The IPO Task Force seems to have come together again. The Center for Capital Markets released a letter dated August 22, 2017 addressed to the Treasury Secretary setting out a few suggestions, which are quite similar to those that had been advanced a few years ago, and that have as their objective increasing the number of public companies. The suggestions include:
- Extending the Title I JOBS Act on-ramp accommodations from five to ten years for EGCs and reviewing the EGC definition;
- Making the JOBS Act accommodations available to all issuers, not just EGCs;
- Modernizing the Sarbanes-Oxley internal control over financial reporting requirements;
- Modernizing securities disclosure requirements;
- Addressing the rules related to shareholder proposals and regulating proxy advisory firms;
- Promoting equity market structure changes that enhance liquidity for EGC and small cap stocks; and
- Incentivizing research coverage.
A bit of additional commentary on these suggestions is offered in the letter, which may be found here: http://www.centerforcapitalmarkets.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Follow-Up-Letter-to-July-28-Roundtable-on-Access-to-Capital.pdf?x48633
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