Venture firms seek help to spur IPOs

Venture firms seek help to spur IPOs

Venture capitalists are urging regulators to make it easier for startups to go public by reforming post-Enron corporate-governance rules, a bid to end the worst initial public offering slump in decades.

The Securities and Exchange Commission should review regulations, including pre-IPO financial reporting requirements, as well as rules that keep investment banking separate from research within brokerages, and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the National Venture Capital Association said last month at a Boston conference.

The industry also is asking for tax relief for IPO investors, saying venture-backed stock offerings have helped create 12 million U.S. jobs. The association proposed a 10-percent capital gains tax rate for IPO investors who hold shares at least two years. That compares with the usual 15-percent tax on capital gains.

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-Bloomberg