Company Entities

Companies represent corporate entities registered with ASIC (Australian Securities and Investments Commission). They can own shares in other companies, hold assets, act as trustees, and have directors and shareholders.

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Required Fields

Every company must have:

• Legal Name: The company's registered name (up to 200 characters)

That's it! All other fields are optional, allowing you to start with minimal information and add details as needed.

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Optional Fields

Basic Information

• Trading Name: Business name if different from legal name (up to 200 characters)
• ACN (Australian Company Number): 9-digit unique identifier
• ABN (Australian Business Number): 11-digit business identifier
• Incorporation Date: When the company was registered
• Jurisdiction: Where the company is registered (e.g., "Victoria", "NSW")
• Purpose: Description of business activities (up to 1,000 characters)
• Notes: Additional information (up to 5,000 characters)

ASIC Classification

Australian companies are classified using three dimensions:

1. Company Type (Structure)

Default: Proprietary

2. Company Class (Liability)

Default: Limited by Shares

3. Special Purpose (Optional)

Default: None

Status

Default: Active

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Relationship Capabilities

Companies can participate in these relationships:

As Owner/Holder

• Shareholder → Company (with percentage and share class)
• Unitholder → Unit Trust (with percentage)
• Partner → Partnership (with percentage interest)
• Ownership → Asset (with percentage and ownership method)

As Fiduciary

• Trustee → Trust or SMSF (subject to SMSF compliance rules)
• Appointor → Trust

As Beneficiary

• Beneficiary → Trust

Structure

• Director ← Individual (individuals serve as directors OF companies)

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Examples

Standard Trading Company

• Smith Holdings Pty Ltd
• ACN: 123 456 789
• Type: Proprietary
• Class: Limited by Shares
• Status: Active
• Has 2 directors (John Smith, Sarah Johnson)
• 100% owned by Smith Family Trust

Passive Holding Company

• Investment Co Pty Ltd
• ACN: 987 654 321
• Type: Proprietary
• Class: Limited by Shares
• Status: Passive (not trading)
• Owns shares in 3 operating companies
• Owned by multiple family members

Corporate Trustee

• Smith Superannuation Pty Ltd
• ACN: 111 222 333
• Type: Proprietary
• Class: Limited by Shares
• Special Purpose: Superannuation Trustee
• Status: Active
• Trustee for Smith Family SMSF
• Directors: John Smith, Sarah Smith

Foreign Company

• GlobalTech Australia Pty Ltd
• Type: Foreign
• Class: Limited by Shares
• Status: Active
• Registered branch of overseas parent

Deregistered Entity

• Old Trading Co
• ACN: 555 666 777
• Status: Deregistered
• Historical entity (no longer trading)

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Share Capital (Optional)

Companies can optionally track share classes:

• Classes: Array of share class names (e.g., "Ordinary", "Preference")
• Untracked Shares: Record of issued shares not allocated to specific shareholders

Note: Detailed share register management is handled through shareholder relationships. The share capital field provides summary information only.

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Implementation Notes

Code vs Story Differences

1. ASIC Classification System: Fully implemented three-dimensional classification (Type/Class/Special Purpose) - not detailed in original MVP stories
2. Status Enum: Includes "Proposed" status for planning stages (added beyond original specifications)
3. Share Capital Tracking: Optional share class tracking added (not in original entity specifications)
4. Trading Name: Added as separate field (not in original MVP)
5. Jurisdiction Field: Added for registration location tracking (not specified in stories)

Validation Rules

• ACN must be exactly 9 digits (digits only, no spaces or hyphens)
• ABN must be exactly 11 digits (digits only, no spaces or hyphens)
• Both ACN and ABN are clearable (can be set back to empty)
• Legal name is the only truly required field

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Related Topics

• Creating Relationships
• Individuals
• Trusts
• SMSFs
• Assets