Community hub
Recent from talks
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Stock certificate
In corporate law, a stock certificate (also known as certificate of stock or share certificate) is a legal document that certifies the legal interest (a bundle of several legal rights) of ownership of a specific number of shares (or, under Article 8 of the Uniform Commercial Code in the United States, a securities entitlement or pro rata share of a fungible bulk) or stock in a corporation.
A stock certificate is a legal document that certifies the legal interest (a bundle of several legal rights) of ownership of a specific number of shares (or, under Article 8 of the Uniform Commercial Code, a securities entitlement or pro rata share of a fungible bulk) or stock in a corporation. The first such instruments were used in the Netherlands by 1606, and in the United States by the year 1800. Historically, certificates may have been required to evidence entitlement to dividends, with a receipt for the payment being endorsed on the back; and the original certificate may have been required to be provided to effect the transfer of the shareholding.
In the United States (to a limited extent) and other countries, electronic registration is supplanting the stock certificate for beneficial owners (though depositories holding for them may themselves hold certificates), with companies at times no longer being required to issue paper certificates. In the United States over 420 of the 7,000-plus publicly traded securities, 6%, do not issue paper certificates to beneficial owners. Volumes of share transfer on the New York Stock Exchange, for example, increased over time; in 1938 daily volume was 1 million shares, and in 1954 it reached 2 million shares. The United States' central securities depository, DTC, in 2011 held 1.6 million paper stock certificates, and has promoted efforts to eliminate paper stock certificates, a process called dematerialization—which has been a goal in the industry since at least the 1960s. In 2012, water from Hurricane Sandy flooded a vault at the DTC, damaging over $1 billion in stock and bond certificates. Countries around the world have adopted similar initiatives, with some countries setting deadlines for statutory dematerialization.
Brokers may charge up to $500 for issuing a paper certificate, though some charge zero (e.g., The Walt Disney Company) or only a modest fee, and this fee can be avoided by either holding shares in street name (in the United States street name securities are securities held, usually in paper certificate form, by a partnership of a financial institution (such as a broker or bank or central securities depository), where the beneficial owner only receives a statement, similar to a bank account statement) or registering shares directly with the stock transfer agent and having them issue the certificate.
Another alternative to both paper and electronic registration is the use of paper-equivalent electronic stock certificates. Forty-seven states have enacted legislation equivalent to the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, which formalizes equivalency for electronic signatures "in writing" requirements. This, together with the enactment of legislation permitting the use of "facsimile" signatures on certificates (such as in §158 of the Delaware General Corporation Law), has given rise to software as a service technology for private companies to create, issue and manage paper-equivalent electronic stock certificates.
In Sweden, starting in 1990 share certificates have been largely abolished for shares traded on the stock exchange, people using electronic shares instead (which are either registered in the share owner's name or in the share owner's broker's name). Share certificates may exist in Sweden, but only if the shares are not listed on any stock exchange in Sweden.
Sometimes a shareholder with a stock certificate can give a proxy to another person to allow them to vote the shares in question. Similarly, a shareholder without a share certificate may often give a proxy to another person to allow them to vote the shares in question. Voting rights are defined by the corporation's charter and corporate law.
Stock certificates are generally divided into two forms: registered stock certificates and bearer stock certificates. A registered stock certificate is normally only evidence of title, and a record of the true holders of the shares will appear in the stockholder's register of the corporation.
Hub AI
Stock certificate AI simulator
(@Stock certificate_simulator)
Stock certificate
In corporate law, a stock certificate (also known as certificate of stock or share certificate) is a legal document that certifies the legal interest (a bundle of several legal rights) of ownership of a specific number of shares (or, under Article 8 of the Uniform Commercial Code in the United States, a securities entitlement or pro rata share of a fungible bulk) or stock in a corporation.
A stock certificate is a legal document that certifies the legal interest (a bundle of several legal rights) of ownership of a specific number of shares (or, under Article 8 of the Uniform Commercial Code, a securities entitlement or pro rata share of a fungible bulk) or stock in a corporation. The first such instruments were used in the Netherlands by 1606, and in the United States by the year 1800. Historically, certificates may have been required to evidence entitlement to dividends, with a receipt for the payment being endorsed on the back; and the original certificate may have been required to be provided to effect the transfer of the shareholding.
In the United States (to a limited extent) and other countries, electronic registration is supplanting the stock certificate for beneficial owners (though depositories holding for them may themselves hold certificates), with companies at times no longer being required to issue paper certificates. In the United States over 420 of the 7,000-plus publicly traded securities, 6%, do not issue paper certificates to beneficial owners. Volumes of share transfer on the New York Stock Exchange, for example, increased over time; in 1938 daily volume was 1 million shares, and in 1954 it reached 2 million shares. The United States' central securities depository, DTC, in 2011 held 1.6 million paper stock certificates, and has promoted efforts to eliminate paper stock certificates, a process called dematerialization—which has been a goal in the industry since at least the 1960s. In 2012, water from Hurricane Sandy flooded a vault at the DTC, damaging over $1 billion in stock and bond certificates. Countries around the world have adopted similar initiatives, with some countries setting deadlines for statutory dematerialization.
Brokers may charge up to $500 for issuing a paper certificate, though some charge zero (e.g., The Walt Disney Company) or only a modest fee, and this fee can be avoided by either holding shares in street name (in the United States street name securities are securities held, usually in paper certificate form, by a partnership of a financial institution (such as a broker or bank or central securities depository), where the beneficial owner only receives a statement, similar to a bank account statement) or registering shares directly with the stock transfer agent and having them issue the certificate.
Another alternative to both paper and electronic registration is the use of paper-equivalent electronic stock certificates. Forty-seven states have enacted legislation equivalent to the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, which formalizes equivalency for electronic signatures "in writing" requirements. This, together with the enactment of legislation permitting the use of "facsimile" signatures on certificates (such as in §158 of the Delaware General Corporation Law), has given rise to software as a service technology for private companies to create, issue and manage paper-equivalent electronic stock certificates.
In Sweden, starting in 1990 share certificates have been largely abolished for shares traded on the stock exchange, people using electronic shares instead (which are either registered in the share owner's name or in the share owner's broker's name). Share certificates may exist in Sweden, but only if the shares are not listed on any stock exchange in Sweden.
Sometimes a shareholder with a stock certificate can give a proxy to another person to allow them to vote the shares in question. Similarly, a shareholder without a share certificate may often give a proxy to another person to allow them to vote the shares in question. Voting rights are defined by the corporation's charter and corporate law.
Stock certificates are generally divided into two forms: registered stock certificates and bearer stock certificates. A registered stock certificate is normally only evidence of title, and a record of the true holders of the shares will appear in the stockholder's register of the corporation.