The Securities Law Blog provides commentary and news on the latest securities law developments impacting established and emerging growth publicly-traded issuers and investment banks, as well as entrepreneurs and venture-backed private entities. Our blog closely follows SEC rulemaking in several key areas including public and private securities offerings, shareholder activism and equity investment, and mergers & acquisitions.
The authors of this blog are members of the Corporate/Securities practice of Olshan Frome Wolosky LLP. Since our founding, this firm has been distinguished by responsive, independent and client-focused legal services provided by lawyers with a profound commitment to the companies they serve. This blog is an outgrowth of this representation of our clients in a wide range of capital market transactions.
The SEC and OTC Markets Group follow through on prohibiting brokerage firms from quoting prices for OTC stocks for which brokers don’t have current, and thus reliable, financial information. Shareholders and investors of more than 2,000 publicly traded OTC Pink No Information companies (about 16% of all OTC companies and 18% of all OTC Pink companies) will now find it more difficult to buy and sell those stocks on the Expert Market.
The SEC has recently permitted public companies with remote-first operations to circumvent the requirement that they report an address and phone number for their principal executive offices on the cover page of their Form S-1 registration statements. Is this a reflection of the “new normal” and, if so, has the SEC answered through these filings the fundamental question whether there is any longer a purpose for disclosing the location of a registrant’s principal executive offices?
Attacking information asymmetry between management and shareholders, the SEC charged eight companies for failing to disclose in Form 12b-25 filings that their reason for seeking a delayed annual or quarterly report was an anticipated restatement or correction of prior financial reporting. Public companies should be reminded that all filings – even arguably minor ones like Form NT – must be truthful and complete.
Spencer Feldman's article first appeared in Law360 (April 9, 2021, subscription required)
Issuers Need to be Prepared to Provide More Accurate and Consistent Disclosures of the Material Risks Associated with Climate Change
President Biden to Nominate Former CFTC Chair Gary Gensler to Lead the SEC
Seller’s COVID-related actions breached an “ordinary course” covenant, even though the COVID-19 pandemic did not give rise to a “material adverse effect.”
Authored by Michael R. Neidell and Zachary E. Freedman, Law Clerk
New Rules Modernize Securities Filings and Eliminate Pre-Offer Filing Requirements, Now Consistent with Federally Set Timelines
On December 1, 2020, Nasdaq filed Proposed Rule 5605(f) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) to adopt new listing rules related to board diversity. If approved by the SEC, Proposed Rule 5605(f) would require all companies listed on Nasdaq’s U.S. exchange to publicly disclose their diversity statistics regarding their board of directors. Proposed Rule 5605(f) would also require all Nasdaq-listed companies to include a minimum number of individuals on their board of directors who self-identify in one or more of the following “Diverse” categories: female, underrepresented minority or LGBTQ+.