Securities Act Of 1933(pdf)
The term "person" means an individual, a corporation, a partnership, an association, a joint-
stock company, a trust, any unincorporated organization, or a government or political
subdivision thereof. As used in this paragraph the term "trust" shall include only a trust
where the interest or interests of the beneficiary or beneficiaries are evidenced by a
security.
The Securities Lawyer's Deskbook
Search Page
Suggestions
Main Table of Contents
Securities Act of 1933
Table of Contents
Section 1-- Short Title
Section 2 -- Definitions; Promotion of Efficiency, Competition, and Capital Formation
Section 2A -- Swap Agreements
Section 3 -- Classes of Securities under this Title
Section 4 -- Exempted Transactions
Section 5 -- Prohibitions Relating to Interstate Commerce and the Mails
Section 6 -- Registration of Securities
Section 7 -- Information Required in Registration Statement
Section 8 -- Taking Effect of Registration Statements and Amendments Thereto
Section 8A -- Cease-and-Desist Proceedings
Section 9 -- Court Review of Orders
Section 10 -- Information Required in Prospectus
Section 11 -- Civil Liabilities on Account of False Registration Statement
Section 12 -- Civil Liabilities Arising in Connection with Prospectuses and Communications
Section 13 -- Limitation of Actions
Section 14 -- Contrary Stipulations Void
Section 15 -- Liability of Controlling Persons
Section 16 -- Additional Remedies
Section 17 -- Fraudulent Interstate Transactions
Section 18 -- Exemption from State Regulation of Securities Offerings
Section 19 -- Special Powers of Commission
Section 20 -- Injunctions and Prosecution of Offenses
Section 21 -- Hearings by Commission
Section 22 -- Jurisdiction of Offenses and Suits
Section 23 -- Unlawful Representations
Section 24 -- Penalties
Section 25 -- Jurisdiction of Other Government Agencies over Securities
Section 26 -- Separability of Provisions
Section 27 -- Private Securities Litigation
Section 27A -- Application of Safe Harbor for Forward-Looking Statements
Section 28 -- General Exemptive Authority
Schedule of Information Required in Registration Statement
Schedule A
Schedule B
The Securities Lawyer's Deskbook
Search Page
Suggestions
Main Table of Contents
Securities Act of 1933
Section 1 -- Short Title
This title may be cited as the "Securities Act of 1933."
Legislative History
May 27, 1933, ch 38, Title I, § 1, 48 Stat. 74.
The Securities Lawyer's Deskbook
Legislative History
Search Page
Suggestions
Main Table of Contents
Securities Act of 1933
Section 2 -- Definitions; Promotion of Efficiency, Competition, and
Capital Formation
a. Definitions
When used in this title, unless the context otherwise requires--
1. The term "security" means any note, stock, treasury stock, security future, bond, debenture,
evidence of indebtedness, certificate of interest or participation in any profit-sharing
agreement, collateral-trust certificate, preorganization certificate or subscription,
transferable share, investment contract, voting-trust certificate, certificate of deposit for a
security, fractional undivided interest in oil, gas, or other mineral rights, any put, call,
straddle, option, or privilege on any security, certificate of deposit, or group or index of
securities (including any interest therein or based on the value thereof), or any put, call,
straddle, option, or privilege entered into on a national securities exchange relating to
foreign currency, or, in general, any interest or instrument commonly known as a
"security", or any certificate of interest or participation in, temporary or interim certificate
for, receipt for, guarantee of, or warrant or right to subscribe to or purchase, any of the
foregoing.
2. The term "person" means an individual, a corporation, a partnership, an association, a joint-
stock company, a trust, any unincorporated organization, or a government or political
subdivision thereof. As used in this paragraph the term "trust" shall include only a trust
where the interest or interests of the beneficiary or beneficiaries are evidenced by a
security.
