Recognition of joint stock corporation shares as offered to the public and its consequences under article 16 of Capital Market Law

In Turkish law, the definition, characteristics, and provisions applicable to publicly held joint stock corporations are regulated in the Capital Market Law No. 6362. Under Article 3/e of the Capital Market Law, publicly held joint stock corporatons are defined as those whose shares are offered to the public or those whose shares are recognized as offered to the public, excluding those raising funds through crowdfunding platforms. The criteria for recognition of joint stock corporation shares as offered to the public are determined in Article 16 of the Capital Market Law. According to the provision, joint stock companies whose shares are traded on the stock exchange, joint stock corporations with more than five hundred shareholders and joint stock corporations whose management control is held by cooperatives, cooperative unions and cooperative central unions with minimum of five hundred shareholders are joint stock corporations whose shares are recognised as offered to the public. In this study titled "Recognition of Joint Stock Corporation Shares as Offered to the Public and Its Consequences Under Article 16 of Capital Market Law" the concepts of going public, shares being recognised as offered to the public, the obligations arising form the Capital Market Law for joint stock companies whose shares are recognised as offered to the public, publicly held companies whose shares are not traded on the stock exchange, and going private have been examined. Additionaly the relevant laws and secondary regulations have been explained and evaluated.