A | B | C | D | E | F | G | I | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | V | W

Scrip Issue: accumulated profits which are converted into issued shares. The existing members are given them, for example one bonus share may be given for every five already held. Also known as capitalisation or bonus issue.

Seal: the company´s signature. It is a device that leaves the company´s individual impression on documents such as share certificates, deeds, etc.

Secretary: the name of the person responsible for maintaining company records and minutes of board meetings. Every company must have a named company secretary who can be a person or another company. The secretary may be a Director but not the sole Director .

Share Capital: the "money" put up by the members of a company to finance it. Authorised share capital is the amount they are legally entitled to put up. Issued share capital is the amount they have actually put up.

Share Certificate: written and executed instrument showing who holds title to a particular share or series of shares.

Share Capital: the part of the capital of a company held by a member (shareholder). Shares may be numbered and are issued as units of definite face value; shareholders are not always called on to pay the full face value of their shares, though they bind themselves to do so.

Shareholder: a holder of one or more shares in the capital of a company. These are the owners of the company. Shareholders can be people or other companies or businesses. Companies House uses the more official term "member".

Shareholders Funds: take Current Liabilities and Long Term, Liabilities FROM Total Assets to establish what is left, and this residue belongs to the owners.

SIC Code: a US Standard Industrial Classification code. An aid to marketing applications by identifying the subject business activities as a code.

Special Resolution: most company business is decided by voting on special resolutions for which 75 per cent of the members present (or proxies) must be in favour.

Stamp Duty: the tax payable on documents, generally at 0.5 per cent. Share transfers.

Statutory Accounts: the accounts produced each year which must be audited and comply with company law.

Statutory Books: the books which record details of members, directors, company secretary, etc. – the records that a company must keep as required by law. Changes must in many cases be notified to Companies House. The records should normally be kept at the company´s registered office and are available to the public for inspection.

Stock: goods owned by the company, usually raw material for the manufacturing process. Stock is a current asset, and a means of dividing up the capital of a company into intermediate amounts. Shares can only be £1, 50p, 25p but stock-holders can own odd amounts like £1500.83 work of stock if they so wish.

Striking Off: a company may be struck off the Companies Register if it fails to submit the necessary returns or if the members request the Registrar to do so. The process of removing a company from the Companies Register as held at Companies House. This can either be requested by the company itself, or initiated by Companies House themselves. The most common cause is non-filing of accounts and lack of response from mail sent by Companies House.

Subscriber: the person who signs the memorandum of association and is issued the first shares in a new company.