3. The term "sale" or "sell" shall include every contract of sale or disposition of a security or
interest in a security, for value. The term "offer to sell", "offer for sale", or "offer" shall
include every attempt or offer to dispose of, or solicitation of an offer to buy, a security or
interest in a security, for value. The terms defined in this paragraph and the term "offer to
buy" as used in subsection (c) of section 5 shall not include preliminary negotiations or
agreements between an issuer (or any person directly or indirectly controlling or controlled
by an issuer, or under direct or indirect common control with an issuer) and any
underwriter or among underwriters who are or are to be in privity of contract with an issuer
(or any person directly or indirectly controlling or controlled by an issuer, or under direct
or indirect common control with an issuer). Any security given or delivered with, or as a
bonus on account of, any purchase of securities or any other thing, shall be conclusively
presumed to constitute a part of the subject of such purchase and to have been offered and
sold for value. The issue or transfer of a right or privilege, when originally issued or
transferred with a security, giving the holder of such security the right to convert such
security into another security of the same issuer or of another person, or giving a right to
subscribe to another security of the same issuer or of another person, which right cannot be
exercised until some future date, shall not be deemed to be an offer or sale of such other
security; but the issue or transfer of such other security upon the exercise of such right of
conversion or subscription shall be deemed a sale of such other security. Any offer or sale
of a security futures product by or on behalf of the issuer of the securities underlying the
security futures product, an affiliate of the issuer, or an underwriter, shall constitute a
contract for sale of, sale of, offer for sale, or offer to sell the underlying securities.
4. The term "issuer" means every person who issues or proposes to issue any security; except
that with respect to certificates of deposit, voting-trust certificates, or collateral-trust
certificates, or with respect to certificates of interest or shares in an unincorporated
investment trust not having a board of directors (or persons performing similar functions)
or of the fixed, restricted management, or unit type, the term "issuer" means the person or
persons performing the acts and assuming the duties of depositor or manager pursuant to
the provisions of the trust or other agreement or instrument under which such securities are
issued; except that in the case of an unincorporated association which provides by its
articles for limited liability of any or all of its members, or in the case of a trust, committee,
or other legal entity, the trustees or members thereof shall not be individually liable as
issuers of any security issued by the association, trust, committee, or other legal entity;
except that with respect to equipment-trust certificates or like securities, the term "issuer"
means the person by whom the equipment or property is or is to be used; and except that
with respect to fractional undivided interests in oil, gas, or other mineral rights, the term
"issuer" means the owner of any such right or of any interest in such right (whether whole
or fractional) who creates fractional interests therein for the purpose of public offering.
5. The term "Commission" means the Securities and Exchange Commission.
6. The term "Territory" means Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the insular possessions of
the United States.
7. The term "interstate commerce" means trade or commerce in securities or any
transportation or communication relating thereto among the several States or between the
District of Columbia or any Territory of the United States and any State or other Territory,
or between any foreign country and any State, Territory, or the District of Columbia, or
within the District of Columbia.
8. The term "registration statement" means the statement provided for in section 6, and
includes any amendment thereto and any report, document, or memorandum filed as part of
such statement or incorporated therein by reference.
9. The term "write" or "written" shall include printed, lithographed, or any means of graphic
communication.
10. The term "prospectus" means any prospectus, notice, circular, advertisement, letter, or
communication, written or by radio or television, which offers any security for sale or
confirms the sale of any security; except that (a) a communication sent or given after the
effective date of the registration statement (other than a prospectus permitted under
subsection (b) of section 10) shall not be deemed a prospectus if it is proved that prior to or
at the same time with such communication a written prospectus meeting the requirements
of subsection (a) of section 10 at the time of such communication was sent or given to the
person to whom the communication was made, and (b) a notice, circular, advertisement,
letter, or communication in respect of a security shall not be deemed to be a prospectus if it
states from whom a written prospectus meeting the requirements of section 10 may be
obtained and, in addition, does no more than identify the security, state the price thereof,
state by whom orders will be executed, and contain such other information as the
Commission, by rules or regulations deemed necessary or appropriate in the public interest
and for the protection of investors, and subject to such terms and conditions as may be
prescribed therein, may permit.
11. The term "underwriter" means any person who has purchased from an issuer with a view
to, or offers or sells for an issuer in connection with, the distribution of any security, or
participates or has a direct or indirect participation in any such undertaking, or participates
or has a participation in the direct or indirect underwriting of any such undertaking; but
such term shall not include a person whose interest is limited to a commission from an
underwriter or dealer not in excess of the usual and customary distributors' or sellers'
commission. As used in this paragraph the term "issuer" shall include, in addition to an
issuer, any person directly or indirectly controlling or controlled by the issuer, or any
person under direct or indirect common control with the issuer.
