The standard legal designation of a company which has offered shares to the general public and has limited liability. A Public Limited Company's stock can be acquired by anyone and holders are only limited to potentially lose the amount paid for the shares. It is a legal form more commonly used in the U.K. Two or more people are required to form such a company, assuming it has a lawful purpose. |||A limited company grants limited liability to its owners and management. Being a public company allows a firm to sell shares to investors this is benificial in raising capital. Only Public Limited Companies may be listed on the London Stock Exchange and will have the suffix PLC on their ticker symbol. For example, British Petroleum has the ticker BP PLC. Other requirements include: It must be registered as a public company, it must have at least £50.000 or ¬65,000 of authorized share capital.