I'm replying a bit late to this... but what you say is true in both cases. Ownership doesn't entail doing whatever you like. It's the same with many things. You

I'm replying a bit late to this... but what you say is true in both cases. Ownership doesn't entail doing whatever you like. It's the same with many things. You may own a mortgage-free house, but you still need to pay property tax; there are restrictions on what you can do within that house (not least criminal law); etc. But this doesn't affect the argument. In fact, it looks as though you agree with my suggestion, which is that being owed money (on a full-recourse basis) by Bob has a very strong resemblance to being a shareholder in Bob.