Alyse A. Sagalchik

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On April 6, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a release (the Release) announcing that the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) had issued temporary and partial waivers from the requirement that NYSE-listed companies obtain stockholder approval in connection with certain related party and 20 percent equity issuances (the Waiver). In the Release, the NYSE acknowledged the “unprecedented disruption” caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the great likelihood that many listed companies will “have urgent liquidity needs in the coming months due to lost revenues and maturing debt obligations,” which may mean that listed companies will “need to access additional capital that may not be available in the public equity or credit markets.” The Waiver provides NYSE-listed issuers with greater flexibility to engage in capital raising transactions, such as private investment in public equity (PIPE) transactions and registered direct offerings, that may otherwise be constrained by the NYSE’s existing stockholder approval rules. The Waiver remains in effect through June 30, 2020.
Continue Reading SEC Approves Temporary NYSE Waiver of Stockholder Approval Rules to Facilitate Capital Raising in the Wake of COVID-19

On April 6, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Division of Corporation Finance issued a new Compliance and Disclosure Interpretation (C&DI) concerning the application of the SEC’s conditional relief order (the Order) that was issued in the wake of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) for companies filing their annual reports on Form 10-K.
Continue Reading SEC Division of Corporation Finance Issues C&DI about Conditional Relief Order and Incorporation by Reference Into Form 10-K

On March 31, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Division of Corporation Finance (the Division) issued two new Compliance and Disclosure Interpretations (C&DIs) related to compliance with Rule 12b-25 in connection with the SEC’s conditional relief order (the Order) that was issued in the wake of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Continue Reading SEC Division of Corporation Finance Issues New C&DIs about the SEC’s Conditional Relief Order and Compliance with Rule 12b-25

On March 25, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued an order extending conditional relief (the Modified Order) for reporting and proxy delivery requirements for public company registrants and other filers in the wake of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The Modified Order provides filers with an additional 45 days to make filings pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(f), 13(g), 14(a), 14(c), 14(f), 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the Exchange Act), Exchange Act Regulations 13A, 13D-G (except for those provisions mandating the filing of Schedule 13D or amendments to Schedule 13D), 14A, 14C and 15D, and Exchange Act Rules 13f-1, and 14f-1, that would have been due during the period of March 1-July 1, 2020 (the Relief Period), subject to the conditions discussed below. This relief covers, among others, reports on Form 10-K, 20-F, 10-Q, 8-K and 6-K, as well as Schedules 13G and 13F but, as noted, expressly excludes Schedule 13D filings and also is not available for filings under Section 16 of the Exchange Act (i.e., Forms 3, 4 and 5).
Continue Reading SEC Further Extends Filing Deadlines for Companies Impacted by COVID-19

On March 4, the Securities and Exchange Commission voted to propose a set of amendments (the Proposal) to “harmonize, simplify and improve the exempt offering framework to promote capital formation and expand investment opportunities while preserving and enhancing important investor protections,” according to the SEC’s press release announcing the Proposal. As highlighted in the press release, if adopted, the Proposal would, among other things:
Continue Reading SEC Proposes Rule Changes to Harmonize and Simplify Offering Exemptions

As previously discussed in the April 12, 2019 edition of Corporate & Financial Weekly Digest, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted final rules on March 20, 2019, that allow registrants to omit a discussion and analysis of the earliest of the three years of required financial statements from the Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (MD&A) section of their annual reports. Omitting that section from the annual reports filing with the SEC is permissible so long as the discussion of such year is already included in an earlier SEC filing and the registrant includes a statement identifying the location of such discussion in the prior filing. On January 24, the staff of the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance (the Staff) issued three Compliance and Disclosure Interpretations (C&DIs) to address questions related to the final rule.
Continue Reading SEC Division of Corporation Finance Issues C&DIs on Omission of Third Year From MD&A

In December 2019, the staff of the Division of Corporation Finance of the Securities and Exchange Commission issued interpretive guidance on (1) confidential treatment applications and (2) intellectual property and technology risks that may occur when companies engage in international operations.

The guidance is available here and here.

On December 18, the Securities and Exchange Commission voted to propose amendments (the Proposal) to the definition of “accredited investor” for purposes of private placements under Regulation D and the definition of “qualified institutional buyer” in Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933. The Proposal is intended to update and improve the definitions of those terms in order to more effectively identify both institutional and individual investors with the sophistication to participate in private capital markets transactions. In the SEC’s press release announcing the Proposal, SEC Chairman Jay Clayton noted that, “The current test for individual accredited investor status takes a binary approach to who does and does not qualify based only [on] a person’s income or net worth. Modernization of this approach is long overdue.” As highlighted in the fact sheet included in the press release, the Proposal would, among other things:
Continue Reading SEC Announces Proposed Amendments to the Definitions of “Accredited Investor” and “Qualified Institutional Buyer”

On September 6, the staff of the Division of Corporation Finance (the Staff) of the Securities and Exchange Commission announced changes (the Announcement) concerning its procedures for administering Rule 14a-8 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
Continue Reading SEC Staff Announces Changes to Rule 14a-8 No-Action Request Process