I get it, no matter what you want to do there will be people who oppose you. And often the people who make the rules are oblivious of the effect those rules will have (and don’t really seem to care).
The securities industry is all about capital formation and economic growth. Everything in the industry exists to serve that.
The securities industry regulators should be focused on how to keep the capital engine functioning and growing. They should be the biggest cheerleaders for the firms engaged in the front lines of capital formation, and they should be on the leading edge of finding ways – both academic and practical – to make the business easier for those it serves.
Now certainly there are hard working people at the SEC and FINRA who really do get it. And who work hard to lobby for and craft rules and solutions that open capital formation. The folks who pulled together the proposed rules for Title II are certainly of that group. And the people who have held up those rules are anything but. Why do those people hate small businesses and small investors?
They say they are trying to “protect” investors. Yeah, right. That’s like the argument people use anytime they are trying to do something restrictive and stupid, “think about the children.” When you pull that argument out of the pocket, all opposition and all movement for progress is often stopped dead in its tracks. So now that’s the line being used for the JOBS Act delays.
“Protect Investors” – when ALL evidence points to the fact that there have been few, if any, problems with crowdfunding in this country (e.g. Kickstarter) or other countries where it’s already legal.
“Protect Investors” – when small investors already lose money on public entities (e.g. Enron, Global Crossing, JC Penny, Sears, et al).
“Protect Investors” – when people have no limits on buying lottery tickets, gambling or shopping.
“Protect Investors” – to sustain an anti-small business agenda.
Without a doubt, some people in power think there really is a risk that’s problematic. They fear {something}. So they turn an embrace into a strangle and choke the life out of something that is good for the masses out of fear of protecting a theoretical few.
A great example of this are the social policies in Europe. It seemed like a good idea to protect young people, and especially women, with various employment regulations. Regulators loved that; it was politically correct. But the impact has been 50% unemployment rate for young people in general, and an 80% unemployment rate for young women in particular. Regulations meant to “protect” actually served to “devastate”…and now there isn’t the political will to fix it.
Here, our Congress showed extraordinary political will to fix the antiquated, broken securities regulations. They passed the JOBS Act. It will serve the masses, enable capital formation, and bring about an economic boom the country has never seen. We just need the gatekeepers to lead.
