Summary of Title II
Title II of the JOBS Act provides that, within 90 days of the passage of the JOBS Act (i.e. July 5, 2012), the SEC will amend Section 4(2) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Regulation D promulgated there under, to eliminate the prohibition on general solicitation and general advertising in a Rule 506 offering, so long as all purchasers in such offering are accredited investors. The JOBS Act directs the SEC to make the same amendment to Rule 144A so long as all purchasers in the Rule 144A offering are qualified institutional buyers. Neither a Rule 506 offering nor a Rule 144A offering will be considered a public offering (i.e. will lose its exemption) by virtue of a general solicitation or general advertising so long as the issuer has taken reasonable steps to verify that purchasers are either accredited investors or qualified institutional buyers, respectively. Since it would be impossible to ensure that only accredited investors, or qualified institutional buyers, receive, review or become aware of general solicitations and advertisements, the rule focuses on ensuring that the purchasers qualify.
On April 30, 2012 the Federal Regulation of Securities Committee of the Business Law Section of the American Bar Association, of which I am a member, submitted a letter to the SEC in advance of rulemaking, regarding Title II of the JOBS Act. Although I am a member of the committee, I did not participate in the preparation of the letter to the SEC, in any manner.
American Bar Association Comments
The American Bar Association (ABA) comments begin by pointing out that the SEC should follow the Congressional intent of moving away from the existing regulatory framework which focuses on “offers and sales” and instead focus only on “sales.” I couldn’t agree more.
Substantively, the ABA advocates retaining the current industry standards and “reasonable belief” standard for determining whether an investor is accredited and not imposing additional cost prohibitive measures.
In addition to advocating maintaining the current standards of practice for determining whether an investor is accredited, the ABA notes that new integration rules and clarification will be needed as to whether Rule 506 and 144A offerings conducted with general solicitation will integrate with other private or public offerings conducted by the same Issuer.
The Author
Attorney Laura Anthony,
Founding Partner, Legal & Compliance, LLC
Securities, Reverse Mergers, Corporate Transactions
Securities attorney Laura Anthony provides ongoing corporate counsel to small and mid-size public Companies as well as private Companies intending to go public on the over the counter market including the OTCBB and OTCQB. For almost two decades Ms. Anthony has dedicated her securities law practice towards being “the big firm alternative.” Clients receive fast and efficient cutting-edge legal service without the inherent delays and unnecessary expense of “partner-heavy” securities law firms.
Ms. Anthony’s focus includes but is not limited to crowdfunding, registration statements, PIPE transactions, private placements, reverse mergers, and compliance with the reporting requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 including Forms 10-Q, 10-K and 8-K and the proxy requirements of Section 14. Moreover, Ms. Anthony represents both target and acquiring companies in reverse mergers and forward mergers, including preparation of deal documents such as Merger Agreements, Stock Purchase Agreements, Asset Purchase Agreements and Reorganization Agreements. Ms. Anthony prepares the necessary documentation and assists in completing the requirements of federal and state securities laws and SRO’s such as FINRA and DTC for corporate changes such as name changes, reverse and forward splits and change of domicile.
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