See: Public. See: Securities Exchange Act of 1934. See: Securities Act Of 1933.
When a company is public, the public can...invest in it. So they get a standard set of reports. The company is held to a high standard of accounting. To a high level of professional conduct. Public.
Be sure you include the "L" in there when you write about it.
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Finance: What is the Difference Between ...6 Views
finance a la shmoop - what's the difference between a private company and
a public company? one word- regulation. well private companies have virtually
none. that is they are only quote regulated unquote by the contracts that [chains fall off building]
are passed among the key parties. I agree to invest such and such amount of money
to buy this many shares- and outlining the contract here in runs what happens
to that money given various outcomes. well private companies are usually
funded and covered by the wealthy. and the government feels that the wealthy
can afford their own damn lawyers that they have enough education to know that
they need lawyers ,and while they're on their own. but in the case of public
companies things are different the government feels like it owes protection
to Jo Plummer sixpack who invests his hard-earned 3 grand a year in savings in
coca-cola stock. coke arguably the most public of public companies lives under [Coca Cola shares and price pictured on a website]
all kinds of rules. disclosures of operations disclosures of finances and
disclosures of governance and CEO compensation or bottling plant problems
in South Paulo or even that lawsuit over the carbonated swimming pool boondoggle
in Nairobi. why so much paperwork and disclosure bureaucracy? well the
government feels that if they require all these notices from coke then Joe
plumber 6-pack is somehow protected as if Joe ever read those coca-cola
document disclosure statements. yeah pretty much never. would Joe understand
them even if he did read them? well probably not so why bother with them? in [man sits behind tall stacks of paperwork]
theory it's just meant to be an added layer of protection for stockholders
just in case Joe decides to take a shmoop financial literacy course someday and
becomes a Rain Man level genius with you know the digits. of course on the other
hand there are a lot of government people who need employees and coke pays
lots and lots of fees for all of that disclosing, so as usual you know follow
the money. [man walks down yellow brick road littered with money] oh yeah.
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