Presumptive Parity: A New Principle for America's Patchwork of Exempt Capital Markets

Brian Christie Brian Christie
Posted at Aug 28

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed Regulation Crypto Assets on August 18. Comments are due October 20.

Nothing is final. It is a proposing release, open for comment, and the rules may change before adoption.

Law360 published my argument about it on August 25, under the headline, "A Guiding Principle For The SEC On Exempt Capital Markets." What follows is the same doctrine with the parts I could not fit there.

The doctrine, in four sentences: 

Presumptive Parity means that when the SEC creates or materially changes an exempt capital-raising pathway, it should compare that pathway with similarly situated existing pathways. Comparable opportunities and burdens should be the starting assumption unless meaningful differences justify different treatment. The burden of identifying a meaningful difference falls on whoever defends the disparity, and novelty alone is not such a difference. Where no justification exists, the Commission should move toward parity to the exte...more

Categories: Blockchain & Crypto  |  Reg A+  |  Reg CF  |  Regulations & Compliance
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CfPA Introduces Industry Best Practice for Reg CF Annual Reporting

Crowdfunding Professional Association (CfPA)
Posted at Aug 21

The Crowdfunding Professional Association (CfPA) has introduced a new industry Best Practice designed to help companies raising capital under Regulation Crowdfunding better understand their ongoing SEC reporting responsibilities.

Companies that sell securities through Regulation Crowdfunding are generally required to file an annual report on Form C-AR within 120 days of the end of their fiscal year and post the report on their website. Annual reporting continues until the company qualifies to terminate its reporting obligation under SEC rules and files Form C-TR.

While compliance with these requirements remains the responsibility of the company—not the funding portal or broker-dealer that facilitated the offering—CfPA believes the industry can help reduce inadvertent noncompliance by making these obligations clear before an offering begins.

Under the new Best Practice, CfPA encourages Reg CF intermediaries to consider incorporating an acknowledgment of ongoing reporting responsibilitie...more

Categories: Reg CF  |  Regulations & Compliance
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Words matter in your pitch - We know ... we analyzed 6,800 of them!

Sherwood Neiss Sherwood Neiss
Posted at Jul 2

We read 6,800 funded RegCF pitches. The words that raise the most money aren't the ones you'd expect.

The gap between a top-quartile raise and a bottom-quartile one is 24x. So we ran the language through NLP to see what separates them.

It isn't hype. "Revolutionary" and "disrupt" don't move the needle. Sentiment, length, and buzzwords like "traction" show no advantage at all.

What the big raises actually talk about: FDA approvals, clinical pipelines, recurring revenue, clean energy, real assets. The language mirrors the business — substance beats spin.

Comment "CCLEAR" and I'll send you the full brief. #Startups #NLP #Fundraising #RegCF #DataScience

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Categories: Issuer Education  |  Law & Legal  |  Reg CF  |  Regulations & Compliance
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On Reg CF’s 10th Anniversary, CfPA Says Buy Spirit Pledge Campaign Shows America Is Ready for Broader Public Ownership

Crowdfunding Professional Association (CfPA)
Posted at May 18

 
 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – May 18, 2026

Following the May 16, 2026, 10-year anniversary of Regulation Crowdfunding becoming available to U.S. issuers and investors, the Crowdfunding Professional Association (CfPA) today commented on the public attention surrounding the “Let’s Buy Spirit Air” campaign, a viral effort inviting everyday Americans to pledge support for a potential community-backed acquisition of Spirit Airlines.

CfPA is not endorsing the specific Buy Spirit campaign, any proposed transaction, or any securities offering. But CfPA strongly endorses the larger public impulse behind it: Americans want more ways to invest in, support, and share ownership in the businesses and institutions that matter to their communities.

“This moment is not just about one airline. It is about a broader shift in public expectations around ownership, participation, and access to private capital markets,” said Brian Belley, 2026 President of CfPA.

