(; abbreviated AG ) is a German word for a

corporation A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the State (polity), state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as ...

limited by share ownership (i.e., one which is owned by its

shareholder A shareholder (in the United States often referred to as stockholder) of corporate stock refers to an individual or legal entity (such as another corporation, a body politic, a trust or partnership) that is registered by the corporation as the ...

s) whose shares may be traded on a

stock market A stock market, equity market, or share market is the aggregation of buyers and sellers of stocks (also called shares), which represent ownership claims on businesses; these may include ''securities'' listed on a public stock exchange a ...

. The term is used in Germany, Austria, Switzerland (where it is equivalent to a '' société anonyme'' or a ''

società per azioni (; abbr. S.p.A. or spa ) is a form of corporation in law of Italy, Italy, meaning 'company with shares' (although often translated as 'joint-stock company', which may or may not be a limited liability entity). It is more or less equivalent to ...

'') and

South Tyrol South Tyrol ( , ; ; ), officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, is an autonomous administrative division, autonomous provinces of Italy, province in northern Italy. Together with Trentino, South Tyrol forms the autonomo ...

for companies incorporated there. In the United Kingdom, the equivalent term is

public limited company A public limited company (legally abbreviated to PLC or plc) is a type of public company under United Kingdom company law, some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth jurisdictions, and Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is a limited liability co ...

, and in the United States, while the terms " incorporated" or "corporation" are typically used, technically the more precise equivalent term is "

joint-stock company A joint-stock company (JSC) is a business entity in which shares of the company's stock can be bought and sold by shareholders. Each shareholder owns company stock in proportion, evidenced by their shares (certificates of ownership). Shareho ...

Meaning of the word

The German word ''Aktiengesellschaft'' is a compound noun made up of two elements: ''Aktien'' meaning an acting part or share, and ''Gesellschaft'', meaning company or society. English translations include ''share company'', or ''company limited by shares'', or

. In German, the use of the term ''Aktien'' for shares is restricted to ''Aktiengesellschaften''. Shares in other types of German companies (e.g.,

GmbH (; ) is a type of Juridical person, legal entity in German-speaking countries. It is equivalent to a (Sàrl) in the Romandy, French-speaking region of Switzerland and to a (Sagl) in the Ticino, Italian-speaking region of Switzerland. It is a ...

or a

cooperative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, coöperative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomy, autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned a ...

) are called ''Anteile'' (parts-of) rather than ''Aktien''.

Legal basis

In Germany and Austria, the legal basis of the AG is the German ''Aktiengesetz'' (abbr. AktG; "shares law") or the Austrian ''Aktiengesetz'' (abbr. AktG). Since the German commercial law (§ 19 ''Handelsgesetzbuch'') requires all corporations to specify their legal form in their name, in order to inform the public of the limits on their liability, all German (required by § 4 ''Aktiengesetz'') and Austrian stock corporations include ''Aktiengesellschaft'' or ''AG'' as part of their name, frequently as a suffix. In Switzerland, the Company Limited by Shares (''Aktiengesellschaft'' in German, ''société anonyme'' in French, ''società anonima'' in Italian, ''societad anonima'' in Romansh) is defined in Title Twenty-Six of the Code of Obligations, Article 620. Article 950 specifies that the business name must indicate the legal form.

Structure

German AGs have a "two-tiered board" structure, consisting of a supervisory board (''Aufsichtsrat'') and a management board (''Vorstand''). The supervisory board is generally controlled by shareholders, although employees may have seats, depending on the size of the company. The management board directly runs the company, but its members may be removed by the supervisory board, which also determines the management board's compensation. Some German AGs have management boards which determine their own remuneration, but that situation is now relatively uncommon. The general meeting is the supreme governing body of a Swiss company limited by shares. It elects the board of directors (''Verwaltungsrat'' in German) and the external auditors. The board of directors may appoint and dismiss persons entrusted with managing and representing the company.

Similar forms

The equivalent terms in other countries include the following, which mostly mean literally either "share company/society" or "anonymous company/society". * Argentina, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Peru, Spain, and other Spanish-speaking countries – ''

Sociedad Anónima The abbreviation S.A. or SA designates a type of limited company in certain countries, most of which have a Romance languages, Romance language as their official language and operate a derivative of the 1804, Napoleonic, civil law (legal syste ...

