Hedge Funds’ Shot at Stock Secrecy Fades as SEC Drops Revamp (1)

U.S. regulators are shelving a controversial plan to allow most hedge funds to keep their stock investments secret after public companies and other critics blasted the proposal as a major blow to market transparency, said people familiar with the matter.

Under the rule change the Securities and Exchange Commission was considering, only fund managers who owned at least $3.5 billion in equities would have had to publicly report their holdings, a dramatic increase from the current threshold of $100 million. While the SEC hasn’t publicly announced its decision to scrap the overhaul, some within the agency have been notified it’s ...