12. The term "dealer" means any person who engages either for all or part of his time, directly
or indirectly, as agent, broker, or principal, in the business of offering, buying, selling, or
otherwise dealing or trading in securities issued by another person.
13. The term "insurance company" means a company which is organized as an insurance
company, whose primary and predominant business activity is the writing of insurance or
the reinsuring of risks underwritten by insurance companies, and which is subject to
supervision by the insurance commissioner, or a similar official or agency, of a State or
territory or the District of Columbia; or any receiver or similar official or any liquidating
agent for such company, in his capacity as such.
14. The term "separate account" means an account established and maintained by an insurance
company pursuant to the laws of any State or territory of the United States, the District of
Columbia, or of Canada or any province thereof, under which income, gains and losses,
whether or not realized, from assets allocated to such account, are, in accordance with the
applicable contract, credited to or charged against such account without regard to other
income, gains, or losses of the insurance company.
15. The term "accredited investor" shall mean--
i. a bank as defined in section 3(a)(2) whether acting in its individual or fiduciary
capacity; an insurance company as defined in paragraph (13) of this subsection; an
investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940 or a
business development company as defined in section 2(a)(48) of that Act; a Small
Business Investment Company licensed by the Small Business Administration; or
an employee benefit plan, including an individual retirement account, which is
subject to the provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ,
if the investment decision is made by a plan fiduciary, as defined in section 3(21) of
such Act [29 USCS § 1002(21)], which is either a bank, insurance company, or
registered investment adviser; or
ii. any person who, on the basis of such factors as financial sophistication, net worth,
knowledge, and experience in financial matters, or amount of assets under
management qualifies as an accredited investor under rules and regulations which
the Commission shall prescribe.
16. The terms "security future", "narrow-based security index", and "security futures product"
have the same meanings as provided in section 3(a)(55) of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934.
b. Consideration of Promotion of Efficiency, Competition, and Capital Formation
Whenever pursuant to this title the Commission is engaged in rulemaking and is required to
consider or determine whether an action is necessary or appropriate in the public interest, the
Commission shall also consider, in addition to the protection of investors, whether the action will
promote efficiency, competition, and capital formation.
Legislative History
May 27, 1933, ch 38, Title I, § 2, 48 Stat. 74; June 6, 1934, ch 404, Title II, § 201, 48 Stat. 905; Aug. 10,
1954, ch 667, Title I, § § 1-4, 68 Stat. 683; June 25, 1959, P.L. 86-70, § 12(a), 73 Stat. 143; July 12,
1960, P.L. 86-624, § 7(a), 74 Stat. 412; Dec. 14, 1970, P.L. 91-547, § 27(a), 84 Stat. 1433; Oct. 21, 1980,
P.L. 96-477, Title VI, § 603, 94 Stat. 2294; Oct. 13, 1982, P.L. 97-303, § 1, 96 Stat. 1409; Dec. 4, 1987,
P.L. 100-181, Title II, § § 201, 202, 101 Stat. 1252. Oct. 11, 1996, P.L. 104-290, Title I, § 106(a), 110
Stat. 3424; Nov. 3, 1998, P.L. 105-353, Title III, § 301(a)(1), 112 Stat. 3235; Dec. 21, 2000, P.L. 106-
554, § 1(a)(5), 114 Stat. 2763.
Return to top
The Securities Lawyer's Deskbook
Legislative History
Search Page
Suggestions
Main Table of Contents
Securities Act of 1933
Section 2A -- Swap Agreements
a. Non-security-based swap agreements
The definition of "security" in section 2(a)(1) does not include any non-security-based swap
agreement (as defined in section 206C of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act [15 USCS § 78c note]).
b. Security-based swap agreements
1. The definition of "security" in section 2(a)(1) does not include any security-based swap
agreement (as defined in section 206B of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act [15 USCS § 78c
note]).
2. The Commission is prohibited from registering, or requiring, recommending, or
suggesting, the registration under this title of any security-based swap agreement (as
defined in section 206B of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act [15 USCS § 78c note]). If the
Commission becomes aware that a registrant has filed a registration statement with respect
to such a swap agreement, the Commission shall promptly so notify the registrant. Any
such registration statement with respect to such a swap agreement shall be void and of no
force or effect.
