One of the current issues around a fund manager or company from using advertising as part of its private placement fundraising is the proposed changes to filing requirements for Form D.
Few people I have spoken with actually want to use general solicitation like bulk emails, newspaper ads, or web ads. But they do want to be able to mention fundraising at industry events, advertise the fund manager as a brand, and talk to the media. All of those could be considered general advertising and solicitation or could come close to the line. The SEC has not created a bright line test for when an announcement becomes general and endangers a private placement.
Many people embraced the lifting of the ban on general solicitation and advertising because the fund manager or company could avoid the advertising foot fault of private placement.
The requirement that a firm take reasonable steps to determine if potential investor is accredited is one impediment. For funds with large minimum investment requirements and mostly institutional investors, it’s probably less of an impediment.
The foot-faults under the proposed rule are even greater.
For instance, the proposed rule would require filing of Form D before a general advertisement or solicitation begins. That’s a problem when it’s not clear whether an activity falls under those terms. It’s also a problem if the terms of the offering change over the course of the pre-sale marketing period. Often, a private fund’s terms are not complete during the initial marketing phase.
Even worse, the proposed rule imposes a draconian ban on the use of private placements if you failed to file the Form D before the activity that would be considered general advertising and solicitation.
I agree that not requiring the filing until 15 days after the first sale is not the best method to provide information to investors or regulators. I think the better position is to require the filing 15 days before the first sale.
The proposed rule 510T would also require filing the materials used in general solicitation and advertisements with the SEC. Again, with those terms not well defined it’s hard to know if you have violated the rule. If the materials escape and get published in the media, you’ve potentially blown the private placement and the filing requirement with no ability to cure.
According to Jim Hamilton’s World of Securities Regulation, seven Senators have urged the SEC to adopt the proposed rules to help state securities regulators. Broc Romanek in theCorporateCounsel.net notes that SEC Commissioner Aguilar has weighed in supporting the proposed rules as necessary for investor protection.
Fund managers may be intrigued by the lifting of advertising requirements, they are more likely to cause a foot-fault than staying under the existing private placement regime.
References:
- Proposed Rule: Amendments to Regulation D, Form D and Rule 156 under the Securities Act (.pdf) Release No. 33-9416; Release No. 34-69960
