Question 1

Where do the official U.S. capital-raising figures come from?

Accepted Answer

The dollar amounts of capital raised in the United States are measured from public filings made with the SEC. The SEC's Division of Economic and Risk Analysis (DERA) analyzes those filings, and the aggregate figures are published in the annual report of the SEC's Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation (OASB). The OASB's Fiscal Year 2024 Annual Report states that the data in the report 'is derived from public filings with the SEC, as analyzed by the SEC's Division of Economic and Risk Analysis (DERA), and is supplemented with data and analysis from third parties.' The SEC describes DERA as the division that 'integrates financial economics and rigorous data analytics into the SEC's core mission' and that 'manages and analyzes public and private data.' The OASB is 'an independent office established by Congress to advance the interests of small businesses ... and their investors.' Unless otherwise indicated, the report's DERA-based offering figures cover the data period July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024 (endnote 50).

Question 2

How much capital was raised through registered versus exempt offerings in the most recent measured period?

Accepted Answer

In the year ended June 30, 2024, among capital raised by companies (excluding pooled funds), the two largest dollar channels were other registered offerings, at approximately $1.2 trillion, and other exempt offerings conducted under Rule 144A and Regulation S, at approximately $949 billion, according to DERA data reported in the OASB Fiscal Year 2024 Annual Report. Initial public offerings accounted for about $28 billion of registered capital over the same period. The report's 'Offering Pathways' figure groups capital raised by companies (excluding pooled funds) into registered offerings — initial public offerings ($28 billion) and other registered offerings ($1.2 trillion) — and exempt offerings — other exempt offerings under Rule 144A and Regulation S ($949 billion), Rule 506(b) private placements ($170 billion), Rule 506(c) general-solicitation offerings ($12 billion), Regulation A ($1.5 billion), Regulation Crowdfunding ($249 million), and Rule 504 limited offerings ($246 million). The full pathway breakdown appears in the table below.

Question 3

How much did initial public offerings specifically raise, and in which industries?

Accepted Answer

IPOs accounted for approximately $28 billion of registered capital in the year ended June 30, 2024, according to the SEC OASB Fiscal Year 2024 Annual Report. Excluding pooled investment funds, the technology sector raised the most through IPOs over that period, at about $10.0 billion. The report's IPO industry figures (excluding pooled funds) were: Technology $10.0 billion; Manufacturing $4.1 billion; Business Services $3.7 billion; Banking and Financial Services $3.1 billion; Health Care $3.0 billion; and Hospitality, Retailing, and Restaurants $1.3 billion. The report also states that, since 2022, IPOs by small companies have accounted for 40 percent of the number of IPOs but only 4 percent of the deal value. The timing, counts, and pricing of individual IPOs are tracked on the IPO Charts page and in the IPO Center's live Global IPO Intelligence feed.

Question 4

How does the registered-versus-exempt split compare with the 2019 picture?

Accepted Answer

The SEC's 2020 rule adopting amendments to the exempt-offering framework reported that, in 2019, registered offerings accounted for $1.2 trillion (30.8 percent) of new capital, compared with approximately $2.7 trillion (69.2 percent) raised through exempt offering channels. The figures appear in SEC Release Nos. 33-10884; 34-90300 (File No. S7-05-20), 'Facilitating Capital Formation and Expanding Investment Opportunities by Improving Access to Capital in Private Markets,' a final rule adopted November 2, 2020. The release states that these are Commission estimates based on staff analysis in DERA of data collected from filings. This page reports the measured amounts and does not characterize either channel as preferable.

Question 5

Within the exempt market, which exemption raised the most, and how small were Regulation A and Crowdfunding?

