The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of access to capital for small businesses across the country. The Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee recently met to discuss and develop solutions that can support small business’ short- and long-term capital needs. The SEC responded to the Committee’s feedback with
temporary emergency relief to expedite the offering process for smaller, established companies.
However, in light of challenges that minority communities face accessing capital, as well as recent events highlighting racial injustice, there is increased need for discussion of the representation of minorities in small business. The SEC has therefore announced its agenda for the August 4th meeting of the Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee will focus on how capital markets are serving underrepresented founders, including minorities and women. During the meeting, the Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation will share statistics and trends across demographic groups. After, the Committee will listen to and learn from founders and investors as they share their perspectives on capital formation. Attention will then turn to feedback from the speakers that will shape the remainder of the meeting. The meeting will also include a discussion by Committee members of best practices and potential regulatory solutions to enable a more inclusive capital formation ecosystem.
The Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee was established to furnish advice and recommendations to the SEC on rules, regulations, and policy matters relating to small businesses, ranging from privately-held emerging companies to smaller public companies. Additional information on the Committee, including its members, is available on the Committee’s webpage.
The virtual meeting will take place from 10 am through 3 pm ET and will be webcast on SEC.gov. The webcast will be archived on the Committee’s webpage for later viewing.
Sources:
Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee Aug. 4 Meeting to Focus on How Capital Markets Are Serving Underrepresented Founders (www.sec.gov)