Markets
Banks Queue Up to Deregister
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The Securities and Exchange Commission’s recent admission that full implementation of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act would be delayed has done nothing to deter one group of businesses from aggressively using the law to its benefit. Seventy-one small banks have filed to deregister their securities and stop reporting to the SEC since the Jobs Act was signed into law in early April, according to researcher SNL Financial and filings with the commission. What’s more, 61 of those banks filed to deregister between April 2 and May 25, which was more than the aggregate number of banks that filed to deregister over the entire prior four years, SNL noted. Under the Jobs Act, financial institutions can now terminate registrations if they have fewer than 1,200 shareholders, an increase from the prior 300-shareholder ceiling. Additionally, private banks don’t have to register with the SEC until they have 2,000 shareholders, up from 500 shareholders prior to the act.
