WASHINGTON, DC – The National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) today joined with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other organizations to release “Expanding The On-Ramp: Recommendations to Help More Companies Go and Stay Public,” a report providing public policy recommendations to encourage more U.S. public companies. The report was produced in partnership with a number of organizations, including The Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness, Nasdaq, TechNet, SIFMA, Biotechnology Innovation Organization, American Securities Association and Equity Dealers of America.
The recommendations in the report provide a blueprint for policymakers to address the challenges to both launching IPOs and remaining a public company. The policy recommendations include enhancements to the reforms put in place by the JOBS Act, proposals to encourage more research of emerging growth companies (EGCs), improvements to corporate governance, disclosure, financial reporting and regulatory requirements, and enhancements to equity market structure.
“Six years after the passage of the JOBS Act, we now have a good understanding of what further reforms are needed to make it easier for venture-backed companies to enter the public markets and succeed once there,” said Bobby Franklin, President and CEO of NVCA. “Our goal is for this report to build off the success of the JOBS Act, which made it easier to go public, and provide a critical set of policy changes to make it more attractive to be a public company. The venture capital industry has historically fed the IPO pipeline. Reversing the decline in the number of U.S. public companies is a top priority, and this report is a significant step for our efforts. We look forward to working with Congress, the SEC and other stakeholders to make these reforms a reality.”
“With currently less than half the number of public companies in the U.S. compared to twenty years ago—and with more and more startups opting to delay going public—what we have is a losing proposition for the U.S. economy,” added Franklin. “The result has been lost opportunities for increased U.S. economic growth and job creation. The reforms proposed in this report will help reverse this trend and reinvigorate the public company model in the U.S.”
You can read the full report here.