Somewhere along the line, private placements started to seem like a lot of trouble. Investment bankers who handle these deals say the problem is that the negotiations that are required have resulted in a decline in deal flow since 2003. Now a coalition is hoping that some proposed guidelines will help improve the deteriorated process. Specifically, the guidelines are aimed at smoothing the process of negotiating over amendment covenants. Too often, this process breaks down. The proposed guidelines from the Private Placement Investors Association (PPIA) is about 30 to 40 pages long and basically lays out some best practices that would amount to a code of conduct.

For more:
- here's an Investment Dealers' Digest article (For FierceFinance readers)