NO SNAKE OIL, PLEASE! Wired describes the latest in the SEC's thinking about changes to the rules for how startups solicit investors for capital. Current regulations require companies to stay pretty tight-lipped about their fundraising intentions, which as a result lead them to reach out mostly to big-name investors in SF and NY that often make splashy headlines. (Crowdsourcing such as via AngelList is a different matter.) UC Berkeley law professor Robert Bartlett believes that allowing startups more flexibility to advertise their fundraising could potentially disrupt the VC pecking order and the middlemen involved.
