The Deregulation of the Private Equity Markets and the Decline in IPOs

The deregulation of securities laws—in particular the National Securities Markets Improvement Act (NSMIA) of 1996—has increased the supply of private capital to late-stage private startups, which are now able to grow to a size that few private firms used to reach. NSMIA is one of a number of factors that have changed the going-public versus staying-private trade-off, helping bring about a new equilibrium where fewer startups go public, and those that do are older. This new equilibrium does not reflect an IPO market failure. Rather, founders are using their increased bargaining power vis-à-vis investors to stay private longer.

Keywords: Deregulation, NSMIA, Initial Public Offerings (IPOs), Venture Capital, Private Equity, Founder Equity

JEL Classification: G24, G28, G32

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Ewens, Michael and Farre-Mensa, Joan, The Deregulation of the Private Equity Markets and the Decline in IPOs (February 7, 2020). Review of Financial Studies, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3017610 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3017610