Good morning. At the AICPA conference earlier this week in Washington, D.C., U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Paul Atkins told an audience of accountants, auditors, and financial preparers that it’s time to make going public more accessible.
Atkins noted that over the past 30 years, there has been a significant net decline in the total number of publicly traded companies, due in part to mergers and bankruptcies outpacing IPOs. His goal, he said, is to “make it cool to be a public company” again—something he believes has “taken a hit over time.”
Atkins outlined three obstacles he believes are holding issuers back. The first is what he described as expensive, overly long disclosures that impose an unnecessary burden on issuers. The second is the threat of securities litigation. Atkins reiterated his support for allowing companies—where state law permits—to adopt bylaws mandating arbitration and applying “loser pays” fee-shifting provisions, and said the SEC staff will no longer block an IPO solely because such measures are included. “If the state allows it, then that will be fine with us,” he said.
His third concern centers on what he characterized as “politicized shareholder activists” who can influence corporate governance battles. Atkins expects any related policy proposals to take most of next year to move through the regulatory process.
IPO momentum returns in 2025
After a significant downturn, the IPO market has been gaining momentum. In my conversation with Lynn Martin, president of the New York Stock Exchange, during the recent Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit, she said: “The IPO market is really, really strong. We’ve had a great year so far across all sectors.”
According to S&P Global research, the first half of 2025 was the strongest start for U.S. IPO issuance since 2021, with 102 IPOs versus 78 in the same period of 2024. Deal activity accelerated through the period, with 59 IPOs raising about $15 billion in Q2, up from 45 IPOs and $11.2 billion in Q1.
Momentum carried into the third quarter: EY reports that Q3 2025 saw 23 U.S. deals raising $100 million or more, including five IPOs that each raised over $1 billion. Technology, media, and telecommunications accounted for roughly one-third of these transactions and more than half of total proceeds. Overall, both deal count and capital raised in 2025 have already surpassed full-year 2024 levels.
In a LinkedIn post in April, Lynn Martin congratulated Atkins on his appointment and outlined what she sees as some of the challenges for companies considering going public. “I have the great privilege of speaking frequently with CEOs and other senior executives of companies around the globe,” she wrote. “While each company is unique, I do hear a similar refrain: The complexity and cost of meeting the regulatory requirements of public companies is onerous, and represents a disincentive for private companies considering an IPO.”
Martin also emphasized that the U.S. capital markets are “unmatched in their ability to foster economic growth, empower companies, and create long-term wealth opportunities for investors.
As 2026 approaches, the stakes are high to keep this year’s IPO revival from being just a fleeting upswing in the public markets.
Have a good weekend.
Sheryl Estrada
sheryl.estrada@fortune.com
