs option contract in which it is appointed, 
but will be subject to the expectations set forth in Rule 958ByRDs if 
it chooses to do so. The Exchange believes not requiring Market Makers 
to continuously enter quotations in their appointed ByRDs class is 
appropriate because Market Maker appointments apply at the underlying 
security level, and a Market Maker appointed in an underlying security 
is therefore automatically appointed in that security's corresponding 
ByRDs option contract as well, regardless of whether the Market Maker 
has chosen to participate in that product. Given that an appointment 
occurs automatically rather than by a Market Maker's election, the 
Exchange does not believe it would be appropriate to enforce continuous 
quoting obligations in a ByRDs option contract absent some affirmative 
indication, such as entering a quote, that the Market Maker has chosen 
to participate in a particular series. If the Exchange required Market 
Makers to meet continuous quoting obligations in ByRDs option contracts 
regardless of this automatic appointment, a Market Maker could be 
penalized for choosing not to quote despite never having elected to 
make a market in that product. The Exchange believes providing Market 
Makers with this flexibility promotes clarity and would encourage 
Market Maker participation without inadvertently penalizing them for 
not continuously quoting in a product in which they were automatically, 
rather than voluntarily, appointed.
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    \13\ See Rule 958ByRDs.
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    The Exchange also proposes to amend Rule 980ByRDs to specify that 
at-the-money Finish High ByRDs will be automatically exercised in 
accordance with changes made to eliminate settlement price rounding 
practices, as proposed in amended Rule 910ByRDs, Commentary .02, 
discussed above.
    Finally, the Exchange proposes to add new paragraph (v) to current 
Rule 928.1NYP(a)(3) to specify that the Arbitrage Checks for buy orders 
or quotes set forth in Rule 928.1NYP(b) and the Intrinsic Value Checks 
for sell orders or quotes set forth in Rule 928.1NYP(c) would not apply 
to Binary Return Derivatives. The Price Reasonability Checks are 
intended to prevent erroneous executions by automatically rejecting or 
cancelling orders that breach historical boundaries or arbitrage limits 
(such as buying a put option for more than its strike price). However, 
since ByRDs have a non-linear, ``all-or-nothing'' payout, the 
protections provided in Rule 928.1NYP are not needed. At expiration, 
they pay a completely flat, fixed return of exactly $100.00 per 
contract if they finish in-the-money or at-the-money, regardless of 
whether the stock clears the strike price by one penny or one hundred 
dollars; If they finish out-of-the-money, they pay $0.00. Because ByRDs 
lack traditional standard intrinsic value curves, the Exchange's 
standard algorithmic checks designed for traditional equity options 
would not apply.\14\ In connection with this change, the Exchange 
proposes to adopt new Rule 928.1NYP(e) to reject all Limit Orders and 
quotes for ByRDs above the Exchange-designated maximum price for that 
class as determined on a class basis.\15\ Pursuant to Rule

[[Page 68566]]

