Summary
A 504 REG D offering is the fastest and least expensive way to do a PUBLIC OFFERING. If you do a self-underwriting and get listed on the Electronic Bulletin Board, your legal and preparation costs will run about $40,000 and you will probably have about $1000 to $3000 in incidental other costs. No audited financials are needed. You can be ready to legally solicit in as little as 30 days.
A SCOR offering will cost you about the same as above, plus additional costs for State filing fees (usually about $1000 per state), audited financials and Broker Dealers. It will take about 60 days to be qualified to sell stock in the easy states and up to 7 months in the more difficult states.
A REG A offering will cost roughly about $5000 more than a SCOR. You will not need audited financials or broker dealers in some states, but you will in others. It will take about 4 months in an easy state and about 7 months in a more difficult state.
A full offering (SB-1, S-1, etc.) will usually start out at a cost of at least $75,000. It will allow for unlimited capital to be raised and the stock issued is free-trading. These kinds of offerings can take a year or so to get approval and require audited financials.
A Private Placement offering can also be done fast and for very little expense – approximately $15,000 for a simple offering (a complex Private Placement offering can cost significantly more). Simple Private Placement offerings do not require audited financials, but more complex ones do. The stock sold will be restricted and less attractive to most investors because it is not as liquid as a public offering.
A Reverse Merger can be accomplished for as little as $60,000 and can be listed in as short a time as 6 months. On the other hand, a company can go public within days by a reverse merger for a price of about $150,000 to $450,000.