3. The Commission is prohibited from--
A. promulgating, interpreting, or enforcing rules; or
B. issuing orders of general applicability;
under this title in a manner that imposes or specifies reporting or recordkeeping
requirements, procedures, or standards as prophylactic measures against fraud,
manipulation, or insider trading with respect to any security-based swap agreement (as
defined in section 206B of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act [15 USCS § 78c note]).
4. References in this title to the "purchase" or "sale" of a security-based swap agreement shall
be deemed to mean the execution, termination (prior to its scheduled maturity date),
assignment, exchange, or similar transfer or conveyance of, or extinguishing of rights or
obligations under, a security-based swap agreement (as defined in section 206B of the
Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act [15 USCS § 78c note]), as the context may require.
Legislative History
May 27, 1933, ch 38, Title I, § 2A, as added Dec. 21, 2000, P.L. 106-554, § 1(a)(5), 114 Stat. 2763.
Return to top
The Securities Lawyer's Deskbook
Legislative History
Search Page
Suggestions
Main Table of Contents
Securities Act of 1933
Section 3 -- Classes of Securities under this Title
a. Exempted securities
Except as hereinafter expressly provided, the provisions of this title shall not apply to any of the
following classes of securities:
1. Reserved.
2. Any security issued or guaranteed by the United States or any territory thereof, or by the
District of Columbia, or by any State of the United States, or by any political subdivision
of a State or territory, or by any public instrumentality of one or more States or territories,
or by any person controlled or supervised by and acting as an instrumentality of the
Government of the United States pursuant to authority granted by the Congress of the
United States; or any certificate of deposit for any of the foregoing; or any security issued
or guaranteed by any bank; or any security issued by or representing an interest in or a
direct obligation of a Federal Reserve bank; or any interest or participation in any common
trust fund or similar fund that is excluded from the definition of the term "investment
company" under section 3(c)(3) of the Investment Company Act of 1940; or any security
which is an industrial development bond (as defined in section 103(c)(2) of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1954 [26 USCS § 103(c)(2)]) the interest on which is excludable from
gross income under section 103(a)(1) of such Code [26 USCS § 103(a)(1)] if, by reason of
the application of paragraph (4) or (6) of section 103(c) of such Code [26 USCS §
103(c)(4) or (6)] (determined as if paragraphs (4)(A), (5), and (7) were not included in
such section 103(c)) [26 USCS § 103(c)], paragraph (1) of such section 103(c) [26 USCS §
103(c)(1)] does not apply to such security; or any interest or participation in a single trust
fund, or in a collective trust fund maintained by a bank, or any security arising out of a
contract issued by an insurance company, which interest, participation, or security is issued
in connection with (A) a stock bonus, pension, or profit-sharing plan which meets the
requirements for qualification under section 401 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 [26
USCS § 401], (B) an annuity plan which meets the requirements for the deduction of the
employer's contributions under section 404(a)(2) of such Code [26 USCS § 404(a)(2)], or
(C) a governmental plan as defined in section 414(d) of such Code [26 USCS § 414(d)]
which has been established by an employer for the exclusive benefit of its employees or
their beneficiaries for the purpose of distributing to such employees or their beneficiaries
the corpus and income of the funds accumulated under such plan, if under such plan it is
impossible, prior to the satisfaction of all liabilities with respect to such employees and
their beneficiaries, for any part of the corpus or income to be used for, or diverted to,
purposes other than the exclusive benefit of such employees or their beneficiaries, other
than any plan described in clause (A), (B), or (C) of this paragraph (i) the contributions
under which are held in a single trust fund or in a separate account maintained by an
insurance company for a single employer and under which an amount in excess of the
employer's contribution is allocated to the purchase of securities (other than interests or
participations in the trust or separate account itself) issued by the employer or any
company directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by, or under common control with
the employer, (ii) which covers employees some or all of whom are employees within the
meaning of section 401(c)(1) of such Code [26 USCS § 401(c)(1)], or (iii) which is a plan
funded by an annuity contract described in section 403(b) of such Code [26 USCS §
403(b)]. The Commission, by rules and regulations or order, shall exempt from the
provisions of section 5 of this title any interest or participation issued in connection with a