975NY(d)(3)(A), any transaction in ByRDs that is (1) higher or lower 
than the Theoretical Price by $0.50 or more or (2) at a price greater 
than $1.02 shall be deemed a Catastrophic Error, subject to the 
adjustment procedures of Rule 975NY(d)(3) unless such adjustment would 
result in a price higher than $1.02, in which case the adjustment price 
shall be $1.02. As a result, the Exchange believes it is appropriate to 
reject all Limit Orders and quotes for ByRDs above the Exchange-
designated maximum price, i.e., $1.02.
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    \14\ The proposal to exclude Price Reasonability Checks from 
applying to ByRDs is not novel. See Rules 967NY, Commentary .01, and 
967.1NY, Commentary .01. These rules applied to the trading of ByRDs 
on the Exchange's legacy trading platform before the Exchange 
migrated to Pillar, the Exchange's current trading platform. With 
this proposed rule change, the Exchange proposes to re-establish the 
exclusion that previously applied to ByRDs.
    \15\ See proposed Rule 928.1NYP(e), which provides that the 
``Exchange will apply a maximum price protection for Binary Return 
Derivatives on a class basis, pursuant to which the Exchange rejects 
all Limit Orders and quotes for Binary Return Derivatives above the 
Exchange-designated maximum price for that class.''
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    The Exchange believes adopting the Closing Price to determine the 
settlement price of an expiring ByRDs option contract has several 
benefits and is appropriate for four reasons. First, the Closing Price 
is considered the most carefully determined price of the day. The 
Closing Price is determined by a call auction process run by the 
underlying security's primary listing exchange, which allows market 
participants to participate in real-time price discovery. It represents 
the consensus value after a full day of price discovery, with maximum 
participation from all market participants. Second, auctions are the 
among the most transparent parts of the market. Primary listings 
markets disseminate auction information frequently during a prescribed 
period of time, providing transparency to all market participants. This 
real-time flow of data--including indicative prices, imbalances, and 
matched volumes--gives all participants equal visibility in where the 
market is heading before the price is set. Third, Closing Prices 
(especially in highly-liquid securities such as those that qualify for 
ByRDs listings) are stable and not susceptible to manipulation. Because 
the Closing Price is set through a structured, transparent, rules-based 
auction aggregating broad order flow, it is far less susceptible to 
end-of-day price manipulation than other point-in-time benchmarks. 
Closing auction mechanisms are designed to make Closing Prices more 
reliable and less vulnerable to manipulation, providing a more robust 
and manipulation-resistant closing price discovery mechanism that 
reflects true supply and demand. Fourth, there is a concentration of 
liquidity to determine the Closing Price. Closing auctions within U.S. 
equity markets have grown significantly--in 2026, they have matched 
just over $100 billion per day and accounted for 9.4% of total notional 
value traded.\16\ This concentration of liquidity makes closing 
auctions an especially efficient execution point, as large orders can 
be filled with minimal price impact.\17\
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    \16\ NYSE TAQ Consolidated Trade Data. Data through August 21, 
2026.
    \17\ Id.
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    The continually-growing liquidity in closing auctions has been 
highlighted by numerous market practitioners and academics. NYSE and 
Nasdaq, in their capacity as primary listing exchanges, have each 
published several articles detailing liquidity trends and price-
formation dynamics in their respective closing auctions.\18\ Due to the 
significant liquidity now present in closing auctions, auction ``price 
impact is lower than during continuous trading.'' \19\ Closing 
auctions' growing liquidity encourages market participants to optimize 
their participation,\20\ in turn adding still more liquidity and 
contributing to rising closing auction trade sizes. As State Street 
Investment Management recently stated:
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    \18\ See <a href="https://www.nyse.com/data-insights/nyse-closing-auction-price-discovery-opportunities-reach-new-highs">https://www.nyse.com/data-insights/nyse-closing-auction-price-discovery-opportunities-reach-new-highs</a> and <a href="https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/market-close-most-important-price-day">https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/market-close-most-important-price-day</a>.
    \19\ Vincent Bogousslavsky, Dmitriy Muravyev, Who trades at the 
close? Implications for price discovery and liquidity, Journal of 
Financial Markets, Volume 66, 2023, 100852, ISSN 1386-4181, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.finmar.2023.100852">https://doi.org/10.1016/j.finmar.2023.100852</a>.
    \20\ ``We are spending as much time as we ever have to 
understand the close and to optimizing engaging in the close,'' 
Reyes said. From <a href="https://www.tradersmagazine.com/featured_articles/liquidity-remains-holy-grail-in-equities/">https://www.tradersmagazine.com/featured_articles/liquidity-remains-holy-grail-in-equities/</a>.

    ``If the rise of Market-on-Close volume is best viewed as a 
structural response to the growth of indexing and benchmark-centric 
execution, we believe this cycle will continue: more indexing leads 
to more reliance on the close, which deepens liquidity at the final 
print and further anchors execution to that benchmark.'' \21\
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    \21\ <a href="https://www.ssga.com/us/en/intermediary/insights/how-passive-investing-reshaping-microstructure">https://www.ssga.com/us/en/intermediary/insights/how-passive-investing-reshaping-microstructure</a>.

