House Financial Services Committee Aims to Improve Access to Capital

The House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) is reviewing more than 40 bills that aim to improve business’ access to capital.

During a Tuesday (March 25) hearing, the committee assessed proposals that would make public markets more attractive, facilitate capital formation for companies that wish to grow, and make it easier for small businesses and entrepreneurs to secure funding, according to a Wednesday (March 26) press release issued by the committee.

“Our capital markets should work for everyone,” HFSC Chairman French Hill, R-Arkansas, said in the release. “That means reducing barriers for startups to access funding, incentivizing investment in regional businesses, and reforming outdated regulations that improve access to growth capital to ensure a public offering is a more viable option again.”

Other representatives quoted in the press release said that investment should not be confined to the coasts, that most venture capital funding is concentrated in just a few states, that only 19% of U.S. households were defined as accredited investors in 2022, and that the number of public company listings in the U.S. has diminished.

Steve Case, chairman and CEO of venture capital firm Revolution, was a witness at the hearing and told the committee, per the release, that expanding access to capital has historically received bipartisan support and that the hearing made the issue a national effort.

“Our nation became the global economic leader it is today because of the countless entrepreneurs who had transformative ideas and found fertile ground — fertile, in part, because of policymakers who cultivated an environment for innovation — to bring them to life,” Case said.

The committee outlined the bills it is reviewing in a memorandum, provided links to the bills on a web page and said in the press release that it invites public feedback on the bills by Monday (March 31).

It was reported March 10 that American startup investment has reached a three-year high, driven by excitement for artificial intelligence, but that much of this funding from the venture capital space has been focused on a few very large private tech firms.

Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) also face challenges when securing credit, especially in an uncertain economy, according to the PYMNTS Intelligence report, “How Data Sharing Boosts Credit Solutions for SMBs.”