Between a rock and a compliance manager.
These are the problems we chose to have. And as far as problems go, they ain’t that bad.
Listed rules are a broad brush.
In Australia, the same rules apply to BHP as they do to a $10m explorer. In the US, Apple plays by the same disclosure rules as a tech penny stock. They don’t account for nuance, sector dynamics, or scale.
Sometimes it can feel constrictive, but this is the game we signed up for.
Either we led a company through an IPO, or we took a role within a listed company knowing the rules. As one leader put it to me this week - “These are the problems we chose to have. And as far as problems go, they ain’t that bad.”
So instead of thinking we’re stuck between a rock and a compliance manager, maybe this is just the cost of the incredible audience we have or have access to?
CommSec, IRESS, Bloomberg - they’ve spent hundreds of millions building, growing, and engaging their user base. But every day, they put our announcements in front of that investor audience - for free.
Sure, you have to grow the pie of people watching you to increase your share of voice and time, before you can increase your share of wallet.
But you don’t have an initial discovery problem - because investors already have the tools to find you. The challenge is earning their attention, trust and relevance, so they choose to follow your story and act when it matters.
That’s not about compliance. It’s about connection.
Being listed gives you a distribution network most private companies would kill for. It’s easy to focus on the rules, the oversight, the restrictions, and forget the benefits.
But we chose this path for a reason and if you lean into the opportunities, it’s an amazing place to be.
Cheers,
Ben