Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.[1] Let me begin by thanking our hosts at the U.S. Chamber for the invitation to join today’s program—and of course, for their advocacy on behalf of American enterprise.
I am also pleased to recognize a few leaders whose efforts brought us to this occasion: Chairmen Tim Scott and French Hill, as well as Chairwoman Ann Wagner. Their work reflects the conviction that American ingenuity flourishes when capital can move more freely to meet it. After all, capital formation is the instrument through which one can elevate a good idea into a business; a business into an employer; and an employer into a source of social mobility. Capital formation, in short, is how America prospers. And by any objective measure, our markets have prospered without peer.
Indeed, the United States leads the world in both market capitalization and trading volume. Our equity markets are four-and-a-half times larger than those of the next jurisdiction. But prosperity is not self-sustaining. Each generation must earn it anew by strengthening the structures that make our markets the world standard.
For context, shortly after I left the SEC as a staff member in the mid-1990s, there were more than 7,800 public companies listed on the U.S. exchanges. By the time that I returned as Chairman, that figure had fallen by roughly 40 percent. Such decline was not inevitable—nor is it now irreversible.
My goal is to reverse this trend—to “Make IPOs Great Again”—and it involves three pillars: first, re-anchoring disclosures in materiality so that investment decisions can turn on economic signals rather than on regulatory noise; second, de-politicizing shareholder meetings by restoring their focus to significant corporate matters; and third, allowing public companies to have litigation alternatives so that we shield innovators from the frivolous and investors from the fraudulent.
Both the INVEST Act, as well as the Empowering Main Street in America Act, are a welcome complement to this work. Congressional action would codify or expand practices that have proven their worth—and extend their benefits more broadly. For example, allowing all companies to “test-the-waters” before their IPO could incentivize more firms to explore going public. A modernized accredited investor definition, meanwhile, such as a knowledge-based exam, would recognize that financial sophistication can scarcely be measured by income or net worth alone. Why should we prohibit a finance professor earning $100,000 a year from private offerings, while presuming that people who inherit wealth are better qualified? And by expanding the investment options available in certain retirement accounts, the bill aims to empower more Americans to participate in the success of promising businesses.
These provisions form a strong foundation. But they are only a beginning. As we commemorate House passage, let us therefore resolve to build on it. The House has acted. The Senate is very engaged. And the SEC stands ready to do its part in keeping America’s capital markets open, dynamic, and, above all, worthy of the trust that investors place in them.
So as we pursue this work, I should like to once again congratulate Chairman Hill, Chairwoman Wagner, and all those who helped to carry the INVEST Act forward on an overwhelming and bipartisan basis. My thanks as well to Chairman Scott for spearheading the Senate’s Empowering Main Street in America Act. I am grateful to mark this milestone alongside each of you. And Mike [Flood], I look forward to our conversation and to the work ahead. Thank you.
[1] The Chairman’s views expressed in these remarks do not necessarily reflect those of the SEC as an institution or of the other Commissioners
