December 19, 2005
We have just been told, regarding the sale of new issue fixed income securities via our syndicate dept, that Investors who do not or cannot agree to accept the red herring electronically may not purchase the securities. No other written communication to investors in respect of these transactions are permitted.
The issue many of us have is that many of the clients that typically buy this type of security fixed income typically are age 50+, and in our experience, many of them do not use the internet, and therefore do not have the ability to receive the red herring prospectus electronically. On the surface, this doesnt seem to make any sense. If its a matter of making absolutely sure the firm has made the best efforts to get a red herring to a client, why not allow for the mailing via a tracking medium UPS, FedEx, USPS, etc... that will ensure timely delivery and tracking of said prospectus?? The rule as it stands now would seem to hurt those clients who look for htese types of securities and many times, rely on them for their income.