5 – The object of the contract when a share is sold
The subject matter of the sale is the seller’s undivided interest in the company’s assets; the share certificate is merely documentary proof of that entitlement.
6 – Preferred shares
It is not permissible to issue preferred shares that carry financial features guaranteeing the capital, assuring a fixed return, or granting priority in liquidation or in the distribution of profits.
However, some shares may be given special procedural or managerial characteristics.
7 – Interest-based dealings in shares
(a) It is forbidden to purchase a share with an interest-bearing loan supplied by a broker or anyone else in exchange for pledging the share, for this combines usury with securing it by collateral—both expressly prohibited, and the texts curse the one who consumes interest, the one who pays it, the scribe, and the two witnesses.
(b) It is likewise impermissible to sell a share that the seller does not own, relying instead on the broker’s promise to lend him the share at the delivery date; this is a sale of what the seller does not possess. The prohibition is even stronger when the arrangement stipulates that the price be handed to the broker so that he may deposit it at interest and profit from the loan.
8 – Selling or pledging a share
A share may be sold or pledged subject to the company’s bylaws—for example, if the bylaws allow unrestricted sales or if they condition the sale on honoring the existing shareholders’ right of first refusal. Likewise, a pledge is valid when the bylaws permit partners to pledge their undivided shares.
9 – Issuing shares with an issuance surcharge
Adding a specified percentage to the share price to cover issuance expenses raises no objection