Eh, you have a misinformed opinion. If a company wants to report without having to pay OTC Markets Group, they can file through the SEC. Look at a company like VIDA or really any other company that is listed as OTCQC - they all file directly with the SEC rather than having to file through OTC Markets Group. Or, a company can simply list on FINRA's OTCBB and avoid OTC Markets Group although (something you failed to respond to) - except, as I noted before, only 28 companies do so as their sole listing place. Then again, I think you still need to use EDGAR to do so on OTCBB.
There seems to be plenty of liquidity in legit companies on the OTC, especially compared to the Pink Sheets of yesteryears. Where has the liquidity dried up? Simple: the shitty caveat emptors, gray markets, and other crap-shoot shell and spam companies. If you want to know what's really killed liquidity its transparency; that's right, transparency made it so companies can dupe their investors (many of which fail to do any research). Beyond that there have been changes at the SEC itself as to how CUSIPs are handled and how public companies can trade; so there are tangential happenings. These markets aren't meant to be casinos, they supposed to be legitimate places to conduct business. Prior to 5 years ago or so it was really questionable as to what companies were legitimate and which weren't. Investors failed to do their research and the industry was forced to step in order avoid federal intervention. The markets are still complicated - hence why there are tons of penny chaser websites in existence, including some right here on this websit (TecNasty and his group).
I have the data to back it up too that transparency has helped steer investors aware from the shitty companies of yesteryear that you claim OTC Markets killed. All you have to do is look at the trading that occurs in each tier (daily numbers as of today):
OTCQX: Volume: $153,632,376; trades: 6,742; number of securities: 273
OTCQB: Volume: $86,426,937 ; trades: 22,519; number of securities: 3,675
Pink: Volume: $366,765,912; trades: 32,241; number of securities: 6,166
Other markets (dark pools): volume: $202,696,691; trades:
4,979; number of securities: 9,159
P.S: looks like the number of securities only listed on FINRA's OTCBB is down to 18, not 28.
P.P.S: And, lets be clear out of the nearly 4,000 stocks listed as OTCQX and OTCQB, only 4 are caveat emptors. Compare that to the 380 listed as Pinks and 240 on the grey/other markets. I bet if you were to pull the volume number apart from the other markets I listed above, most of it would be in the 18 FINRA OTCBB companies rather than the 9,148 other gray market securities.
AI