'' (S.A.) * Belgium (Dutch language), Netherlands – ''

Naamloze Vennootschap (; abbreviated as N.V. or NV ) or (in the French Community of Belgium) ' ('' SA'') is a type of public company defined by business law in the Netherlands, Belgium, Indonesia (where it is known as , correctly abbreviated PT and allows for pri ...

'' (N.V.) * Belgium (French language), France – '' Société Anonyme'' (S.A.) * Brazil – '' Sociedade Anônima'' (S.A. or S/A or SA) * Bulgaria – '' Акционерно дружество'' (Akcionerno druzhestvo), derived directly from the German AG * Croatia – '' dioničko društvo'' (d.d.) * Czech Republic – ''

Akciová společnost A joint-stock company (JSC) is a business entity in which shares of the company's stock can be bought and sold by shareholders. Each shareholder owns company stock in proportion, evidenced by their shares (certificates of ownership). Shareholder ...

– (a.s.) * Denmark – ''

Aktieselskab (; abbr.: A/S or a/s, ; ) is the Danish name for a stock-based corporation. An ''aktieselskab'' may be either publicly traded or private. Liability The shareholders of an ''aktieselskab'' are not liable for the debts of the company. If an ...

'' (A/S) * Estonia – '' Aktsiaselts'' (AS) * Finland – ''

Osakeyhtiö (; " stock company"), often abbreviated to Oy (), is the term for a Finnish limited company (e.g., Ltd, LLC, or GmbH). The Swedish-language term is , often abbreviated (in Finland) to Ab. The Swedish abbreviation is sometimes included, as ...

'' (Oy) * Greece – ''Ανώνυμος Εταιρεία'' (Anonymos Etaireia) (A.E., but often translated as S.A.) * Hungary – '' Részvénytársaság'' (Rt) * Indonesia – Perseroan Terbatas (PT) * Japan – ''

Kabushiki gaisha A or ''kabushiki kaisha'', commonly abbreviated K.K. or KK, is a type of defined under the Companies Act of Japan. The term is often translated as "stock company", "joint-stock company" or "stock corporation". The term ''kabushiki gaisha'' in ...

'' (K.K.), originally derived directly from the German AG (the term is based on the German) until

law reform Law reform or legal reform is the process of examining existing laws, and advocating and implementing change in a legal system, usually with the aim of enhancing justice or efficiency. Intimately related are law reform bodies or Law Commission, ...

s under the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

–led Occupation of Japan made the form similar to Illinois corporate law * Italy – ''

Società per azioni (; abbr. S.p.A. or spa ) is a form of corporation in law of Italy, Italy, meaning 'company with shares' (although often translated as 'joint-stock company', which may or may not be a limited liability entity). It is more or less equivalent to ...

'' (SpA), derived directly from the German AG * Malaysia – '' Berhad'' (Bhd) * Norway – ''

Aksjeselskap is the Norwegian term for a stock-based company. It is usually abbreviated AS, historically often written as A/S. An AS is always a limited company, i.e. the owners cannot be held liable for any debt beyond the stock capital. Public compan ...

'' (AS) * Romania – '' Societate pe acțiuni'' or "Societate anonimă" (S.A.) * Russia – '' Публичное акционерное общество'' (Publichnoe akcionernoe obschestvo) (ПАО) * Serbia – '' deoničarsko društvo'' (d.d.) and '' akcionarsko društvo'' (a.d.) * Slovakia – Akciová spoločnosť (a.s.) * Slovenia – '' Delniška družba'' (d.d.) * Sweden – ''

Aktiebolag (, " stock company") is the Swedish term for "limited company" or "corporation". When used in company names, it is abbreviated as "AB" (in Sweden), "Ab" (in Finland), or, rarely, "A/B" (dated), roughly equivalent to the abbreviations ''Corp.'', ...

'' (AB) * Turkey – '' Anonim Şirket'' (A.Ş.) * Poland – '' Spółka akcyjna'' (SA) * Portugal – '' Sociedade Anónima'' (S.A.) * United Kingdom and Ireland (English) – ''

Public limited company A public limited company (legally abbreviated to PLC or plc) is a type of public company under United Kingdom company law, some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth jurisdictions, and Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is a limited liability co ...

'' (Plc) * United Kingdom (Welsh) – ''cymdeithas cyhoeddus cyfyngedig'' (ccc)

Meaning of the word

Legal basis

Structure

Similar forms

See also

Explanatory notes

References

Further reading