# Accredited Investor

*Regulation & Compliance — Finicade finance glossary*

An accredited investor meets income or net worth thresholds — $200,000 income or $1m net worth in the US — and can buy unregistered private offerings.

An accredited investor meets income or net worth thresholds — in the US, $200,000 of income or $1m of net worth excluding a home — and can therefore buy unregistered private offerings. The premise is that wealth proxies for the ability to bear loss and to demand information. The criticism is that it gates the highest-returning asset classes by wealth rather than by knowledge, which recent rule changes have only partly addressed.

**Also known as:** accreditation, sophisticated investor, qualified investor

**Related terms:** [Regulation D](https://finicade.com/glossary/regulation-d), [Private Equity](https://finicade.com/glossary/private-equity), [Hedge Fund](https://finicade.com/glossary/hedge-fund), [Equity Crowdfunding](https://finicade.com/glossary/equity-crowdfunding), [Securities Act of 1933](https://finicade.com/glossary/securities-act-of-1933)

Source: https://finicade.com/glossary/accredited-investor