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As I noted last month, capital formation is likely to be on the agenda of the SEC and Congress over the course of the next few years. Last week, the SEC announced that the Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee released its agenda for a meeting scheduled for February 25, 2025. The meeting will be open to the public via webcast on www.sec.gov. The Mayer Brown Free Writings + Perspectives blog notes:

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee will meet on February 25, 2025 to discuss capital-raising challenges for emerging fund managers and smaller public companies the securities of which are not listed on a national securities exchange. The meeting, available via webcast on SEC.gov, will begin with an overview of the SEC Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation’s 2024 Annual Report, which provides data on capital formation trends and includes policy recommendations. See our two blog posts relating to the 2024 Annual Report summarizing Crowdfunding, Reg A & Private Companies trends and Exempt Offerings & Smaller Public Companies trends.

The morning session will focus on supporting emerging fund managers, with insights from industry participants. In the afternoon, the committee will discuss challenges faced by smaller public companies the securities of which are not listed on a national securities exchange. The meeting notice indicates that small public companies, which for these purposes are considered to be those companies with a market capitalization of $250 million or less, represent almost half of all public companies. However, many small public companies do not have a class of equity securities listed on a national securities exchange. As a result, these companies face particular challenges in raising capital. The group will hear from the OTC Markets Group. The committee will explore ways to address some of the challenges facing smaller public companies.

We will all certainly be watching to see how the SEC’s new Chairman (when confirmed) will utilize the recommendations of the various advisory committees when formulating policy actions.

– Dave Lynn