    Additionally, the Commission has also recently issued Release No. 
34-105882, ``. . . Granting Conditional Exemptive Relief to the Chicago 
Mercantile Exchange Inc. from the Opening Price Settlement Requirements 
of Rule 6h-1(b) Under the Exchange Act for Certain Cash-Settled 
Security Futures.'' \22\ To establish a single-stock futures product, 
which like binary options, is cash-settled, CME has received an 
exemption to use a closing price rather than an opening price 
settlement. In their application for this exemption, CME highlighted 
the growth in closing auction volumes in US equity markets and the use 
of official closing prices in other products to support the position 
that closing auction liquidity was sufficiently robust to absorb any 
additional liquidity needs related to new derivative products.\23\
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    \22\ <a href="https://www.sec.gov/files/rules/exorders/2026/34-105882.pdf">https://www.sec.gov/files/rules/exorders/2026/34-105882.pdf</a>.
    \23\ <a href="https://www.sec.gov/files/rules/exorders/2026/34-104786.pdf">https://www.sec.gov/files/rules/exorders/2026/34-104786.pdf</a>.
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    When ByRDs were designed, the Exchange noted that by using a VWAP a 
trader may ``smooth'' the average price paid or realized for a large 
position. Specifically, the VWAP for a given underlying security means 
the sum of the dollar value of trades reported to the Consolidated Tape 
(price multiplied by number of shares traded) divided by the total 
number of shares traded during the entire last day of trading on the 
business day of their expiration. The concern at the time was that a 
single closing price could be more susceptible to manipulation, and 
that smoothing over a full day of trading would produce a more 
representative settlement value. The Exchange believes that rationale 
has been substantially overtaken by market structure developments over 
the last 2 decades, and that the Closing Price is now a superior 
alternative. For one, a VWAP settlement requires aggregating all trades 
reported to the Consolidated Tape across the entire trading day. This 
creates several practical problems: it depends on data vendor accuracy 
and timeliness, it requires handling of out-of-sequence and late 
reported trades (which can distort the calculation), and it is not a 
number any participant can observe in real time. By contrast, the 
closing price from the primary listing market is a single, publicly 
observable, instantaneous value produced by a supervised exchange 
auction process, available immediately and unambiguously at 4:00 p.m. 
Second, a full-day VWAP creates hedging complexity and mismatch. 
Because ByRDs currently settle on the full-day VWAP, a holder trying to 
hedge a ByRDs position on expiration day cannot do so cleanly--their 
hedge would need to track the cumulative weighted average of all trades 
from open to close, which shifts continuously throughout the day in 
ways that are difficult to replicate. A closing-price settlement, by 
contrast, would allow hedgers to concentrate their activity in the 
closing auction, which is exactly what participants in standard listed 
equity options already do. This alignment with standard options hedging 
practice would reduce friction and basis risk. The Exchange 
acknowledges that for cash-settled options generally, settlement based 
on the Closing Price may concentrate the unwinding of hedge positions 
in the

[[Page 68567]]

