Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) Archives

NASDAQ Amends Rule 5210 – Listing Prerequisites

In March 2024, the Nasdaq Stock Market quietly amended Rule 5210 requiring that all lead underwriters on an IPO must be Nasdaq members or limited underwriting members as a prerequisite to applying for a listing. The new rules also created the “limited underwriting member” class and accompanying rules applicable to the group and its associates including eligibility, application process and ongoing requirements. Although the amendment garnered little attention at the time, now that it has become effective, it is loudly impacting the small cap IPO market.

Rule 5210 – Background

Nasdaq Rule 5210 sets forth the prerequisites for a company to apply for a Nasdaq listing. Until October 2023, the Rule had 12 subparts with new Rule 5210(l) being added in October 2023 and new Rule 5210(m) being added in March 2024. Rule 5210(l) requires that any company listing on Nasdaq comply with the recovery of erroneously awarded compensation (Clawback) rules. For more on the Clawback rules see HERE.

August 20, 2024

China Based Companies Continue To Face US Capital Market Scrutiny

On March 24, 2021, the SEC adopted interim final amendments to implement the congressionally mandated submission and disclosure requirements of the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act (HFCA Act). Following adoption of the HFCA, on July 30, 2021, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler issued a statement warning of risks associated with investing in companies based in China. Although the statement has a different angle, it joins the core continued concerns of the SEC top brass and Nasdaq expressed over the years.

In June 2020 Nasdaq published proposed rules which would make it more difficult for a company to list or continue to list based on the quality of its audit, which could have a direct effect on companies based in China (see HERE). In September 2020, the SEC instituted proceedings as to whether to approve or deny the proposed rule change. As of the date of this blog, the proposal has not been ruled upon by the SEC.

However, the

August 31, 2021

SEC Testifies At House Financial Services Committee Hearing

On September 24, 2019, all five SEC commissioners gave testimony to, and were questioned by, members of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services. Commissioner Robert J. Jackson, Jr. also gave an opening statement at the Committee hearing.

Commissioner Jackson’s Opening Statement

Commissioner Jackson’s short opening statement was consistent with his prior public views, consisting of a list of three areas in which he believes legislation should intervene to prevent corporate insiders from spending shareholder money to advance their own interests over those of investors.

His first recommendation is to shorten the current four-day 8-K filing requirement in which a company must notify the public of certain material events. For an overview of 8-K filing categories, including the categories that require an advance filing (Regulation FD) or lesser time period than the standard four days, see HERE. Commissioner Jackson states that there is “evidence that corporate insiders often trade during the ‘gap’ between key business events and

October 22, 2019

SEC Strategic Plan

On June 19, 2018, the SEC published a draft Strategic Plan and requested public comment on the Plan. The Strategic Plan would guide the SEC’s priorities through fiscal year 2022. The Plan reiterates the theme of serving the interests of Main Street investors, but also recognizes the changing technological world with a priority of becoming more innovative, responsive and resilient to market developments and trends. The Plan also broadly focuses on improving SEC staff’s performance using data and analytics.

The Strategic Plan begins with a broad overview about the SEC itself, a topic I go back to and reiterate on occasion, such as HERE. The SEC’s mission has remained unchanged over the years, including to protect investors, maintain fair, orderly and efficient markets, and facilitate capital formation. In addition, according to the Strategic Plan, the SEC:

Engages and interacts with the investing public directly on a daily basis through a variety of channels, including investor roundtables and education

September 18, 2018

The New Auditor Report

In October 2017, the SEC approved a new rule by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) requiring significant changes to public company audit reports. Among other additions, an audit report will need to include critical audit matters (CAMs) and disclosure the tenure of the auditor. The new rule and requirements related to audit reports are significant as the audit report is the document in which the auditor itself communicates to the public and investors.

The new standard will require auditors to describe CAMs that are communicated to a company’s audit committee. Critical audit matters are those that relate to material financial statement entries or disclosures and require complex judgment. One of the purposes of the proposed change is to require the auditor to communicate to investors, via the audit report, those matters that were difficult or thought-provoking in the audit process and that the auditor believes an investor would want to know.

The new audit report standard also adds

February 13, 2018

SEC Congressional Testimony- Part I

On three occasions recently representatives of the SEC have given testimony to Congress. On March 24, 2015, SEC Chair Mary Jo White testified on “Examining the SEC’s Agenda, Operations and FY 2016 Budget Request”; on March 19, 2015, Andrew Ceresny, Director of the SEC Division of Enforcement, testified to Congress on the “Oversight of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement”; and on March 10, 2015, Stephen Luparello, Director of the Division of Trading and Markets, testified on “Venture Exchanges and Small-Cap Companies.” In a series of blogs, I will summarize the three testimonies. This first blog in the series summarizes the testimony of Mary Jo White.

Mary Jo White Testimony

On March 24, 2015, SEC Chair Mary Jo White gave testimony before the United States House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services. The testimony was titled “Examining the SEC’s Agenda, Operations and FY 2016 Budget Request.” As can be gleaned from the title, Mary Jo White was giving testimony in support

April 14, 2015

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NASDAQ Amends Rule 5210 – Listing Prerequisites

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