If you established your business under a company structure as part of a business set-up process there would have been shares issued, so you probably own shares in your company.

Hey that's no big deal!

Not a big deal at all as the focus is on your new business and building it.

The shares are just something necessary as part of the set up process and invariably you may not have even been issued with your share certificates.

If this is you, it might be an idea to have another think about it, because the beneficial ownership of the company and the business rests with the shareholders.

All of this is fine and dandy while the founding shareholders are the ones that retain ownership of the company ... however the moment there is any changes in the business the issue of who holds the shares becomes important.

The sting in the tail is change

Change can occur because you want to sell or issue some shares to someone else, or it may be unplanned as a result of events like illness, death or divorce.

In any of those scenarios you will quickly want to know who owns what shares, who holds the majority interest, if there are different share classes on issue and what rights are attached to those share classes.

It will also be important to understand what the constitution of the company says about various shareholder rights if new shares are being issued.

Any change in your equity structure could have tax effects. The key is to know what those are in advance of any transaction and to make any changes in the most tax-effective way.

Taxation issues relating to such things as Capital Gains Tax, the market valuation of the share at the time of acquiring them and the value now, and understanding possible ramifications from the "value shifting provisions" need to be clearly understood.

The valuation method that is used needs to be appropriate for your business and industry sector, and it needs to comply with professional standards.

There are no shortcuts and you should seek advice on any transactions in advance.

In short and very importantly, you need to know exactly how your company is structured and what the rights of the various shareholders are as set out in the constitution and shareholders agreements.