MEMX amends sub-dollar retail fee schedule with new qualification criteria
MEMX members must meet revised ADAV thresholds for Tier 1 sub-dollar retail fees, effective immediately upon filing on August 11 2026.
On August 11, 2026, MEMX LLC filed a proposed rule change with the Securities and Exchange Commission to amend its fee schedule for members, and the Commission published the notice on August 24, 2026 (FR Doc No. 2026-17202; Release No. 34-106160; File No. SR-MEMX-2026-24). The amendment is effective immediately, and the Commission is soliciting comments from interested persons.
The amendment leaves the existing fee structure unchanged - 0.28% of the transaction value for standard retail orders priced below $1.00 that remove liquidity and 0.18% for the Retail Sub-Dollar Liquidity Removal Tier 1 - but expands the qualification criteria for Tier 1. A member will now qualify by either meeting the current average daily added volume (ADAV) threshold of 20,000,000 shares in sub-dollar retail orders, or by achieving an ADAV of at least 10,000,000 shares together with a Step-Up Retail Order ADAV equal to or greater than 50% of the member's April 2026 Retail Order ADAV. The alternative criteria will expire no later than January 31, 2027, and MEMX will note this expiration on the fee-schedule table.
MEMX notes that it represents approximately 1.8% of overall equities market share and operates in a market where no single exchange holds more than about 14% of executed volume. The exchange argues that the additional qualification path is intended to "encourage additional Members to strive to qualify for the Retail Sub-Dollar Liquidity Removal Tier" by providing a lower ADAV threshold coupled with a reasonable step-up requirement.
The proposed rule change is filed under Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 19b-4, with the statutory basis cited as Section 6 of the Act and Sections 6(b)(4) and 6(b)(5), which govern the equitable allocation of fees among members.
The Commission's notice invites comments on the proposal, and MEMX indicates that any termination of the alternative criteria before January 31, 2027, will be filed as a separate rule filing.
Further reading