Shareholder Register

What is a Shareholder Register?

Part of your company documentation, a shareholder register is a list of individuals and or corporate entities that own your company’s shares. It lists each holder of an equity interest in the company along with their important details; for example:

• Name
• Address
• Contact details
• Shares held 
• Amount paid to acquire the shares
• Date of first entry to the register
• Capital calls outstanding
• Dividend payments owing

A shareholder register is also called a Capitalization Table, or Cap Table, if your company is a start-up or an early-stage venture.

How to create a shareholder register

Your shareholder register should include:

• The name and contact details of shareholders
• The number and category of shares held by respective shareholders
• The amount paid to acquire the shares
• Important dates, such as purchase of shares, cancellation of shares and transfer of shares

The shareholder register contains information required as per the by-laws of your company, local as well as potentially offshore jurisdictions. It is considered a proprietary document, accessible only to certified employees of your company, other shareholders, or third-party vendors who manage the register.

Why are Shareholder Registers important for business today?

Having an up-to-date shareholder register provides benefits for your company including:

• The ability to track the number, owners and value of the total shares issued
• The ability to monitor share splits, consolidations, redemptions, cancellations, conversions and issuance of new shares
• The ability to provide an accurate picture of the company in formal presentations
• The ability to meet regulatory requirements for disclosing information about your company’s ownership

Why are Shareholder Register important for an event tomorrow?

A compliant and updated shareholder register is key for your company, especially while conducting transactions with other businesses because it:

• Acts as a go-to document providing information on the current status of share ownership
• Accelerates decision-making for various events, such as new investments, by assessing information on availability and value of shares
• Provides a rational valuation of your company in a concise document, which is essential for investments

Pros of addressing Shareholder Register

• Accelerates decision-making for transactions
• Ensures regulatory compliance and prevents legal penalties
• Provides transparency for the tracking of share ownership and transfer

Cons of not addressing this topic

• Leads to delays in deal closures due to the lack or absence of share ownership information
• Makes it difficult to track share ownership, transfer or equity scenarios in the case of management changes or M&A
• Adds significant compliance and regulatory burdens