What is a record date?
The record date (avstämningsdag) is the date on which a company checks the share register to determine who its shareholders are. It decides who is entitled to a particular action — for example a dividend, subscription rights in a rights issue or the right to vote at the meeting. Whoever owns the share on the record date gets the right.
CSD companies and coupon companies
- In a CSD company (avstämningsbolag), the share register is kept by Euroclear, and the record date automatically governs who is the registered owner.
- In a coupon company (kupongbolag) — common among smaller unlisted companies — the share register is kept by the company itself, and ownership is reconciled directly against it.
Why it matters to you
If you buy a share just before a dividend, it is the record date that decides whether you or the seller receives the dividend. In unlisted companies, where changes of ownership can take time to register, it is especially important that the transfer has been entered in the share register before the record date.