U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission small business advocate office highlights capital-raising tools and seeks practitioner feedback

In remarks at SEC Speaks 2026, the deputy directors of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation outlined how the office is working to make capital raising more understandable for small businesses and invited advisors and lawyers to help identify where SEC rules and processes create friction. They noted the remarks were made in their official capacities and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SEC, the Commissioners, or other Commission staff. The office described its “Listen, Learn, Improve” approach for gathering market feedback from founders, investors, and ecosystem participants and feeding it into policymaker discussions, educational materials, and outreach. It highlighted the office’s statutory mandate to advance the interests of small businesses and their investors, including analyzing the potential impacts of rules, supporting the Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee, organizing the SEC’s annual Small Business Forum, and preparing an annual report to the Commission and Congress, while pointing to educational tools hosted on the SEC’s Resources for Small Businesses portal such as the Funding Roadmap, the Navigate Your Options interactive tool, a plain-English glossary, one-page “Building Blocks” explainers, Exempt Offerings and Going Public pages, and educational video series. The speakers encouraged practitioners to direct clients to these resources, suggest where additional tools are needed, and contribute perspectives through comment letters, the annual Small Business Forum, advisory committee meetings, policy roundtables, and other open comment files.