In the event of bankruptcy, owners of joint-stock companies lose
Answer Details
When a joint-stock company goes bankrupt, the owners or shareholders of the company only lose the capital they invested in that company. This is because joint-stock companies have a feature known as **limited liability**.
Limited liability means that shareholders are only responsible for losses up to the amount of money they invested in purchasing shares of the company. Therefore, in a bankruptcy situation, they **lose only the capital invested**, and their personal or private assets (like cars, houses, or bank accounts) are protected and not at risk. They are not liable beyond their shareholding, hence they do not lose their private properties or any future dividends they were expecting.
This feature of limited liability is very important as it encourages people to invest in joint-stock companies without the fear of losing their personal wealth.