Shares offer the company the opportunity to bind important contractual partners, i.e. founders, employees or major investors, to the company in the medium to long term. Shareholders participate in the company’s success through share price increases, dividend distributions, capital and/or par value reductions, provided these are utilised for a payout. At the same time, the shares can be designed with voting rights for the shareholders’ meeting. In Switzerland, in addition to shares, there are also so-called participation certificates, which are equivalent to shares but by law have no voting rights.