Share

A share is a security issued by a joint-stock company that represents a portion of its share capital. It is the most important of the equity instruments used to transfer capital. Shares are divided into: registered shares, bearer shares, ordinary shares and preference shares.

The sale or contribution of shares between related entities is a controlled transaction that must be valued on arm's length terms. For holdings in non-listed companies, the absence of quoted prices means that valuation has to be carried out using income-based or asset-based methods. See contribution in kind.