stock bonus, pension, profit-sharing, or annuity plan which covers employees some or all
of whom are employees within the meaning of section 401(c)(1) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1954 [26 USCS § 401(c)(1)], if and to the extent that the Commission determines
this to be necessary or appropriate in the public interest and consistent with the protection
of investors and the purposes fairly intended by the policy and provisions of this title. For
purposes of this paragraph, a security issued or guaranteed by a bank shall not include any
interest or participation in any collective trust fund maintained by a bank; and the term
"bank" means any national bank, or any banking institution organized under the laws of
any State, territory, or the District of Columbia, the business of which is substantially
confined to banking and is supervised by the State or territorial banking commission or
similar official; except that in the case of a common trust fund or similar fund, or a
collective trust fund, the term "bank" has the same meaning as in the Investment Company
Act of 1940;
3. Any note, draft, bill of exchange, or banker's acceptance which arises out of a current
transaction or the proceeds of which have been or are to be used for current transactions,
and which has a maturity at the time of issuance of not exceeding nine months, exclusive
of days of grace, or any renewal thereof the maturity of which is likewise limited;
4. Any security issued by a person organized and operated exclusively for religious,
educational, benevolent, fraternal, charitable, or reformatory purposes and not for
pecuniary profit, and no part of the net earnings of which inures to the benefit of any
person, private stockholder, or individual; or any security of a fund that is excluded from
the definition of an investment companty under section 3(c)(10)(B) of the Investment
Company Act of 1940;
5. Any security issued (A) by a savings and loan association, building and loan association,
cooperative bank, homestead association, or similar institution, which is supervised and
examined by State or Federal authority having supervision over any such institution; or (B)
by (i) a farmer's cooperative organization exempt from tax under section 521 of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1954 [26 USCS § 521], (ii) a corporation described in section
501(c)(16) of such Code [26 USCS § 501(c)(16)] and exempt from tax under section
501(a) of such Code [26 USCS § 501(a)], or (iii) a corporation described in section
501(c)(2) of such Code [26 USCS § 501(c)(2)] which is exempt from tax under section
501(a) of such Code [26 USCS § 501(a)] and is organized for the exclusive purpose of
holding title to property, collecting income therefrom, and turning over the entire amount
thereof, less expenses, to an organization or corporation described in clause (i) or (ii);
6. Any interest in a railroad equipment trust. For purposes of this paragraph "interest in a
railroad equipment trust" means any interest in an equipment trust, lease, conditional sales
contract, or other similar arrangement entered into, issued, assumed, guaranteed by, or for
the benefit of, a common carrier to finance the acquisition of rolling stock, including
motive power;
7. Certificates issued by a receiver or by a trustee or debtor in possession in a case under title
11 of the United States Code, with the approval of the court;
8. Any insurance or endowment policy or annuity contract or optional annuity contract,
issued by a corporation subject to the supervision of the insurance commissioner, bank
commissioner, or any agency or officer performing like functions, of any State or Territory
of the United States or the District of Columbia;
9. Except with respect to a security exchanged in a case under title 11 of the United States
Code, any security exchanged by the issuer with its existing security holders exclusively
where no commission or other remuneration is paid or given directly or indirectly for
soliciting such exchange;
10. Except with respect to a security exchanged in a case under title 11 of the United States
Code, any security which is issued in exchange for one or more bona fide outstanding
securities, claims or property interests, or partly in such exchange and partly for cash,
where the terms and conditions of such issuance and exchange are approved, after a
hearing upon the fairness of such terms and conditions at which all persons to whom it is
proposed to issue securities in such exchange shall have the right to appear, by any court,
or by any official or agency of the United States, or by any State or Territorial banking or
insurance commission or other governmental authority expressly authorized by law to
grant such approval;
11. Any security which is a part of an issue offered and sold only to persons resident within a
single State or Territory, where the issuer of such security is a person resident and doing
business within or, if a corporation, incorporated by and doing business within, such State
or Territory.
