Stock Certificate Administration Software

Digital Bills & Account Statements – Why not Stock Certificates?

With digital technology, many common financial items are being changed from paper to electronic. Bills, checks, and even account statements now come in digital form. Stock certificates are no exception and companies have been rapidly moving their manually intensive method of keeping records to an automated system.

Keep Detailed Records.    You are required to maintain a stock ledger, which records all stock related events (purchases, transfers, redemptions, etc.).  For each stock event, you will need to record the:

-Stock certificate number
-Shareholder name and address
-Number of shares issued, sold or transferred
-Class of shares
-Date of purchase, sale or transfer
-Consideration given (monetary value) 

It is also a good practice for a corporation, particularly a privately held one, to keep copies of all stock certificates issued.  Your stock ledger should be kept with other important corporation records such as your articles of incorporation, bylaws and meeting minutes, as your state does have the authority to require you to produce these records for inspection should a question regarding the “legitimacy“ of the corporation be called into question.  Stockholders also have the right to examine these records when requested. 

 Instituted Policies and Procedures.  Just as important as the actual records themselves is having the appropriate policies and procedures in place to handle those records.  Therefore, take the time to create a written policy that will guide your employees in handling your stock program.  If your stock program is a traditional paper system, you should develop procedures for:

-determining where and how your records will be kept (preferably in a secure area),
-who will have access to those records,
-how those records will be filed,
-where backup copies will be kept (offsite storage often recommended),
-what type of audit procedures should be implemented,
-how often to prepare and send shareholder statements, and
-what individuals will provide record oversight (should generally have at least one company officer who takes the time to verify and sign off on the accuracy of all records). 

Administering a stock certificate program for a company with even a few employees can be overwhelming.  One mistake can be costly and embarrassing.  Fortunately, we have simplified the process by making it electronic. 

The advent of digital technology has brought with it several benefits not just for consumers, but also for businesses.  One area that has been impacted by digital technology is stock issuance.  More and more companies, both large and small are choosing to go paperless when it comes to issuing stocks, not just, because it can potentially save a tree, but because it also has several additional advantages such as:

Added security - paper certificates can be easily stolen, lost or destroyed.  Stock holders do not have to worry about losing their digital certificates as they can be tracked electronically and simply sent a monthly or quarterly statement regarding their holdings.  Furthermore, in terms of security, it is more difficult for someone to attempt to perpetrate a fraud when dealing with digital stock certificates as there are generally safeguards in place to deter such events.  The use of a password-protected stock certificate tracking system and the ability to backup important data provides peace of mind not just for the plan administrator, but stockholders as well.

Saves time and money – any stock plan administrator can tell you that processing paper stocks can be time-consuming and costly.  Not only must you print, carefully examine and then ship each individual stock certificate, but every time there is any type of change that will potentially impact stock issuance, you will have to do it all over again!   Moreover, imagine the time it takes to organize and prepare any reports needed?   

If you have issued many stock or experienced several changes throughout the report period, going through your stock ledger and paper share records can be both time consuming and nerve wracking, particularly as the chance of inadvertently making a mistake is often higher using a paper system.

An electronic stock certificate tracking program can provide you with the right tools to exercise better control over your stock program and quickly produce statements and corporate reports in an organized and timely manner.  Finally, training your employees to implement and use an electronic stock program is often an easy and painless process.   

This custom application is easy to use and efficient in its ability to track a company’s stock transactions. The program incorporates a series of forms, reports and other information that are easily accessible from a convenient Main Menu. 

Video Demonstation  

View a video demonstration of the stock certificate administration software. This video requires Adobe Flash video which is widely available online for free.  

Screen Shots  

The user can select and perform a variety of functions using the Main Menu.  All major sections can be accessed by using the icons located on the left side of the panel.  By click on one of the buttons, the user can access the forms available within that particular section.  Section Menus available from the Main Menu include the: 

Companies Menu - add, edit or delete company information.  View Screen Shots.

Stockholders Menu - add, edit or delete stockholder information.  View Screen Shots.

Certificates Menu - add, edit or delete certificate information.  View Screen Shots.

View Menu -  view all companies, stockholders and certificates information at once.  Select a company to view and then choose the stockholder to see certificate information specific to that stockholder.  View Screen Shots.

Reports Menu -  print various reports available in Stock Certificate Administration.  View Screen Shots.

Administration Menu–includes a calendar and pop up calculator are available to the user.  View Screen Shots. 

Bonus Menu – access special bonus material such as the How to Administer Corporate Stock Certificates eBook. View Screen Shots.

 

Some of our feedback, but try it yourself using our FREE trial:

We only have 9 employees but you would be surprised at the amount of paperwork that you have to do with administering a stock certificate program - this program saved me a lot of time - thanks Peak Strategy.  Julie Cameron, Applied Technologies

While we believe digital stock certificate administration is the future, we also realize some people want to slowly transfer over the paperless environment or want to maintain physical records of some transactions.  We have therefore bundled our most popular stock certificate administrative forms.  Sold individually, these products retail for over $175. Each of the documents can be downloaded, customized and used instantly through you own word processing program.  This package includes:

10 stock administrative forms

Affidavit for lost, stolen, destroyed stock certificate
Assignment of a stock certificate
Assignment and transfer of a stock certificate
Stock purchase agreement example 1
Stock purchase agreement example 2
Stock purchase agreement example 3
Stock agreement – maintaining the continuity of corporate ownership
Stock agreement – between two corporations
Stock transfer ledger
Stock issuance journal

While some firms enjoy the benefits of going totally paperless, others feel there is a benefit to giving an employee a physical certificate which is recorded in the stock administration program.  For those companies, we offer a FREE stock certificate of your choice.  These certificates can be downloaded and customized immediately (up to a $26 value).  View http://www.4expertise.com/corporate_stock_certificates.html
for a full listing of all of our certificates available. 

With the purchase of the program you will receive an ebook on How to Administer Corporate Stock Certificates for FREE! We have talked with industry specialists and trade groups to provide you one of the most comprehensive resources available on administering your stock certificate program.  Whether you have an existing program or are issuing shares for the first time, this book will provide you with best practices, tips and tools that will help you design and administer your company’s stock certificates. 

Introduction
Articles of Incorporation
Stockholder’s Rights & Privileges
Stock Types
To Par or Not to Par
Issuing Stocks
To Print or Not to Print
Administrating Certain Stock Events
    Redeeming
    Cancellation
    Lost, Stolen or Destroyed
    Conclusion
Appendix A: Websites for Secretary of State’s Office
Appendix B: Corporate Stock Language
Appendix C:  Affidavit for Lost, Stolen, Destroyed Stock Certificate
Appendix D:  Glossary of Stock Terms

You don’t have to make a decision today, just try our FREE trial.  The trial software limits your ability to add employees and companies.  However, most of the functionality remains the same as the purchased version so you can view the types of reports, statements and the robust features of the system.  If you have some additional questions, you may want to view the software's FAQ.

You have nothing to lose! Download your FREE trial or purchase the full version today start on your path to a successful stock certificate management program.