SEC Updates Guidance On Draft Registration Statements

On Aug. 17, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued guidance in connection with financial information that may be omitted on draft registration statements. These measures are the latest in the SEC's efforts to facilitate capital formation and make the process of registering an offering simpler for issuers. Under the new policy, any issuer may omit both interim and annual financial information from draft registration statements, to the extent that the issuer "reasonably believes" the omitted financial information will not be required when the registration statement is publicly filed and made available.

Under Section 71003 of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act), an emerging growth company may omit from its filed registration statements, annual and interim financial information that relates to a historical period that the issuer reasonably believes will not be required to be included at the time of the contemplated offering. For