Companies Act 1993

Shares and debentures - Distributions to shareholders

55: Shareholder discounts

You could also call this:

“Rules for offering special deals to company owners”

If you own part of a company, the people in charge (called the board) can decide to give you and other owners special deals on things the company sells or does. This is called a shareholder discount.

Before the board can offer these discounts, they need to agree that the deals are fair for everyone involved - the company and all the owners. They also need to make sure that all owners, or all owners of the same type, can get the same deals.

The board can only approve or keep offering these discounts if they’re sure the company has enough money to pay its bills. This is called passing the solvency test.

When you use one of these approved discounts, it’s not counted as the company giving you money or stuff (which is called a distribution) in most cases.

But there’s one situation where using a discount might be treated like the company is giving you money. This happens if the board approved the discount deal or offered you the discount when they weren’t sure the company could pay its bills. If this happens, the rules in section 56 will apply to your discount, just like it was money the company wasn’t supposed to give you.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM320175.

Topics:
Business > Industry rules
Business > Fair trading
Money and consumer rights > Consumer protection

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Part 6 Shares and debentures
Distributions to shareholders

55Shareholder discounts

  1. The board of a company may resolve that the company offer shareholders discounts in respect of some or all of the goods sold or services provided by the company.

  2. The board may approve a discount scheme under subsection (1) only if it has previously resolved that the proposed discounts are—

  3. fair and reasonable to the company and to all shareholders; and
    1. to be available to all shareholders or all shareholders of the same class on the same terms.
      1. A discount scheme may not be approved or continued by the board unless it is satisfied on reasonable grounds that the company satisfies the solvency test.

      2. Subject to subsection (5), a discount accepted by a shareholder under a discount scheme approved under this section is not a distribution for the purposes of this Act.

      3. Where—

      4. a discount is accepted by a shareholder under a scheme approved or continued by the board; and
        1. at the time the scheme was approved or the discount was offered, the board ceased to be satisfied on reasonable grounds that the company would satisfy the solvency test,—
          1. the provisions of section 56 shall apply in relation to the discount with such modifications as may be necessary as if the discount were a distribution that is deemed not to have been authorised.