12. Any equity security issued in connection with the acquisition by a holding company of a
bank under section 3(a) of the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 [12 USCS § 1842(a)]
or a savings association under section 10(e) of the Home Owners' Loan Act [12 USCS §
1467a(e)], if--
A. the acquisition occurs solely as part of a reorganization in which security holders
exchange their shares of a bank or savings association for shares of a newly formed
holding company with no significant assets other than securities of the bank or
savings association and the existing subsidiaries of the bank or savings association;
B. the security holders receive, after that reorganization, substantially the same
proportional share interests in the holding company as they held in the bank or
savings association, except for nominal changes in shareholders' interests resulting
from lawful elimination of fractional interests and the exercise of dissenting
shareholders' rights under State or Federal law;
C. the rights and interests of security holders in the holding company are substantially
the same as those in the bank or savings association prior to the transaction, other
than as may be required by law; and
D. the holding company has substantially the same assets and liabilities, on a
consolidated basis, as the bank or savings association had prior to the transaction.
For purposes of this paragraph, the term "savings association" means a savings association
(as defined in section 3(b) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act [12 USCS § 1813(b)]) the
deposits of which are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
13. Any security issued by or any interest or participation in any church plan, company or
account that is excluded from the definition of an investment company under section
3(c)(14).
14. Any security futures product that is--
A. cleared by a clearing agency registered under section 17A of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 or exempt from registration under subsection (b)(7) of such
section 17A; and
B. traded on a national securities exchange or a national securities association
registered pursuant to section 15A(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
b. Additional exemptions
The Commission may from time to time by its rules and regulations, and subject to such terms
and conditions as may be prescribed therein, add any class of securities to the securities exempted
as provided in this section, if it finds that the enforcement of this title with respect to such
securities is not necessary in the public interest and for the protection of investors by reason of the
small amount involved or the limited character of the public offering; but no issue of securities
shall be exempted under this subsection where the aggregate amount at which such issue is
offered to the public exceeds $5,000,000.
c. Securities issued by small investment company
The Commission may from time to time by its rules and regulations and subject to such terms and
conditions as may be prescribed therein, add to the securities exempted as provided in this section
any class of securities issued by a small business investment company under the Small Business
Investment Act of 1958 if it finds, having regard to the purposes of that Act, that the enforcement
of this Act with respect to such securities is not necessary in the public interest and for the
protection of investors.
Legislative History
May 27, 1933, ch 38, Title I, § 3, 48 Stat. 75; June 6, 1934, ch 404, Title II, § 202;, 48 Stat. 906; Feb. 4,
1887, ch 104, Title II, § 214, as added Aug. 9, 1935, ch 498, 49 Stat. 557, and amended June 29, 1938, ch
811, § 15, 52 Stat. 1240; May 15, 1945, ch 122, 59 Stat. 167; Aug. 10, 1954, ch 667, Title I, § 5, 68 Stat.
684; Aug, 21, 1958, P.L. 85-699, Title III, § 307(a), 72 Stat. 694; Aug. 10, 1970, P.L. 91-373, Title IV, §
401(a), 84 Stat, 718; Dec. 14, 1970, P.L. 91-547, § 27(b), (c) 84 Stat. 1434; Dec. 19, 1970, P.L. 91-565,
84 Stat. 1480; Dec. 22, 1970, P.L. 91-567, § 6(a), 84 Stat. 1498; Feb. 5, 1976, P.L. 94-210, Title III, §
308(a)(1), 90 Stat. 56; May 21, 1978, P.L. 95-283, § 18, 92 Stat. 275; Oct. 6, 1978, P.L. 95-425, § 2, 92
Stat. 962; Nov. 6, 1978, P.L. 95-598, Title III, § 306, 92 Stat. 2674; Oct. 21, 1980, P.L. 96-477, Title III,
§ 301, Title VII, § 701, 94 Stat. 2291, 2294; Sept. 20 1982, P.L. 97-261, § 19(d), 96 Stat. 1121; Dec. 4,
1987, P.L. 100-181, Title II, § § 203, 204, 101 Stat. 1252; Sept. 23, 1994, P.L. 103-325, Title III, § 320,
108 Stat. 2225; Dec. 8, 1995, P.L. 104-62, § 3, 109 Stat. 684; Oct. 11, 1996, P.L. 104-290, Title V, §
508(b), 110 Stat. 3447; Nov. 12, 1999, P.L. 106-102, Title II, Subtitle B, § 221(a), 113 Stat. 1401; Dec.
21, 2000, P.L. 106-554, § 1(a)(5), 114 Stat. 2763.
Return to top
The Securities Lawyer's Deskbook
Legislative History
Search Page
Suggestions
Main Table of Contents
Securities Act of 1933
Section 4 -- Exempted Transactions
The provisions of section 5 shall not apply to--
1. transactions by any person other than an issuer, underwriter, or dealer.
