Meaning
Official record adjustment of the shareholders and their respective holdings within a company. Legal title to shares only passes when the company secretary updates the physical or digital ledger. Share register modification follows the execution of a share transfer form and the payment of any required stamp duty.
Ownership Transfer
Board approval is typically required before a name is added or removed from the list of members. This gives the company the chance to verify that the transfer complies with any existing shareholder agreements. The register is the definitive evidence of who owns the company at any point in time.
Approval Step
Only individuals listed on the register at the time of a general meeting possess the right to cast a ballot. This makes the accuracy of the record mandatory for the valid exercise of corporate power. A delay in updating the record can lead to disputes over voting rights or dividend payments.
The register also determines who must be notified of official company business such as an offer to buy the entity.
Voting Entitlement
Correcting an error on the register often requires a court order if the company does not agree to the change. This highlights the importance of the register as a legal instrument. The public can often inspect the register to see who controls the entity.