closing auction, which adds a layer of mechanical flow that can amplify 
volatility. The Exchange believes, however, that this consideration 
does not raise significant concerns with respect to ByRDs, for the 
following reasons. First, ByRDs are subject to comparatively low 
position limits. Pursuant to Rule 904ByRDs, Binary Return Derivatives 
on each underlying security are subject to a position limit of 25,000 
contracts on the same side of the market. This is the lowest position 
limit applicable to any options product under Rule 904, Commentary 
.07(e). The Exchange believes that this limit constrains the size of 
any hedge position that a market participant could be required to 
unwind at expiration. Second, the need to unwind positions in the 
underlying security at or near expiration is not a new risk introduced 
by closing-price settlement. Such activity was equally present under 
the VWAP settlement methodology when ByRDs were initially approved. 
Accordingly, the Exchange believes that the proposal does not introduce 
a new category of hedging activity. Third, the universe of eligible 
underlying securities is highly liquid. As set forth in Rule 915ByRDs, 
Commentary .01, an underlying security must satisfy heightened 
eligibility requirements, including a minimum market capitalization of 
$290 billion and a minimum average daily trading value of $10 million 
in the primary listing market's closing auction. In light of these 
requirements, the Exchange believes that any hedge unwinding at the 
close can be absorbed by the market without undue price impact. Lastly, 
VWAP is more susceptible to intraday manipulation than a supervised 
closing auction. This is somewhat counterintuitive given the original 
rationale for VWAP, but it is well-supported. ``Marking the close''--
where participants deliberately transact in the final period to move 
the VWAP toward a favorable settlement--is classified as market 
manipulation. Because VWAP is computed from all Consolidated Tape 
prints throughout the day, large coordinated order flow at any point 
during the session can shift the VWAP in ways that are difficult to 
detect in real time. A closing auction, by contrast, is a supervised, 
transparent, single-price process with published imbalance information 
that regulators and surveillance systems can monitor closely.\24\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \24\ NYSE improved transparency by moving the publication of 
auction imbalance information to 3:50 p.m., further hardening the 
auction against manipulation by giving market participants more time 
to respond to imbalances. See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 
100327 (June 13, 2024), 89 FR 51918 (June 20, 2024) (SR-NYSE-2024-
13) (Order Approving a Proposed Rule Change Amending Rule 7.35 and 
Rule 7.35B).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    To reinforce the resilience of the ByRDs settlement price against 
manipulation, the Exchange proposes to condition ByRDs listing 
eligibility on the presence of sufficient closing auction liquidity. 
Specifically, as noted above, the Exchange proposes to amend Rule 
915ByRDs, Commentary .01, to add a new eligibility requirement for the 
initial listing of a ByRDs option contract on an underlying stock. 
Proposed Rule 915ByRDs, Commentary .01(vi) would provide that to be 
eligible for an initial listing, individual stocks ``maintain an 
average daily trading value in the primary listing exchange's closing 
auction of at least $10 million over the prior six months.'' \25\ The 
proposed new eligibility requirement would apply to the initial and 
continued listing of ETFs and Section 107 Securities also as the 
current rule provides that to be eligible for an initial listing of a 
ByRDs option contract, an ETF or Section 107 Security must meet the 
criteria for individual stocks set forth in Rule 915ByRDs, Commentary 
.01. Additionally, the proposed increase to the minimum market 
capitalization requirement, from $40 billion to $290 billion, would 
