Besloten vennootschap

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A besloten vennootschap (Dutch pronunciation: [bəˈsloːtə(ɱ) ˈvɛnoːtsxɑp], lit. "private partnership"; besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid, lit. 'closed company with limited liability', abbr. bv)^[a] or société à responsabilité limitée (SRL)^[b] is the Dutch and Belgian version of a private limited liability company. The company is owned by shareholders; the company's shares are privately registered and not freely transferable. It is the most common form of limited company in the Netherlands and Belgium.

A Dutch bv may be created by one or more individuals or legal entities, Dutch or foreign, with a minimum paid in capital of €1. A notarized deed of incorporation is executed and filed. The deed must be in Dutch. It must contain details of the incorporators, and of the initial Members of the Board, their amounts of participation and payments of initial capital. The deed also contains the Articles of Association, consisting of at least:

• the company name (which must begin or end with "bv")
• the city where the company has its registered seat
• the purpose of the company
• the issued share capital and paid-in capital
• the par value(s) of stock
• the conditions for share transfer

The authorized capital is the maximum capital that may subsequently be issued without altering the Articles of Association; it may be up to a maximum of five times the initial capital. Unlike its UK equivalent, a private company limited by shares, a bv company is not required to make its company accounts publicly available.^[1]

Contrast with the publicly traded form of company: naamloze vennootschap, which was also used in Dutch privately held companies until the introduction of the bv in 29 June 1971.

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