Regulation Crowdfunding, commonly

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Categories: Investor Education  |  Reg A+  |  Reg CF  |  Regulations & Compliance
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What Makes a Company a Good Candidate for Crowdfunding?

Crowdfund Holdings Innovators (CHI)
Posted at May 10

Not every company that needs capital is a good candidate for crowdfunding.

That is the first thing founders and executives should understand. Crowdfunding is not simply a financing transaction moved online. It is a public capital-raising campaign that requires a company to explain its business clearly, activate an audience, support investor diligence, comply with securities rules, and market the offering over a period of weeks or months.

The best candidates are not merely companies that want money. They are companies with leadership teams that can turn a financing need into a credible public campaign.

A strong crowdfunding candidate usually has five things: a clear story, a reachable audience or serious marketing plan, a concrete reason to raise now, the budget to run the campaign properly, and the discipline to manage ongoing compliance after the raise.

A clear and compelling story

A company does not need to be simple, but its public-facing story does need to be understandable.

Prospe...more

Categories: Community Development  |  Reg A+  |  Reg CF  |  Regulations & Compliance
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Progress happens when collaboration meets purpose

Crowdfunding Professional Association (CfPA)
Posted at May 8

Advancing the future of private capital formation.

The CfPA SEC Subcommittee engages directly with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on policy alignment, industry compliance, exempt offerings, and the evolving regulatory landscape surrounding crypto and digital assets.

By bringing industry voices to the table, CfPA continues to advocate for balanced regulation, market integrity, innovation, and expanded opportunities for investors and issuers alike.

Progress happens when collaboration meets purpose.

Join the CfPA as a member today and lend your voice to any number of the CfPA Committees or Subcommittees working to make a difference in the Regulated Investment Crowdfunding industry.   

 

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Categories: Reg A+  |  Reg CF  |  Regulations & Compliance
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One Year After the SEC Capital Markets Subcommittee Hearing: Investor Protection Is Still the Missing Piece

Pierce Leonard Pierce Leonard
Posted at Apr 7

A little over a year ago I sat through the SEC Capital Markets Subcommittee hearing on Regulation Crowdfunding (Reg CF) and Regulation A+. I walked away with mixed feelings. The advocates pushing to expand these pathways for capital formation got me fired up, especially for what it means for small businesses and everyday investors. But I was also frustrated that comprehensive risk mitigation and investor protection barely came up.

Twelve months later, not much has changed on that front. The advocacy for expanding Reg CF and Reg A+ has only gotten louder, and rightly so. But the conversation around protecting the unaccredited investors these frameworks are designed to welcome still hasn't caught up. So I want to take another swing at why that matters, and why TigerMark D&O exists to fill exactly that gap.

A quick note on what's changed on my end. TigerMark now sits under Equal Parts Insurance, the AI-native brokerage and MGA I joined when Assurely was acquired in 2025. The product i...more

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BAMM! In the Age of AI: Capital Formation Beats Universal Basic Income

Brian Christie Brian Christie
Posted at Feb 6

In January alone, U.S. employers announced 108,435 layoffs - up 118% year-over-year and 205% from December. It marked the highest January total since 2009. For millions of workers, the signal is clear: AI-driven disruption is no longer theoretical. It’s here, and it’s accelerating faster than our labor institutions can respond.

And yet - here’s the paradox - this may be one of the best moments in history to be an entrepreneur, even a solo-preneur.

AI has collapsed the cost of starting and scaling a business. One person, equipped with modern tools, can now do the work of a small team: build products, automate operations, market globally, and reach customers directly. Capital efficiency has never been higher. What’s missing isn’t talent or ambition - it’s access to capital.

The Wrong Response: Universal Basic Income

Universal Basic Income is often proposed as the humane response to job displacement. The intent is understandable. The mechanism is flawed.

Broad cash transfers do not expand...more

Categories: Reg CF  |  Regulations & Compliance
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