Accepted Answer

In the SEC's 2019 estimates, Rule 506(b) of Regulation D was by far the largest single exempt channel, with approximately $1,492 billion (about $1.5 trillion) reported as raised, followed by other exempt offerings — which the release defines as Section 4(a)(2), Regulation S, and Rule 144A offerings — at approximately $1,167 billion. SEC Release No. 33-10884, Table 5 ('Overview of amounts raised in the exempt market in 2019'), reports: Rule 506(b) $1,492 billion; Rule 506(c) $66 billion; Regulation A Tier 2 $0.998 billion; Regulation A Tier 1 $0.044 billion; Rule 504 $0.228 billion; Regulation Crowdfunding $0.062 billion; and other exempt offerings $1,167 billion. The release states that, of the approximately $2.7 trillion estimated as raised in exempt offerings in 2019, approximately $1.3 billion (0.05 percent) was raised under Regulation A, Regulation Crowdfunding, and Rule 504 combined. Table 5 includes offerings by pooled investment funds, so its amounts are not directly comparable to the Fiscal Year 2024 'Offering Pathways' figures above, which measure companies excluding pooled funds.

Question 6

What dollar ceilings apply to the main exempt offering pathways?

Accepted Answer

The SEC's capital-raising materials state that Regulation A allows eligible companies to raise up to $20 million in a 12-month period in a Tier 1 offering and up to $75 million in a 12-month period in a Tier 2 offering; Regulation Crowdfunding allows up to $5 million in a 12-month period; and Rule 504 allows up to $10 million in a 12-month period. Rule 506(b) and Rule 506(c) offerings under Regulation D permit companies to raise an unlimited amount. These ceilings help explain the dollar pattern in the data: the largest exempt dollars flow through the uncapped Rule 506 private placements and the Rule 144A/Regulation S markets, while Regulation A, Regulation Crowdfunding, and Rule 504 — though widely used by smaller issuers — account for a small share of total exempt dollars. Registered public offerings, including IPOs, are not subject to a statutory dollar ceiling on the amount that may be raised.

Question 7

How many IPOs occur each year, and how much do they raise over time?

Accepted Answer

Data compiled by Jay R. Ritter (University of Florida) (University of Florida) show that U.S. IPO volume peaked recently in 2021 at 315 offerings raising about $119.6 billion in gross proceeds, then fell to 39 offerings ($7.0 billion) in 2022, 54 ($11.9 billion) in 2023, 73 ($20.5 billion) in 2024, and 94 ($39.4 billion) in 2025. Across 1960–2025, Ritter's dataset counts 14,079 IPOs raising about $1.238 trillion in aggregate gross proceeds (nominal), at a mean first-day return of 17.7 percent. The count excludes offers priced under $5.00, American depositary receipts, unit offers, closed-end funds, real estate investment trusts (REITs), SPACs, and natural-resource limited partnerships; gross proceeds exclude over-allotment options and are not adjusted for inflation. Ritter's 2023 count of 54 IPOs matches the figure of 54 exchange-listed IPOs reported by the SEC OASB for 2023. Longer-run counts and dollar trends are presented on the IPO Charts and IPO Economics pages.

Question 8

Why do exempt offerings raise more in aggregate than registered offerings?

Accepted Answer

The SEC states that, by exempting many small offerings from the registration process, it 'seeks to foster capital formation by lowering the cost of offering securities to investors.' The measured result is that, across recent years, exempt offering channels have accounted for a larger aggregate dollar volume of new capital than registered offerings. Investor.gov lists common exemptions from registration, including private offerings to a limited number of persons or institutions, offerings of limited size, intrastate offerings, and securities of municipal, state, and federal governments. In the data, the largest exempt dollars flow through the uncapped Rule 506 private placements and the institutional Rule 144A and Regulation S markets, whereas registered public offerings deliver full Securities Act disclosure to the general public. This page reports the measured dollar amounts and does not characterize either channel as preferable or recommend any offering path.

Question 9

What is a 'registered offering' and an 'exempt offering' as the data categorize them?

Accepted Answer

A registered offering is one registered with the SEC under the Securities Act of 1933; under Section 5 of the Act it is generally unlawful to offer or sell securities to the public through interstate commerce or the mails unless a registration statement is in effect for the security. An exempt offering is one that relies on an available exemption from that registration requirement. The capital-formation figures measure the dollars raised through each of these two categories. Registered-offering amounts are measured from registration filings on EDGAR — for example, Form S-1 registration statements and Form 424B prospectuses — while exempt-offering amounts are measured largely from notice filings such as Form D for Regulation D and from data on Rule 144A and Regulation S transactions. The definitional mechanics of the registration path are covered on the IPO Registration Statements and IPO Forms pages; this page addresses the measured dollars, not the filing procedure.

