Somewhere in a drawer, a safe deposit box, or a stack of inherited paperwork, there’s an envelope of engraved paper stock certificates. They might be in your name, your parents’ names, or the name of someone who passed away years ago.

Those certificates are real shares. But until they’re converted to electronic form, they’re hard to sell, hard to split among heirs, and easy to lose. Here’s how conversion works.

Step 1: Figure out what you have

Before anything else, take an inventory. For each certificate, note:

The company name and any CUSIP or certificate number
The number of shares
The name the shares are registered in — exactly as printed
The transfer agent’s name, often printed on the certificate itself

That last item matters most. Every publicly traded company uses a transfer agent — firms like Computershare, Equiniti, or Broadridge — to keep its shareholder records. The transfer agent, not the company and not a bank, converts your paper into electronic shares. If the company has merged or changed agents, the current agent can be found through the company’s investor relations page.

Step 2: Choose where the shares will live

You have two destinations:

Direct Registration (DRS): The transfer agent cancels the paper and holds the shares electronically in your name on the company’s books. You’ll get a DRS statement instead of a certificate. Good if you plan to keep the shares.
A brokerage account: You deposit the certificate with a broker, who sends it to the transfer agent for cancellation and credits the shares to your account. Good if you plan to sell, consolidate, or split shares among family members or trusts.

Either way, the paper certificate gets surrendered and cancelled — you can’t keep the certificate and have electronic shares.

Step 3: Get a Medallion signature guarantee

This is the step that surprises everyone. Before a transfer agent will re-register certificated shares, your signature on the transfer paperwork usually must be Medallion guaranteed — a special stamp from a bank or brokerage that participates in a Medallion program. The stamp is the institution’s promise that your signature is genuine, and it protects the transfer agent against fraud.

Important details:

A Medallion guarantee is not a notarization. A notary stamp will not substitute, no matter how official it looks.
You generally get one at a bank or brokerage where you already have an account, in person, with government ID.
The guarantee has value limits based on the stamp used, so for large holdings, confirm the institution’s stamp covers the value of your shares.
Do not sign the back of the certificate until you’re told to. Many transfer agents prefer a separate form called a stock power instead — signing the certificate itself, incorrectly or too early, can create real problems. Follow the agent’s instructions to the letter.

Step 4: Send it in — carefully

Assemble exactly what the transfer agent asks for: the certificate, the completed transfer form or stock power, the Medallion-guaranteed signature, and supporting documents. For shares transferred because of a death, add a certified death certificate and court documents showing the executor’s authority.

Mail it using a tracked, insured method — replacing a lost certificate requires an indemnity bond that typically costs a percentage of the shares’ value. Keep copies of everything. Processing generally takes a few weeks once the agent has a complete package; incomplete packages come back, and the clock restarts.

The situations that make it harder

The registered owner is deceased. The shares must move through the estate first; the executor handles the transfer with court documents.
The name doesn’t match. Marriage, divorce, or a name spelled differently than your ID — expect extra documentation.
The certificate is lost. The transfer agent can replace it, but you’ll need to report the loss, complete affidavits, and buy an indemnity bond.
The company no longer exists under that name. Mergers and acquisitions mean the shares may now be shares of a successor company — or, occasionally, worthless. The transfer agent (or the successor’s agent) can tell you.

A note on doing this for an estate or a parent

Converting a parent’s certificates — often as part of moving shares into trusts or splitting them between family members — involves multiple transfer agents, basis records, and signatures from several people. It’s doable, but it’s a project, not an afternoon — and one of the most common projects families hand to Transference. See our stock certificate transfer services page.

FAQ

Are old paper certificates still valid? Usually yes, if they were never surrendered or replaced. A certificate’s age doesn’t invalidate it — but only the transfer agent’s records can confirm whether the shares are still outstanding.

Can I just sell the paper certificate directly? Not practically. Brokers trade electronic shares, so conversion comes first — either to a brokerage account or to DRS, from which a sale can be arranged.

What does conversion cost? Transfer agents and brokers may charge modest processing or deposit fees, and a lost-certificate indemnity bond costs extra. The Medallion guarantee itself is often free at your own bank, though policies vary.

Have a stack of certificates and want them converted without the runaround? Call Ed Knight at Transference at 203-623-6083 for a free consultation and a written proposal within 48 hours.

Administrative support only — not legal or tax advice.