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If they can finance the purchase (at an arms-length price), they can already buy the company; no law change is needed. The idea already exists and does not nee
by sokoloff 2y ago
If they can finance the purchase (at an arms-length price), they can already buy the company; no law change is needed.
The idea already exists and does not need to be legislated into existence: it’s a leveraged buyout (LBO).
A law change is only needed if you want to force a sale at a lower price than the current owner(s) will accept. In other words, if you want to forcibly take the company from them for less than the price they are willing to accept, so basically seize part of the value of private property and give it to other private people. I agree that would be unpopular.
- hkt 2y agoNot so: you're thinking of companies that are traded in public. I'm saying even private companies should be able to bought by their employees, at the instigation of the employees rather than the owners, and that this should apply to companies large or small. It may still be an LBO and would still be at market price, but it'd be unappealing to say the least for owners. It'd still be beneficial.
- sokoloff 2y agoIf it’s bought at a price that the owners voluntarily accept, they’ll be fine with it (by definition), whether previously publicly traded or privately held.
- hkt 2y agoNo, the idea is that a formula would apply. The reliance on voluntarily handing over from the founders is specifically what a legislative change would alter. That's the whole point of what I'm saying.
- sokoloff 2y agoThat's a fine idea, but it's definitely not what "at market price" means, so you can probably understand the confusion in this thread.