Question 10

How is Regulation D — the largest private-offering framework — reflected in the data?

Accepted Answer

Regulation D is the most-used private-offering framework by dollars raised. In the year ended June 30, 2024, among companies (excluding pooled funds), Rule 506(b) private placements accounted for about $170 billion and Rule 506(c) general-solicitation offerings about $12 billion, according to DERA data; the SEC's 2019 estimates, which include pooled investment funds, placed Rule 506(b) alone at roughly $1.5 trillion. The 2024 and 2019 Rule 506(b) figures are not directly comparable: the 2024 'Offering Pathways' figure covers companies excluding pooled investment funds, whereas the 2019 estimate includes pooled funds; the same Fiscal Year 2024 report separately placed Rule 506(b) private placements by pooled funds at about $1.7 trillion for the year ended June 30, 2024. Companies conducting a Regulation D offering file a Form D notice with the SEC, which the SEC states 'will be publicly available on EDGAR' after filing; an amendment to Form D is required annually if the offering continues for more than 12 months or if certain information changes. Form D notices are the principal public data source through which Regulation D activity is measured. The concept-level treatment of these offerings is on the capital-raising overview and guide pages; this page reports the measured amounts.

Question 11

Do these figures mean the SEC approves or endorses the offerings counted?

Accepted Answer

No. The figures measure the amount of capital raised, not any government endorsement. The SEC states that it does not evaluate the merits of offerings, does not determine whether the securities offered are good investments, and cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information in a company's filings. Registration under the Securities Act of 1933 is a disclosure system: it requires that investors receive material information about the securities being offered and prohibits deceit, misrepresentations, and other fraud in the sale of securities. The SEC does not approve or endorse a registered offering, and an exemption from registration is likewise not an SEC endorsement of an exempt offering. The dollar totals on this page reflect capital raised, not any SEC judgment about the offerings.

Question 12

How can the public verify these figures and track offerings as they happen?

Accepted Answer

Registered offerings are filed on the SEC's EDGAR system and are publicly available free of charge; EDGAR full-text search covers filings submitted electronically since 2001. Regulation D activity can be tracked through Form D notices on EDGAR, and the aggregate capital-formation figures are published in the SEC OASB annual report and the underlying DERA data. EDGAR lets the public search registration statements (such as Form S-1), prospectuses (Form 424B), and Form D notices by company name, form type, ticker, CIK, or keyword. The IPO Center's live Global IPO Intelligence feed surfaces current registered IPO filings and pricings drawn from this public record as they occur, while the IPO Market Data and IPO Charts pages present the underlying counts and dollar trends. The dollar totals on this page are periodic official statistics; the live feed tracks individual filings in near-real time.

Regulatory pathway	Category	Capital raised (year ended June 30, 2024)	Source
Other registered offerings	Registered	$1.2 trillion	SEC OASB FY2024 Annual Report (DERA) · source
Initial public offerings (IPOs)	Registered	$28 billion	SEC OASB FY2024 Annual Report (DERA) · source
Other exempt offerings (Rule 144A and Regulation S)	Exempt	$949 billion	SEC OASB FY2024 Annual Report (DERA) · source
Rule 506(b) private placements (Regulation D)	Exempt	$170 billion	SEC OASB FY2024 Annual Report (DERA) · source
Rule 506(c) general-solicitation offerings (Regulation D)	Exempt	$12 billion	SEC OASB FY2024 Annual Report (DERA) · source
Regulation A (mini-IPOs)	Exempt	$1.5 billion	SEC OASB FY2024 Annual Report (DERA) · source
Regulation Crowdfunding	Exempt	$249 million	SEC OASB FY2024 Annual Report (DERA) · source
Rule 504 limited offerings	Exempt	$246 million	SEC OASB FY2024 Annual Report (DERA) · source

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