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The African Company was an English slaving company formed in 1588 at Exeter and chartered as a joint-stock company in 1618. The African Company continued to trade in slaves for the USA until 1821 when the company ceased to exist.
 Research African Company
A company is a corporate enterprise that has a legal identity separate from that of its members; it operates as one single unit, in the success of which all the members participate. An incorporated company is a legal person in its own right, able to own property and to sue and be sued in its own name. A company may have limited liability (a limited company), so that the liability of the members for the company's debts is limited.
An unlimited company is one in which the liability of the members is not limited in any way. There are various different types of company: a chartered company is one formed under Royal Charter. This was the earliest type of company to exist and they were influential in the development of both foreign trade and colonization; an example is the Hudson's Bay Company. Chartered companies, however, are now rare, unless a charter is required for prestige purposes, as it might be for a new university. A joint-stock company is a company in which the members pool their stock, trading on the basis of their joint stock. This differs from the earlier merchant corporations or regulated companies of the 14th century, in which each member traded with his own stock but agreed to obey the rules of the company. A registered company, one registered under the Companies Acts, is the most common type of company.
A company may be registered either as a public limited company or a private company. A public limited company must have a name ending with the initials ' plc' and have an authorized share capital of at least œ50,000, of which at least œ12,500 must be paid up. The company's memorandum must comply with the format in Table F of the Companies Regulations (1985). It may offer shares and securities to the public. The regulation of such companies is stricter than that of private companies. Most public companies are converted from private companies, under the re-registration procedure laid down in the Companies Act. A private company is any registered company that is not a public company. The shares of a private company may not be offered to the public for sale. The legal requirements for such a company are less strict; for example, there is no minimum issued or paid-up share capital requirement and small and medium-sized private companies need not file full accounts.
A statutory company is a company formed by special Act of parliament. These are generally public utilities that were either not nationalized (for example, certain water authorities) or that have been privatized (such as British Gas and British Telecom). Their powers and privileges depend upon the Act under which they were formed.
A joint-stock company is a company in which the members pool their stock and trade on the basis of their joint stock. This differs from the earliest type of company, the merchant corporations or regulated companies of the 14th century, in which each member traded with his own stock, subject to the rules of the company. Joint-stock companies originated in the 17th century and some still exist, although they are now rare.
Research Joint-Stock Company
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The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
©1993 - 2009 The Probert Encyclopaedia
Southampton, United Kingdom
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