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SEC Easing of 'Accredited Investor' Restrictions: The Benefits

March 02, 2017

Nick Morgan

When regulators seek to protect investors from risk, they often end up simply putting legitimate opportunities out of bounds. In one now infamous example from 1980, Massachusetts regulators declared a certain IPO “too risky” and prohibited participation by state residents. But Apple’s IPO turned out to be a decent investment opportunity after all. Similar paternalistic thinking gave rise to the SEC’s “accredited investor” restrictions, which prevent people of modest means from participating in certain investments. The SEC appears poised to ease those restrictions.[

This article was originally published in Think Advisor](http://www.thinkadvisor.com/2017/03/02/sec-easing-of-accredited-investor-restrictions-the?slreturn=1488838261)