3 Things You Should Know About Small Business: September 5

2. How to bring back small-cap IPOs. While the JOBS Act provided some relief for small companies seeking to go public, Alan Patricof, a venture capitalist focusing on startups, shares his solutions to the remaining "structural" impediments in the public markets for small firms in a Fortune article.

The first issue is that there has been a decline in underwriters that specialize in what would now be described as "small underwritings," a direct result of SEC rulings that took out much of the incentive for traders and market makers on small deals, Patricof says.

The high costs and burdens of being a small public company trying to comply with Sarbanes Oxley present another problem, Patricof says, even with minimal relief from the JOBS Act.

"While many of these rulings were intended to protect investors and reduce costs, they had the opposite effect, in many instances raising the cost of capital for most small companies in their growth phase," and ensuring that small companies would list in markets outside the U.S. where regulatory burdens weren't so high, he writes.

Patricof's solutions include increasing the number of underwriters focused on underwriting deals of less than $50 million and increasing the "aftermarket support" for these companies, which will only be done by "increasing incentives which translates into restoring tick sizes and commission rates so that traders and salesmen can be attracted to focusing their attention on small companies."

3. U.S. Open's self-contained event a bust for local Queens businesses. While thousands of tennis fans flock to Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, N.Y. every year to watch two weeks-worth of the world's best tennis, local businesses say the additional U.S. Open foot traffic isn't making its way into their establishments, according to DNAinfo.com.

Down the street, business at the Roosevelt Sports Bar was slow, for instance. Manager Michael Fann says that business hasn't increased very much, despite being just a few blocks from the stadium and despite the U.S. Tennis Association claiming that the event generates more than $750 million in annual revenue for the New York City region.

Some business owners complain that the event is too "self-contained," meaning that patrons can exit the nearest subway station and walk into the event center without setting foot on a Queens street. Once inside fans have access to food, drinks, retail stores and ATM machines.

The Queens Economic Development Council is working to improve local area spending. The council has a tourism booth at the U.S. Open with the goal of pointing fans to area restaurants and businesses in the borough, DNAinfo.com says.

One industry that is benefiting from the event is area hotels.

-- Written by Laurie Kulikowski in New York.

Follow @LKulikowski

To contact Laurie Kulikowski, send an email to: [e-mail].

>To submit a news tip, email: [e-mail].

RELATED STORIES:

>>A Franchise Veteran's Secrets to Success

>>5 Fitness Franchises Getting Buff

>>7 Big Lessons From Today's Small Business Successes

Follow TheStreet on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

Disclosure: TheStreet's editorial policy prohibits staff editors, reporters and analysts from holding positions in any individual stocks.

« First ‹ Previous 1 2