Cowen Inc. (COWN) (“Cowen” or the “Company”) announced recently
that its President, Jeffrey M. Solomon, served as a select member of a panel at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Investor Advisory Committee meeting discussing “Capital Formation, Smaller Companies, and the Declining Number of Initial Public Offerings” and provided an overview of his observations and recommendations to improve the small cap ecosystem. Mr. Solomon, a vocal advocate in support of small company capital formation, is co-chair of the Equity Capital Formation (ECF) Task Force, a group comprised of individuals from across the country’s startup and small-capitalization company ecosystems.
During the panel discussion, Mr. Solomon discussed the changing landscape of the IPO marketplace and its potential impact on capital market formation. Mr. Solomon reiterated his belief that the current decline in the number of small cap IPOs is not the result of only one factor, but rather the result of many factors affecting market participants for Emerging Growth Companies (ECGs). His insight focused on individual and institutional investors, investment banks and issuers and how each of these individual groups has evolved over the past few decades.
“We have the biggest and best capital market in the world, however, we need to address some of the concerns regarding the decline in small cap IPOs so the U.S. doesn’t lose its edge if issuers are forced to migrate to other global marketplaces,” said Jeffrey M. Solomon, President of Cowen.
Mr. Solomon also discussed the potential impact that upcoming MiFID II regulation may have on U.S. capital market formation and possible economic outcomes and unintended consequences that could result when asset managers are required to document and justify their research spending and separate payment for research from execution payments under the proposed MiFID II directives.
Mr. Solomon concluded his presentation by providing specific recommendations to improve the small cap ecosystem for capital providers (individual and institutional investors), investment banks and issuers, including proposed regulatory and compliance modifications.
Click here for a copy of Mr. Solomon’s SEC presentation.
Along with Mr. Solomon, other members of the SEC panel discussion included: Jim Brau, Joel C. Peterson Professor of Finance, Marriott School, Brigham Young University; Elisabeth de Fontenay, Associate Professor, Duke University School of Law; Jackie Kelley, Americas IPO Markets Leader, E&Y, and; Scott Kupor, Managing Partner, Andreesen Horowitz.
About SEC Investor Advisory Committee
The SEC Investor Advisory Committee was established under Section 911 of the Dodd-Frank Act to advise the SEC on regulatory priorities, the regulation of securities products, trading strategies, fee structures, the effectiveness of disclosure, and on initiatives to protect investor interests and to promote investor confidence and the integrity of the securities marketplace. More information regarding the SEC Investor Advisory Committee can be found here.
About Cowen Inc.
Cowen Inc. is a diversified financial services firm and, together with its consolidated subsidiaries, provides alternative asset management, investment banking, research, sales and trading and prime brokerage services through its two business segments: Cowen Investment Management and its affiliates make up the Company’s alternative investment segment, while Cowen and Company, a member of FINRA and SIPC, and its affiliates make up the Company’s broker-dealer segment. Cowen Investment Management provides alternative asset management solutions to a global client base and manages a significant portion of Cowen’s proprietary capital. Cowen and Company and its affiliates offer industry focused investment banking for growth-oriented companies, domain knowledge-driven research, a sales and trading platform for institutional investors and a comprehensive suite of prime brokerage services. Founded in 1918, the firm is headquartered in New York and has offices worldwide. For additional information, visit www.cowen.com.
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