In a February episode of the Pod Force One podcast, Atkins made headlines with a bold mission: to ‘make IPOs great again’ by addressing what he sees as regulatory and cultural barriers that have discouraged companies from going public. His comments indicate a change in how the SEC plans to support capital formation in the US.
Atkins told host Miranda Devine that IPO activity in recent years has been depressed in part because companies are repelled by what he described as ‘mayhem’ in governance discussions around DEI and related ESG policies. He argued that when ‘woke’ priorities dominate proxy fights or shareholder activism, business leaders lose focus on core economic fundamentals and find the public route less attractive. In his view, needless engagement with social agendas can distract boards and management teams, adding to the burden of compliance and shareholder engagement without advancing the company’s fundamental mission.
Central to his argument was the influence of proxy advisory firms such as ISS and Glass Lewis, which Atkins suggested have amplified pressures on politically charged corporate actions. He said their influence over shareholder voting decisions can push companies into long debates over non-economic issues that drain executive time and resources. This, he argued, carries real economic costs, potentially in billions of dollars annually and has driven some entrepreneurs to delay or shun public offerings altogether.
His proposal for energizing the IPO market is a return to the basics. Atkins highlighted benefits such as enabling companies to issue stock as part of employee compensation and expanding opportunities for investors to share in early-stage growth, which in turn strengthens the broader economy. He said a dynamic IPO pipeline boosts competition for capital and enhances valuations for private firms considering jumping into public markets.
This push comes amid a broader concern among market participants that the number of publicly listed companies in the US has declined significantly over the past few decades. Many executives cite regulatory complexity, litigation risk and disclosure burdens as reasons to remain private longer or list abroad. Atkins has previously championed reforms to ease these pressures, including tailoring disclosure requirements to company size, clarifying reporting obligations and streamlining the IPO process so it better serves capital-raising goals rather than merely acting as a compliance gauntlet.
In reinforcing his domestic agenda, Atkins also touched on international cooperation in a separate address to the Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME). While his remarks were less headline-grabbing, they underscored a key secondary theme of his tenure: the importance of aligning the US’s capital-market rules with its global counterparts to remain competitive. He outlined priorities such as simplifying corporate disclosures, de-politicizing shareholder meetings and reforming litigation practices, pointing to a shared interest in making markets more accessible and efficient.
In line with this, Atkins has pledged ongoing cooperation with European securities regulators to avoid regulatory friction and support cross-border investment flows. He emphasized the value of understanding other jurisdictions’ frameworks and anticipating differences that could impede market activity.
Atkins’s new dual focus signals a deeper attempt to reshape the tone and priorities of US corporate governance. Whether these efforts will translate into a measurable uptick in public offerings or attract more companies into US markets remains an open question.