Perhaps you’ve heard the term “annual report” in a slightly different business context. Publicly traded companies are required to publish annual reports to their shareholders, detailing the state of their business. These companies must also share an expanded version of this report with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the federal agency responsible for regulating financial markets.
Thankfully, most small business owners don’t need to concern themselves with this type of annual report. When your business blooms into a publicly traded company, you can worry about this government compliance.