Location:   Public will be able to view on www.sec.gov

Date:          Tuesday, November 16, 2021

Time:          10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. (ET)

10:00   Call to Order; Introductory Remarks by Commissioners

10:15   Demo of SEC’s New Capital Raising Hub

As part of the SEC Small Business Advocacy team’s efforts to make pathways to raising capital more accessible, the office recently launched a new interactive capital raising navigator tool as a part of a suite of content available on the Capital Raising digital hub.  The navigator is designed to help users narrow down their options for how to raise capital based on their expressed needs. The site also includes new interactive Capital Trends maps that show where money is being raised using the different offering pathways.

Amy Reischauer, Strategic Engagement Advisor from the SEC Small Business Advocacy team will provide a demo of these new tools.

10:30   Rural Entrepreneurship and the Challenges Accessing Financial Capital:

Speaker: Alicia Robb, Ph.D., Next Wave Impact and the University of Colorado, Boulder

In collaboration with the SEC’s Small Business Advocacy office, Dr. Robb recently published a report titled Rural Entrepreneurship and the Challenges Accessing Financial Capital: An Overview of Funding in Rural America. The report focuses on how entrepreneurs in rural areas finance their businesses, as well as the challenges they face in obtaining the capital. The paper also examines the data available on funding female and minority entrepreneurs in rural areas.

Following the presentation by Dr. Robb, the Committee will discuss how communities can build more dynamic capital raising in rural areas.

There will be a lunch break from 11:30-12:30.

12:30     State Small Business Credit Initiative

As part of the American Rescue Plan Act enacted in March 2021, Congress reauthorized the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI), which will provide $10 billion to fund state, territory, and Tribal government small business credit support and investment programs.

The Committee will engage in a discussion with a member of the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s SSBCI team and participants who ran equity capital programs during the inaugural SSBCI initiative in 2010 and who plan to participate in SSBCI 2.0.

Speakers:

• Adair Morse, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Capital Access, Office of Domestic Finance, U.S. Department of Treasury
• Phil Lodato, General Counsel & Chief Compliance Officer, Elevate Ventures
• Matthew McCooe, Chief Executive Officer, Connecticut Innovations

1:30     Building Dynamic Ecosystems that Foster Entrepreneurship and Investment

Building on the day’s presentations, Committee members will share their experiences and perspectives on how to facilitate entrepreneurship and mobilize investment in areas of the country with nascent investor capital infrastructure.

2:30     Wrap-up and Adjournment