U.S. stock exchanges and the SEC are looking to ease the rules for public companies; the goal is to revive IPO activity and slow the steady decline in listings.
The SEC says it's weighing changes to promote capital formation; Nasdaq and the NYSE have confirmed ongoing talks with regulators.
Since Sarbanes-Oxley and Dodd-Frank, the number of U.S.-listed firms has dropped 36%; critics say rollbacks could weaken investor protections; supporters argue they're critical to keeping U.S. markets globally competitive.