limit the number of underlying securities that would be eligible for an 
initial listing of a ByRDs option contract.\26\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \25\ The Exchange proposes amending Rule 916ByRDs, Commentary 
.01, which would require the proposed new eligibility requirement 
for the continued listing of a ByRD contract also.
    \26\ The Exchange represents that it will monitor both initial 
and continued listing criteria applicable to ByRDs on an ongoing 
basis and will submit a proposed rule change to make changes no 
later than four months from the date that ByRDs begin to trade on 
the Exchange.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Applying both the amended ByRDs listing liquidity thresholds and 
the newly-proposed auction liquidity threshold to eligible listed 
securities yields 100 eligible ByRDs underliers, as opposed to the 305 
eligible ByRDs underliers without the newly proposed criteria. The 
median closing auction value traded across these 100 eligible 
securities is $92.5 million per day, based on a recent review conducted 
by the Exchange.
    The Exchange believes the proposed new eligibility requirement 
makes using Closing Price to determine the settlement price less 
susceptible to manipulation. Because the Closing Price is set through a 
single, centralized auction that consolidates the full day's residual 
buying and selling interest into one print, influencing that price 
requires trading against the entire pool of auction liquidity rather 
than a thin, point-in-time quote. At the liquidity levels required by 
proposed new Rule 915ByRDs, Commentary .01(vi), a participant seeking 
to move the close by any meaningful amount would have to commit 
substantial capital against prevailing order flow and absorb the 
offsetting interest of other participants, all within a brief and 
closely observed window. The closing auction's transparency compounds 
that burden: with indicative prices, imbalances, and matched volumes 
disseminated in real time, a distortive order becomes visible to the 
market and tends to draw offsetting liquidity that both counters it and 
further stabilizes the Closing Price. The economic cost and ready 
detectability of such conduct, together with the deep and growing 
liquidity of U.S. closing auctions described above, make the closing 
auction a robust and manipulation-resistant basis for determining ByRDs 
settlement prices.
    Similarly, the Exchange believes eliminating the settlement price 
rounding convention is reasonable and appropriate because it removes an 
unnecessary and artificial adjustment to price data that is no longer 
needed to achieve its intended purpose. Under the current rules, the 
Settlement Price is rounded up $0.01 whenever it would otherwise 
exactly match the strike price of an expiring ByRDs option contract, 
solely to ensure that a Finish High contract pays off rather than 
leaving both the Finish High and Finish Low contracts unexercised. 
However, because Finish High ByRDs as proposed would be defined to pay 
off whenever the underlying security closes at or above the strike 
price--a category that already includes an exact match--this outcome is 
achieved automatically by the definition itself, without requiring any 
adjustment of the reported price.
    The Exchange believes that removing the rounding convention has 
several benefits. First, it allows the Settlement Price to reflect the 
underlying security's actual, unadjusted Closing Price, rather than an 
artificial value that may not correspond to any price at which the 
security actually traded or was reported. This promotes transparency 
and consistency between the Settlement Price used for ByRDs and the 
Closing Price used elsewhere for the same underlying security. Second, 
it would simplify the rule structure by resolving the at-the-money 
scenario through the proposed payout definitions of a Finish High ByRD 
and a Finish Low ByRD, rather than through a separate, purpose-built 
rounding mechanism layered on top of such rules. Lastly, it would 
eliminate any potential investor

