Having seen these types of articles crop up a number of times now, I've started wondering if the issue of preferred stock vs. regular stock vs. options is somet

Having seen these types of articles crop up a number of times now, I've started wondering if the issue of preferred stock vs. regular stock vs. options is something that is specific to how stock ownership works in the US or if this also applies to other countries. In particular, I would be interested in information on stock ownership in British ltds and how things work in the EU in general. Can anybody with experience in those markets clue me in?