What does "placing" or "to place" mean in a corporate context?

Question

I overheard someone talking about "placing the company" the other day and it'd be quite interesting to know whether it's "placing it under administration" or "placing shares" - is either possible?

Answer 1

A company when it has exhausted all its efforts to get financing form the normal souces either to expand, invest or to pay outstanding debts, it may place an amount of shares of the company to be sold to interested investors and use the proceeds for its working capital or to pay off its debts. It has to seek shareholders approval in an extra ordinary general meeting of shareholders.

Answer 2

When a public company makes a share issue, instead of offering all of these to the general public some clients may agree in advance to take blocks of stock. This is a 'placing' and will generally encourage the issue to be taken up as it assumed that an investor taking a large bock of shares is competent and well  informed.

When a company is unable to pay its debts as they fall due but is nevertheless considered a viable concern, the directors, members or creditors will sometimes appoint administrators to manage the company. This affords some protection to the company from creditors who may otherwise seek a winding up order. There are similarities to the US Chapter 11 reorganisation although administration is less liable to abuse by the company.