[[Page 68568]]

confusion that could arise from a reported Settlement Price that 
differs by $0.01 from the security's actual closing price for no 
economic reason other than avoiding a tie. For these reasons, the 
Exchange believes the proposed change is consistent with accurately and 
transparently determining ByRDs settlement outcomes and does not 
disadvantage either side of an expiring Finish High or Finish Low ByRDs 
option contract.
2. Statutory Basis
    The Exchange believes the proposed rule change is consistent with 
Section 6(b) of the Act \27\ in general, and furthers the objectives of 
Section 6(b)(5) of the Act.\28\ Specifically, the Exchange believes the 
proposed rule change is consistent with the Section 6(b)(5) 
requirements that the rules of an exchange be designed to prevent 
fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices, to promote just and 
equitable principles of trade, to foster cooperation and coordination 
with persons engaged in regulating, clearing, settling, processing 
information with respect to, and facilitating transactions in 
securities to remove impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a free 
and open market and a national market system and, in general, to 
protect investors and the public interest.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \27\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
    \28\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Specifically, the Exchange believes that adopting the Closing Price 
to determine the settlement price of an expiring ByRDs option contract 
would increase participation among investors to trade in binary options 
given the importance of the closing auction on primary listing markets 
and, as discussed above, would reduce the hedging friction and basis 
risk associated with the current full-day VWAP methodology by aligning 
ByRDs settlement with the closing-auction hedging practices already 
standard among listed options market participants, a benefit that also 
furthers the protection of investors by reducing the difficulty of 
explaining and managing settlement risk for ByRDs holders. The NYSE 
closing auction remains the largest liquidity event in the U.S. equity 
market. The closing price produced by these auctions reflects a deep 
concentration of institutional and retail order flow precisely 
calibrated to produce a single, authoritative reference price, and 
thereby remove any impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a free 
and open market.
    The Exchange believes the proposal to adopt the Closing Price to 
determine the settlement price of an expiring ByRDs option contract 
would remove impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a free and 
open market for several reasons. First, the Closing Price is considered 
the most carefully determined price of the day as it is determined by a 
call auction process run by the underlying security's primary listing 
exchange, which allows market participants to participate in real-time 
price discovery. Second, primary listing markets disseminate auction 
information frequently during a prescribed period of time, providing 
transparency to all market participants. This real-time flow of data 
gives all participants equal visibility in where the market is heading 
before the price is set. Third, closing prices (especially in highly-
liquid securities such as those that qualify for ByRDs listings) are 
stable and not susceptible to manipulation. Because the Closing Price 
is set through a structured, transparent, rules-based auction 
aggregating broad order flow, it is far less susceptible to end-of-day 
price manipulation than other point-in-time benchmarks consistent with 
the Section 6(b)(5) requirement that exchange rules be designed to 
prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices. By contrast, 
because VWAP is computed by aggregating trades reported to the 
Consolidated Tape across the entire trading day, it can be moved by 
coordinated trading at any point during the session in ways that are 
difficult to detect in real time, a vulnerability the proposed change 
eliminates by settling ByRDs against a single, supervised auction print 
instead. Closing auction mechanisms are designed to make Closing Prices 
more reliable and less vulnerable to manipulation, providing a more 
robust and manipulation-resistant closing price discovery mechanism 
that reflects true supply and demand. Lastly, closing auctions within 
U.S. equity markets have grown significantly. This concentration of 
liquidity makes closing auctions an especially efficient execution 
point, as large orders can be filled with minimal price impact.
    The Exchange believes that the proposed rule change would remove 
impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a free and open market and 
a national market system because it would determine the settlement 
price of a ByRDs option contract using the Closing Price of the 
underlying security at expiration, while also reinforcing the 
resistance of that settlement price to manipulation. The Closing Price 
is a carefully designed, rules-based reference anchored to a closing 
auction process: transparent, liquidity-rich, resistant to 
manipulation, and widely trusted. Using it to settle an expiring ByRDs 
option contract further perfects the mechanism of a free and open 
market because it would yield a settlement price that reflects the most 
recent and reliable market information available. The proposed rule 
change also furthers the Act's objective of fostering cooperation and 
coordination among persons engaged in facilitating transactions in 
securities by relying directly on the auction process conducted by the 
underlying security's primary listing market rather than requiring the 
Exchange to independently construct a settlement value. The Exchange 
does not believe that using Closing Price to determine the settlement 
price of a ByRDs option contract at expiration would render the 
marketplace for such options more susceptible to manipulative 
practices. The Exchange notes that, as discussed above, the Commission 
has recognized the robustness of closing auction liquidity in an 
analogous context, granting the Chicago Mercantile Exchange conditional 
exemptive relief to use a closing, rather than opening, price to settle 
certain cash-settled single-stock futures based in part on the growth 
of closing auction volumes and the use of official closing prices in 
other products, which the Exchange believes further supports the 
reliability of the Closing Price as a settlement benchmark for ByRDs.
    The Exchange believes that the trading of ByRDs would provide 
investors with a potentially useful investment choice, which aids in 
perfecting the mechanism of a free and open market and a national 
market system. In addition, and consistent with the Commission's 
findings when initially approving ByRDs for listing, listing ByRDs 
``will extend to certain binary options the benefits of a listed 
exchange market, which include: A centralized forum for price 
discovery; pre- and post-trade transparency; standardized contract 
specifications; and the guarantee of the OCC.'' \29\ The Exchange 
believes those benefits are reinforced, rather than diminished, by a 
settlement price that is itself transparent and manipulation-resistant, 
since the value of a centralized, standardized, OCC-guaranteed market 
depends in part on the integrity of the price used to determine the 
payout of an auto-exercised contract.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \29\ See supra note 5 at 46524.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Exchange also believes that eliminating the settlement price 
rounding convention in favor of

