Opening the door to unicorns invites risk for average investors

New York

MANY investors may have fantasised about those "if only" investments. If only I had invested in Peloton. Or Uber. Or Lyft.

For most people, though, that's not possible - and not just because they don't have a million dollars to drop on a billion-dollar idea. Under current law, only individuals with at least US$200,000 in annual income or US$1 million in assets (outside of their home) are "accredited investors", or those qualified to invest in private securities.

Now, the nation's top securities regulator is contemplating how to let ordinary people get in on companies before they go public.

Jay Clayton, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, has ar…