2. transactions by an issuer not involving any public offering.
3. transactions by a dealer (including an underwriter no longer acting as an underwriter in respect of
the security involved in such transaction), except--
A. transactions taking place prior to the expiration of forty days after the first date upon which
the security was bona fide offered to the public by the issuer or by or through an
underwriter,
B. transactions in a security as to which a registration statement has been filed taking place
prior to the expiration of forty days after the effective date of such registration statement or
prior to the expiration of forty days after the first date upon which the security was bona
fide offered to the public by the issuer or by or through an underwriter after such effective
date, whichever is later (excluding in the computation of such forty days any time during
which a stop order issued under section 8 is in effect as to the security), or such shorter
period as the Commission may specify by rules and regulations or order, and
C. transactions as to securities constituting the whole or a part of an unsold allotment to or
subscription by such dealer as a participant in the distribution of such securities by the
issuer or by or through an underwriter.
With respect to transactions referred to in clause (B), if securities of the issuer have not previously
been sold pursuant to an earlier effective registration statement the applicable period, instead of
forty days, shall be ninety days, or such shorter period as the Commission may specify by rules
and regulations or order.
4. brokers' transactions executed upon customers' orders on any exchange or in the over-the-counter
market but not the solicitation of such orders.
A. transactions involving offers or sales of one or more promissory notes directly secured by a
first lien on a single parcel of real estate upon which is located a dwelling or other
residential or commercial structure, and participation interests in such notes--
i. where such securities are originated by a savings and loan association, savings
bank, commercial bank, or similar banking institution which is supervised and
examined by a Federal or State authority, and are offered and sold subject to the
following conditions:
a. the minimum aggregate sales price per purchaser shall not be less than
$250,000;
b. the purchaser shall pay cash either at the time of the sale or within sixty days
thereof; and
c. each purchaser shall buy for his own account only; or
ii. where such securities are originated by a mortgagee approved by the Secretary of
Housing and Urban Development pursuant to sections 203 and 211 of the National
Housing Act [12 USCS §§ 1709, 1715b] and are offered or sold subject to the three
conditions specified in subparagraph (A)(i) to any institution described in such
subparagraph or to any insurance company subject to the supervision of the
insurance commissioner, or any agency or officer performing like function, of any
State or territory of the United States or the District of Columbia, or the Federal
Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, the Federal National Mortgage Association, or
the Government National Mortgage Association.
B. transactions between any of the entities described in subparagraph (A)(i) or (A)(ii)
involving non-assignable contracts to buy or sell the foregoing securities which are to be
completed within two years, where the seller of the foregoing securities pursuant to any
such contract is one of the parties described in subparagraph (A)(i) or (A)(ii) who may
originate such securities and the purchaser of such securities pursuant to any such contract
is any institution described in subparagraph (A)(i) or any insurance company described in
subparagraph (A)(ii), the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, Federal National
Mortgage Association, or the Government National Mortgage Association and where the
foregoing securities are subject to the three conditions for sale set forth in subparagraphs
(A)(i)(a) through (c).
C. The exemption provided by subparagraphs (A) and (B) shall not apply to resales of the
securities acquired pursuant thereto, unless each of the conditions for sale contained in
subparagraphs (A)(i)(a) through (c) are satisfied.
6. transactions involving offers or sales by an issuer solely to one or more accredited investors, if the
aggregate offering price of an issue of securities offered in reliance on this paragraph does not
exceed the amount allowed under section 3(b), if there is no advertising or public solicitation in
connection with the transaction by the issuer or anyone acting on the issuer's behalf, and if the
issuer files such notice with the Commission as the Commission shall prescribe.
Legislative History
May 27, 1933, ch 38, Title I, § 4, 48 Stat. 77; June 6, 1934, ch 404, Title II, § 203, 48 Stat. 906; Aug. 10,
1954, ch 667, Title I, § 6, 68 Stat. 684; Aug. 20, 1964, P.L. 88-467, § 12, 78 Stat. 580; June 4, 1975, P.L.
94-29, § 30, 89 Stat. 169; Oct. 21, 1980, P.L. 96-477, Title VI, § 602, 94 Stat. 2294.
Return to top
ÿ
