What does "placing shares" or "shares placement" mean?

Question

What does "placing shares" or "shares placement" mean?

Answer 1

The act of marketing new securities to the private or public sector.

This term is mainly used in conjunction with private placement, when stocks are directly sold to institutional investors.

Used in pre-selling shares before an IPO, or as collateral for financing or to fund a merger, as examples.

Answer 2

Diffrentiates between an offer or public offer of shares to raise money. Either a primary or secondary placing(shares already quoted).A placing need not go to existing shareholders but either a broker's clients, select institutions or one person/company. In the UK a secondary placing can only happen in non fully listed companies, otherwise existing shareholders must have the same rights as new investors. Where the existing shareholders don't have the same rights it is called disenfranchised