The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee will meet on Monday, September 27. The Committee was created by Congress to support the Commission with advice and recommendations on rules, regulations, and policy matters relating to small businesses, which have been ignored at times in the past.
This next meeting will address the evolving ecosystem of capital raising for private companies as well as the changing IPO environment – including SPACs.
According to the SEC, the first session will focus on trends in “crossover investors”—such as mutual funds and other investors that traditionally focus on public companies—investing in late-stage, pre-IPO funding rounds.
The committee is expected to discuss how these investors are changing the dynamics of pre-IPO capital raising and the effects on timing to go public.
The following session will discuss public markets, discussing how companies and investors are viewing traditional IPOs, direct listings, and special purpose acquisition companies (SPAC).
The committee meeting will take place from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. ET and will be webcast live on SEC.gov.
The complete agenda is available below.
Date: Monday, September 27, 2021
Time: 10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. (ET)
10:00 Call to Order
Introductory Remarks by Commissioners
10:15 Committee Members’ Outlook: What’s on the Horizon for Small Business Capital Formation?
10:45 Crossover Investors: How the Dynamics of Pre-IPO Investing Are Changing
In recent years, “crossover investors”—such as mutual funds and other investors that traditionally focus on public companies—have increased their investing activity in late-stage, pre-IPO rounds. A recently published PitchBook Analyst Note “Crossing Over Into Venture” explores the increased presence of these crossover investors within venture capital deals, noting that last year 74% of IPOs by count and 77% by value included crossover investment in pre-IPO rounds. The Committee will hear from the PitchBook team that authored the report and discuss how this trend is changing the dynamics of capital raising leading up to public offerings.
Speaker: Dylan Cox, Head of Private Markets Research, PitchBook
There will be a lunch break from 12:00 – 1:00.
1:00 Pathways to Going Public: The Changing Dynamics of IPOs, Direct Listings, and SPACs
There are multiple paths to joining the public markets, from traditional IPOs, to newer direct listings, to the re-emergence of mergers with special purpose acquisition companies (SPAC). The Committee will explore how companies are weighing the different pathways and discuss implications for investors and companies seeking to access the public markets.
Speakers:
- Isabelle Freidheim (Founder and Chairman of the Board) and Phyllis Newhouse (Chief Executive Officer and Director), Athena Technology Acquisition Corp.
- Michael Klausner, Nancy and Charles Munger Professor of Business and Professor of Law, Stanford Law School
- David Ni, Partner, co-leader of the SPACs group, Sidley Austin LLP
2:30 Wrap-up and Adjournment