[[Page 68569]]

allowing the Finish High and Finish Low definitions to resolve the at-
the-money scenario is consistent with Section 6(b)(5) and, in 
particular, promotes just and equitable principles of trade and 
protects investors and the public interest. The proposed change is 
intended to add clarity and transparency to Exchange rules making them 
easier to navigate and comprehend and does not change the outcome of a 
position in a ByRDs option contract under the current rules. Because 
Finish High ByRDs as proposed are defined to pay off whenever the 
underlying security closes at or above the strike price, the existing 
rounding convention is an unnecessary artificial adjustment to the 
reported Closing Price that is no longer needed to produce a definitive 
outcome for expiring at-the-money contracts. Removing this convention 
ensures that the settlement price used for ByRDs reflects the 
underlying security's actual, unadjusted Closing Price, consistent with 
the transparency and manipulation-resistance benefits described above, 
rather than a value adjusted for a purpose unrelated to the integrity 
of that price. The Exchange believes this promotes investor 
understanding of how ByRDs are settled and removes an impediment to a 
free and open market by eliminating a divergence between the settlement 
price used for ByRDs and the actual Closing Price of the underlying 
security.
    The Exchange believes the proposed increase to the minimum market 
capitalization requirement coupled with the proposed addition of the 
new eligibility requirement for the initial and continued listing of a 
ByRDs option contract would remove impediments to and perfect the 
mechanism of a free and open market because only a select list of 100 
underlying securities would meet the qualification requirement to have 
a ByRDs option contract listed on, which further ensures that a ByRDs 
option contract would only be listed on some of the most liquid and 
actively-traded underlying securities. Applying both the existing ByRDs 
listing liquidity thresholds, with an increased minimum market 
capitalization requirement, and the newly-proposed $10 million average 
daily closing auction trading value threshold yields approximately 100 
eligible ByRDs underliers, with a median closing auction value traded 
of $92.5 million per day across those securities. At these liquidity 
levels, a participant seeking to move the Closing Price by a meaningful 
amount would need to commit substantial capital against prevailing 
order flow within a brief, closely observed window, and the closing 
auction's real-time dissemination of indicative prices and imbalances 
would make such an attempt visible to the market and likely to draw 
offsetting liquidity, consistent with the Exchange's own recent 
enhancement moving publication of auction imbalance information earlier 
in the day.\30\ The Exchange believes the proposed eligibility criteria 
to qualify the listing of a ByRDs option contract is consistent with 
Section 6(b) of the Act, in general, and furthers the objectives of 
Section 6(b)(5), in particular, because it is designed to prevent 
fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices, to promote just and 
equitable principles of trade, to foster cooperation and coordination 
with persons engaged in facilitating transactions in securities, to 
remove impediments to, and perfect the mechanism of, a free and open 
market and a national market system and, in general, to protect 
investors and the public interest because only large, well-capitalized, 
and highly liquid issuers would qualify. Securities with high market 
capitalization and liquid markets are generally less susceptible to 
manipulation because of the substantial capital required to 
artificially influence prices of those securities. The depth and 
breadth of trading activity for securities with significant market 
capitalization make it unlikely that a single market participant would 
be able to exert undue influence on the price of such a stock, as large 
volumes of buyers and sellers are what ultimately continuously reflect 
the true market value of the stock.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \30\ See note 25, supra.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The proposed rule change to use the Closing Price to determine the 
settlement price on the 100 underlying securities is designed to 
promote just and equitable principles of trade in that the proposal 
would give market participants an alternative to trading similar 
products in the over-the-counter (OTC) market. By trading a product in 
an exchange-traded environment (that is currently traded in the OTC 
market or other platforms that trade binary options), the Exchange 
would be able to compete more effectively with the OTC market. The 
Exchange believes the proposed rule change is designed to prevent 
fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices in that it would lead to 
the migration of options currently trading in the OTC market and other 
platforms to trading on the Exchange, where such trading would become 
subject to the Exchange's surveillance, audit trail, and member conduct 
rules that do not apply to comparable OTC or other-platform trading 
today. Also, any migration to the Exchange from such other markets 
would result in increased market transparency. Additionally, the 
Exchange believes the proposed rule change is designed to remove 
impediments to and to perfect the mechanism for a free and open market 
and a national market system, and, in general, to protect investors and 
the public interest in that it should create greater trading and 
hedging opportunities and flexibility. The proposed rule change should 
also result in enhanced efficiency in initiating and closing out 
positions and heightened contra-party creditworthiness due to the role 
of OCC as issuer and guarantor of ByRDs option contracts. Further, the 
proposed rule change would result in increased competition by 
permitting the Exchange to offer products that are currently available 
for trading in the OTC market and other platforms.
    The Exchange believes not requiring Market Makers to continuously 
enter quotations in their appointed ByRDs class is consistent with the 
Act, protects investors, and prevents fraudulent and manipulative acts 
because Market Maker appointments apply at the underlying security 
level, and a Market Maker appointed in an underlying security is 
therefore automatically appointed in that security's corresponding 
ByRDs option contract as well, regardless of whether the Market Maker 
has chosen to participate in that product. Given that an appointment 
occurs automatically rather than by a Market Maker's election, the 
Exchange does not believe it would be appropriate to enforce continuous 
quoting obligations in a ByRDs option contract absent some affirmative 
indication, such as entering a quote, that the Market Maker has chosen 
to participate in a particular series.
    The Exchange believes the proposed amendments to Rule 928.1NYP 
promotes just and equitable principles of trade and removes impediments 
to and perfects the mechanism of a free and open market and a national 
market system and protects investors, to not apply the Price 
Reasonability Checks to ByRDs is a reasonable and justified product-
specific accommodation that promotes orderly trading and clear, 
consistent treatment of transactions in these contracts. Additionally, 
applying a maximum execution price protection for ByRDs on a class 
basis, pursuant to which any execution price for a ByRDs option 
contract above the Exchange-designated maximum execution price for that 
class would be rejected would promote just and equitable principles of 
trade and remove impediments to and perfects the mechanism of a free 
and

[[Page 68570]]

open market and a national market system and protects investors. This 
protection provides investors with an additional safeguard against 
executions at potential erroneous prices, which the Exchange believes 
protects investors and the public interest.

