Keeping a PSC and Beneficial Ownership Register

Regulators increasingly want to know who really owns and controls a company. In the UK this is the register of People with Significant Control (PSC), kept for Companies House. The US and South Africa have their own beneficial ownership requirements too.

Why It Matters

Ownership information isn’t just paperwork. Banks, investors and regulators rely on it, and getting it wrong can delay a bank account, a funding round or a filing.

What a good register records

• Each director, member and shareholder
• How many shares each person holds, and of which class
• When they were appointed or acquired their shares
• Whether they count as a PSC or beneficial owner

Keeping It Current

The hardest part is remembering to update the register when something changes: a new shareholder, a share transfer or a director stepping down. Make updates part of the same process as the change itself, not a job for later.

“An ownership register is only useful if it’s up to date on the day someone asks for it.”

BizHub keeps separate Members and Shareholders registers for each company, with a cap table showing ownership percentages and a flag for PSCs and beneficial owners. The exact rules differ by country, so check current guidance from Companies House, the relevant US authority or CIPC.