Question: In many registered public offerings, registrants choose to include text and/or artwork inside the front and back cover pages. Are graphic presentations permitted in the prospectus?

Answer: Yes. Registrants should refer to Rule 304 of Regulation S-T. In addition, when including graphic presentations in the prospectus, registrants should be sure that:

Question: Immediately after an issuer files a Securities Act registration statement, it appoints a new principal financial officer. Is the new principal financial officer required to sign any amendments to the registration statement in his or her capacity as principal financial officer?

Answer: Yes. This would be the case even if the individual had been employed as principal financial officer for only one week. [Feb. 27, 2009]

Question: What financial information may an Emerging Growth Company omit from its draft and publicly filed registration statements?

Answer: Under Section 71003 of the FAST Act, an Emerging Growth Company may omit from its filed registration statements annual and interim financial information that "relates to a historical period that the issuer reasonably believes will not be required to be included…at the time of the contemplated offering." Interim financial information that will be included in a longer historical period relates to that period. Accordingly, interim financial information that will be included in a historical period that the issuer reasonably believes will be required to be included at the time of the contemplated offering may not be omitted from its filed registration statements. However, under staff policy, an Emerging Growth Company may omit from its draft registration statements interim financial information that it reasonably believes it will not be required to present separately at the time of the contemplated offering. For example, consider a calendar year-end Emerging Growth Company that submits a draft registration statement in November 2017 and reasonably believes it will commence its offering in April 2018 when annual financial information for 2017 will be required. This issuer may omit from its draft registration statements its 2015 annual financial information and interim financial information related to 2016 and 2017. Assuming that this issuer were to first publicly file in April 2018 when its annual information for 2017 is required, it would not need to separately prepare or present interim information for 2016 and 2017. If this issuer were to file publicly in January 2018, it may omit its 2015 annual financial information, but it must include its 2016 and 2017 interim financial information in that January filing because that interim information relates to historical periods that will be included at the time of the public offering. [Aug. 17, 2017]

Question: What financial information may an issuer that is not an Emerging Growth Company omit from its draft and publicly filed registration statements?

Answer: The relief provided by Section 71003 of the FAST Act is not available to issuers other than Emerging Growth Companies. However, under staff policy, an issuer that is not an Emerging Growth Company may omit from its draft registration statements interim and annual financial information that it reasonably believes it will not be required to present separately at the time it files its registration statement publicly. The issuer may not omit any required financial information from its filed registration statements. For example, consider a calendar year-end issuer that is not an Emerging Growth Company that submits a draft registration statement in November 2017 and reasonably believes it will first publicly file in April 2018 when annual financial information for 2017 will be required. This issuer may omit from its draft registration statements its 2014 annual financial information and interim financial information related to 2016 and 2017 because this information would not be required at the time of its first public filing in April 2018. [Aug. 17, 2017]