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 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 that is not necessary or appropriate in 
furtherance of the purposes of the Act, because the proposed rule 
change to use the Closing Price to determine the settlement price of 
ByRDs option contracts will apply equally to all market participants 
who wish to trade such options on the same terms and in the same manner 
(including with respect to the payout terms and amount). All market 
participants will be subject to the same rules applicable to ByRDs 
option contracts, as described in this proposed rule change. Except as 
set forth in this proposed rule change, ByRDs option contracts will 
trade in the same manner as other options on the Exchange.
    The Exchange does not believe the proposed rule change will impose 
any burden on intermarket competition that is not necessary or 
appropriate in furtherance of the purposes of the Act, because other 
options exchanges may propose similar binary options. Additionally, 
substantively similar products to ByRDs option contracts are available 
in the OTC market and various other trading platforms.
    The Exchange notes that it operates in a highly competitive market 
in which market participants can readily direct order flow to competing 
venues who offer similar products. The Exchange believes the proposed 
rule change will provide investors with a comparable alternative to the 
OTC market and other trading venues. The Exchange believes it may be a 
more attractive alternative to the OTC market and these other venues, 
as market participants will benefit from being able to trade these 
options in an exchange environment, which provides, among other things: 
(1) enhanced efficiency in initiating and closing out positions; (2) 
increased market transparency; and (3) heightened contra-party 
creditworthiness. As a result, the Exchange believes that the proposed 
rule change may relieve any burden on, or otherwise promote, 
competition, as it will allow the Exchange to offer a securities 
exchange-listed alternative to the products currently available in 
these other markets.

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

    No written comments were solicited or received with respect to the 
proposed rule change.

III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for 
Commission Action

    Because the foregoing proposed rule change does not (i) 
significantly affect the protection of investors or the public 
interest; (ii) impose any significant burden on competition; and (iii) 
become operative for 30 days after the date of the filing, or such 
shorter time as the Commission may designate, it has become effective 
pursuant to Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act \31\ and subparagraph (f)(6) 
of Rule 19b-4 thereunder.\32\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \31\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \32\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6). In addition, Rule 19b-4(f)(6)(iii) 
requires the Exchange to give the Commission written notice of its 
intent to file the proposed rule change, along with a brief 
description and text of the proposed rule change, at least five 
business days prior to the date of filing of the proposed rule 
change, or such shorter time as designated by the Commission. The 
Exchange has satisfied this requirement.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    A proposed rule change filed under Rule 19b-4(f)(6) \33\ normally 
does not become operative prior to 30 days after the date of the 
filing. However, pursuant to Rule 19b-4(f)(6)(iii),\34\ the Commission 
may designate a shorter time if such action is consistent with the 
protection of investors and the public interest. The Exchange has asked 
the Commission to waive the 30-day operative delay so that the proposed 
rule change may become operative upon filing. The proposed rule change 
is designed to provide market participants with additional trading and 
hedging opportunities that could be better tailored to their investment 
objectives. The Exchange has proposed heightened eligibility criteria 
that would limit the underlying equity securities on which the Exchange 
could list a ByRDs option contract to 100 highly-liquid securities. 
This limitation should help mitigate the impact (if any) of ByRDs on 
the closing process of the underlying equity securities and the concern 
that using an equity security's Closing Price to determine the 
settlement price at expiration for a ByRDs option contract overlying 
that equity security could cause excessive volatility or an increased 
potential for manipulation at the close in the underlying security. For 
these reasons, the Commission finds that waiver of the 30-day operative 
delay is consistent with the protection of investors and the public 
interest. Accordingly, the Commission hereby waives the operative delay 
and designates the proposal operative upon filing.\35\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \33\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6).
    \34\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6)(iii).
    \35\ For purposes only of waiving the 30-day operative delay, 
the Commission has considered the proposed rule's impact on 
efficiency, competition, and capital formation. See 15 U.S.C. 
78c(f).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    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 will institute proceedings to 
determine whether the proposed rule change 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

    <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#4331362f266e202c2e2e262d3730033026206d242c35"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="4f3d3a232a622c2022222a213b3c0f3c2a2c61282039">[email&#160;protected]</span></a>. Please include 
file number SR-NYSEAMER-2026-96 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-NYSEAMER-2026-96. 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

[[Page 68571]]

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-
NYSEAMER-2026-96 and should be submitted on or before November 30, 
2026.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\36\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \36\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sherry R. Haywood,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2026-22132 Filed 10-29-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P


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This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.