SEC To Crack Down On Private Companies, Heighten Disclosure Requirements

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) plans to crack down on private companies, forcing them to disclose financial and operation statements more frequently, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Regulators have grown more concerned over the lack of oversight regarding private fundraising for companies, the WSJ reported. The private investment market has become a popular way for companies to raise money without undergoing the regulatory scrutiny required for public trading.

“When they’re big firms, they can have a huge impact on thousands of people’s lives with absolutely no visibility for investors, employees and their unions, regulators, or the public,” SEC Commissioner Allison Lee told the WSJ. “I’m not interested in forcing medium- and small-sized companies into the reporting regime.”

Regulators are also considering making it harder for investors to access the private markets and increasing the information that nonpublic companies must issue to the SEC, the WSJ reported.

The new regulations are likely to receive pushback from Silicon Valley and the oil and natural gas infrastructure sectors that receive massive amounts of funding from the private market, according to the WSJ.