Elsewhere, canny dealing by dynasties such as Sweden's Wallenbergs and Italy's Agnellis has played a bigger role. Until recently, it was difficult to know how closely held Europe's companies were, because disclosure standards were lax. Thanks to new and tougher standards, as well as some new research, the picture is now becoming clearer. In France and Germany, the vast majority of tradable companies are protected by a majority voting block or a blocking minority. As often as not, power has come cheap.
Small investors are usually willing to roll over if given an incentive.
Many companies still issue non-voting equity, which allows them to raise new money without disturbing the old balance of power. Ownership v control The gap between ownership and power can be huge. Swedish companies, for example, can issue shares with up to 1,000 times the voting power of ordinary shares. Rules in the Netherlands can be even more exotic. These structural quirks matter for several reasons.