Share capital (pamatkapitāls)

Share capital (pamatkapitāls) is the total nominal value of the shares or stocks of a Latvian capital company that its members invest in it. The minimum is EUR 2,800 for an SIA and EUR 25,000 for a joint-stock company (AS).

Since 1 July 2023 the founders pay up all the share capital fixed in the memorandum before filing the registration application. The money goes into a payment account opened in the name of the company being founded. An AS and a reduced-capital SIA may pay their capital only in money before registration.

An SIA may have less than EUR 2,800 of capital if its founders and members are at most five natural persons, every board member is a member, and each member holds shares in only one such company. Such an SIA puts at least 25% of its annual profit into a mandatory reserve, and in insolvency its members are jointly liable up to the gap between EUR 2,800 and the capital paid.

Share capital is not cash that must sit in the bank: after registration the company uses it in its business. On the balance sheet it is part of equity.