Affiliate

Filed Under »
Dictionary Says

Definition of 'Affiliate'

A type of inter-company relationship in which one of the companies owns less than a majority of the other company's stock, or a type of inter-company relationship in which at least two different companies are subsidiaries of a larger company.
Investopedia Says

Investopedia explains 'Affiliate'

For example, let's say BIG Corp. owns 40% of MID Corp.'s common stock and 75% of TINY Corp. In this case, MID Corp. and BIG Corp. have an affiliate relationship, and TINY Corp. is BIG Corp.'s subsidiary. 

However, note that for the purposes of filing consolidated tax returns, IRS regulations state that a parent company must possess at least 80% of a company's voting stock in order to be considered affiliated. 

Related Definitions

  • Voting Shares

    Shares that give the stockholder the right to vote on matters of corporate policy making as well as who will compose the members of the board of directors.
    Read More »
  • Subsidiary

    A company whose voting stock is more than 50% controlled by another company, usually referred to as the parent company.
    Read More »
  • Internal Revenue Service - IRS

    A United States government agency that is responsible for the collection and enforcement of taxes. The IRS was established in 1862 by President Lincoln and operates under the authority ...
    Read More »
    • Parent Company

      A company that controls other companies by owning an influential amount of voting stock or control. A parent company will typically be a larger firm which exhibits control over one or ...
      Read More »
    • Spinoff

      The creation of an independent company through the sale or distribution of new shares of an existing business/division of a parent company. A spinoff is a type of divestiture.
      Read More »
    • Majority Shareholder

      A person or entity that owns more than 50% of a company's outstanding shares. The majority shareholder is often the founder of the company, or in the case of long-established businesses, ...
      Read More »
    • Conglomerate

      A corporation that is made up of a number of different, seemingly unrelated businesses. In a conglomerate, one company owns a controlling stake in a number of smaller companies, which ...
      Read More »
    • Foreign Invested Enterprise - FIE

      Any one of a number of legal structures under which a company can participate in the foreign economy. FIEs tend to have tight government regulation at nearly every important business ...
      Read More »
    • Holdco

      An abbreviation for holding company. A holding company is a firm that is established in order to exercise control over one or more other firms. This is accomplished through the ...
      Read More »
    • Affiliate Network

      Third parties that provide a link between a publisher and a company to allow publishers the ability to find and join afilliate programs. Businesses that comprise an affiliate network can ...
      Read More »

Articles Of Interest

Partner Links