House Passes Bill to Benefit Private Offerings and Smaller Public Issuers
"Across the country, entrepreneurs with a new idea, or seeking to grow their business, are struggling to access affordable capital... The Expanding Access to Capital Act addresses this and more by alleviating the unique challenges faced by job creators and their investors who live outside major financial hubs."
House Financial Services Committee Chairman Patrick McHenry
"Across the country, entrepreneurs with a new idea, or seeking to grow their business, are struggling to access affordable capital... The Expanding Access to Capital Act addresses this and more by alleviating the unique challenges faced by job creators and their investors who live outside major financial hubs."
House Financial Services Committee Chairman Patrick McHenry
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Expanding Access to Capital Act of 2023 (H.R. 2799) in a party line vote. The bill is intended to build on the JOBS Act of 2012 by reducing the regulatory burdens on certain capital raising transactions.
The bill:
- provides that securities registration is not required for a sale of securities if the total amount of securities sold by the issuer during the preceding 12-month period does not exceed $250,000;
- raises the limit of total annual gross revenues under which issuers qualify as emerging growth companies to $1.5 billion;
- allows certain issuers of securities that initially qualify as emerging growth companies to continue operating for an additional period of time with reduced disclosure obligations;
- raises caps on the allowed capital and number of investors under which a fund may qualify as a venture capital fund; the bill increases the caps from $10 million to $150 million in capital contributions and commitments, and 250 to 600 allowed investors; and
- expands who may be considered an accredited investor for purposes of participating in private offerings of securities.