Shareholder primacy, the dominant corporate governance model, faces increasing scrutiny in the context of the current climate crisis and rising social inequality. Stakeholder theory offers an alternative that promotes broader corporate accountability, but its practical impact remains limited. This paper proposes stakeholder shareholding, a novel approach that transcends the traditional shareholder-stakeholder divide by leveraging a contingent approach to property rights. Expanding share ownership to diverse stakeholders — including employees, customers, local communities, and environmental representatives, can foster a more equitable distribution of value and improve sustainability while remaining compatible with existing legal and financial structures. A vignette study provides empirical support, revealing statistically significant shifts in value allocation towards stakeholder-owners. Key challenges to stakeholder shareholding include stakeholders’ ability to pay for ownership and the competence to exercise ownership rights effectively. The paper discusses these practical implementation challenges and situates the model within the broader context of corporate governance reform and the growing ESG movement.

Keywords: Property Rights, Shareholder Primacy, Stakeholder Shareholding, Stakeholder Theory.