The BX Venture Market is a great way for small to medium size companies to obtain the trust, credibility and benefits of a U.S. stock exchange without having to satisfy the strict requirements of the New York Stock Exchange or NASDAQ. The BX Venture Market has lower listing requirements but similar corporate governance requirements.

The initial listing requirements are as follows:
> 200,000 shares in the public float
> 200 round lot public shareholder (100 shares)
> $2 million in market value of the listed securites
> 2 market makers
> $1.00 bid price
> $1 million in equity or $5 million in assets
> 1 year operating history
> Sufficient working capital for next 12 months
> Basic corporate governance requirements

We can assist your private company become publicly listed on the BX Venture Market. Contact us at 516-509-8132 for more information.

Crowd funding is a method of raising money using the Internet through a large number of people who generally invest small amounts of money. Crowd funding has been successfully utilized by non-profit organizations and political campaigns but is now being reviewed by the Securities and Exchange Commission for use in business financing.

We believe crowd funding can significantly help small to medium size companies raise investment capital for opportunities where commercial banks, investment banks, venture capital firms and angel investors might not participate. Crowd funding can lead to a boom in entrepreneurship, innovation and employment.

For crowd funding to be successful and balance public interest, we support the requirement for entrepreneurs to (a) file a Form D with the Securities and Exchange Commission and (b) provide all investors with information otherwise found in an S-1 (or S-11) registration statement including audited financial statements. Furthermore, we do not believe that securities sold in crowd funding offerings should be freely traded and that such securities must be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission before being publicly traded.

It presently appears that securities regulators and government officials are leaning towards prohibiting crowd funding as a means to protect the general public from fraud. We would argue that clear rules and regulations as well as very stiff penalties including prison time for any persons found guilty of misrepresenting or omitting any material facts in crowd funding offerings would help to limit fraud.

A reverse merger is the term used to describe one way for a private company to become publicly traded. In a reverse merger transaction, a private company merges into a company that is already publicly traded. Upon closing, the management and board of directors of the private company take control and the shareholders of the private company end up with control. The primary advantage of reverse mergers is the speed in which a transaction can be completed; usually within 60 days. However, the disadvantages are significant and often lead entrepreneurs towards holding out for an initial public offering or to complete a direct public offering instead. The disadvantages include the very high cost of transactions, inheritance of contingent liabilities and having to deal with the history of the public company merged into.

An initial public offering (IPO) refers to a transaction whereby a private company raises investment capital by selling shares to the public through an investment banking firm. Investment bankers generally represent private companies who can generate meaningful institutional and/or retail interest in their offering so a commission can be earned. Small to medium size private companies without strong financial results or consumer awareness find it impossible to retain the services of reputable investment banking firms. As a result, the vast majority of private companies elect to go public and raise money by completing a direct public offering (DPO). In direct public offerings, the company itself raises money (usually through friends, family, employees, customer, suppliers, etc.) and an investment banking firm is not required. While some companies prefer to hold out for an initial public offering most companies can benefit by completing a direct public offering which can be completed at anytime.

Equity capital refers to the raise of investment from the sale of shares of stock. Companies can raise equity capital by conducting a private placement or a public offering. Our firm helps private companies intending to go public with structuring private placements and public offerings. Typically, a company can go public for as low as $40,000.