WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- The Securities and Exchange Commission announced it will meet next Wednesday to vote on finalizing changes to rules intended to curb manipulative short selling, including short sales made before public securities offerings.
Most of the changes being considered by the SEC were proposed in December and require a second vote by the five-member commission to take effect. One proposal would amend the SEC's Regulation SHO governing short sales to close a loophole that shielded some market participants from stricter requirements on closing out previously existing longstanding short positions. The protective "grandfather" treatment proved controversial and critics say it has undermined efforts to combat short-selling abuses.
The SEC also plans to vote on finalizing a proposal that would prohibit anyone who sells short a security in advance of an offering from purchasing the security in the offering. SEC officials say such an approach would help prevent manipulative short selling around an offering. Additionally, the SEC said it will consider whether to re-propose, rather than finalize, changes targeting the application of Regulation SHO to options market makers.
Short selling involves sales of borrowed securities, producing profits when prices decline. The practice is legal, but the SEC's Regulation SHO sought to curb abuses including so-called "naked" short sales, in which short sellers don't borrow securities they sell, a practice some view as akin to counterfeiting.
The rule, which took effect in 2005, imposed stricter requirements on locating and delivering shares that are sold short but excluded some previous short positions through a "grandfather" clause.
