4 Business Relationship

subsidiary parent company holding company hold(v) stake

дочірня компанія, підконтрольна компанія, філія компанія-засновник; компанія, що володіє контрольним пакетом акцій іншої компанії холдингова компанія володіти частка (капіталу), акція

sister company conglomerate joint venture separate legal entity consortium undertake (a project) carry out

сестринська компанія конгломерат спільне підприємство окрема юридична особа консорціум розпочинати, здійснювати (проект) виконувати, здійснювати

As businesses expand they may buy shares in other companies, or join with other companies for a particular purpose. There are different relationships these companies can have with one another.

A group is a number of subsidiary companies operating under one leading company – the parent company. A subsidiary is a company half or wholly owned by another company (the parent company).

A holding company is one that holds all, or more than half of, the stakes in one or more subsidiaries. It is the leading company in a group. A holding company's relationship to its subsidiaries is that of parent company, and the subsidiaries' relationship to each other is that of sister companies.

A conglomerate is a group consisting of a lot of different companies in different businesses run as one large company.

When two or more companies decide to work together, they form a joint venture. In such cases, the two companies involved remain separate legal entities.

A consortium is a group of companies which come together to undertake a project which any one of the members cannot carry out alone.

1 Describe the types of relationships that companies can have with one another. 2 What is a group? 3 Is a subsidiary owned by another company? 4 What is a holding company? 5 What is a conglomerate? 6 Under what circumstances is a joint venture formed? 7 Why do companies unite into a consortium?

1 Match words that have a similar meaning:

consist stock separate carry out operate holding company hold decide remain

stay parent company different from make up one's mind share fulfil function be composed of own

2 The words in the box frequently occur after "company". Find combinations that mean:

1) the leading company of a group that holds all or more than half of the shares of the other companies and usually controls other companies; 2) one of two or more organizations that are part of the same group; 3) a business formed by a group of people using money provided by them all; 4) a company of which at least half the share capital is owned by another company, called a parent or holding company; 5) a company whose shares are recorded on the

main market of a stock exchange;

6) a company whose members are only responsible for its debts up to a limited amount; 7) a company that offers the same or better goods and services as another and therefore competes for the same customers.