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A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in their respective listed markets. Instead, the company's stock is offered, owned, traded or exchanged privately, also known as "over-the-counter". Related terms are unlisted organisation, unquoted company and private equity.
Private companies are often less well-known than their publicly traded counterparts but still have major importance in the world's economy. For example, in 2008, the 441 largest private companies in the United States accounted for $1.8 trillion in revenues and employed 6.2 million people, according to Forbes.[1]
Separately, all non-government-owned companies are considered private enterprises. That meaning includes both publicly traded and privately held companies since their investors are individuals.
- ^ Reifman, Shlomo; Murphy, Andrea D., eds. (6 November 2008). "America's Largest Private Companies". Forbes. Archived from the original on 20 March 2019. Retrieved 30 January 2018.