Question
I am trying to sort out a series of US stock certificates that I believe are part of a boiler room fraud scam: is there a register of shares or companies that i can access to quickly ascertain if these are worthless?Answer
If the stocks concerned are traded on a mainstream stock market then getting their value should be as easy as a quick search on the web - sites such as google or yahoo finance should display current trading prices.
But if they're listed on an obscure stock exchange then getting a share price could prove harder. I'd start by checking the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) EDGAR database, where all listed companies must regularly file certain documents. It won't give you a share price, but should confirm whether the company still exists and on what exchange it's listed. You could then contact that stock exchange for further details.
If the company is not listed on an exchange then getting hold of a price might prove nigh on impossible, because this depends on finding interested buyers and seeing what price they'll offer. It's also far harder to get access to US company information and accounts than in the UK because companies are incorporated at a state level in the US, I don't believe there's a single equivalent of Companies House. If you can determine which state the companies were incorporated in you can then potentially get more information from the state concerned, there's a list of links on the Companies House website.
Good luck and I hope the shares are worth something.
I am trying to sort out a series of US stock certificates that I believe are part of a boiler room fraud scam: is there a register of shares or companies that i can access to quickly ascertain if these are worthless?Answer
If the stocks concerned are traded on a mainstream stock market then getting their value should be as easy as a quick search on the web - sites such as google or yahoo finance should display current trading prices.
But if they're listed on an obscure stock exchange then getting a share price could prove harder. I'd start by checking the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) EDGAR database, where all listed companies must regularly file certain documents. It won't give you a share price, but should confirm whether the company still exists and on what exchange it's listed. You could then contact that stock exchange for further details.
If the company is not listed on an exchange then getting hold of a price might prove nigh on impossible, because this depends on finding interested buyers and seeing what price they'll offer. It's also far harder to get access to US company information and accounts than in the UK because companies are incorporated at a state level in the US, I don't believe there's a single equivalent of Companies House. If you can determine which state the companies were incorporated in you can then potentially get more information from the state concerned, there's a list of links on the Companies House website.
Good luck and I hope the shares are worth something.
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