Global shares are COMMON STOCK shares that trade in multiple currencies around the world. Introduced in 1998 with the merger of DaimlerChrysler, global shares are an alternative to American depository receipts (ADRs), which are indirect holdings of stock in a foreign company. With ADRs, a U.S. custodial bank holds the shares of stock of the foreign company and issues receipts to stock purchasers. Because ADRs are indirect holdings, they must be converted back to local shares if sold outside the United States. Also, holders of ADRs do not always have the same rights, including shareholder resolutions and sometimes voting privileges. The market for creating ADRs is dominated by J. P. Morgan, Citibank, and Bank of New York. In 1998 Bank of New York, along with Deutsche Bank, created global shares as an alternative to ADRs. Global shares were seen as part of the process linking STOCK MARKETs around the world and a way for the two banks to gain a greater share of the lucrative foreign stock-trading market. Between 1998 and 2001, only three companies— DaimlerChrysler, Celanese, and UBS Financial Services— issued global shares, while over 500 companies issued ADRs. Both ADRs and global shares offer the benefits of allowing companies to issue dollar-denominated stock to its U.S. employees, opportunities to broaden their investor base, and the use of proceeds to acquire companies in the United States. Most companies considering both alternatives have found global shares more expensive to initiate and requiring more coordination with back-office systems and regulatory agencies.