What is a requirement for a company to repurchase its shares?

A fundamental requirement for a company to repurchase its shares is that the shares must be fully paid. This means that the shareholders have paid the full price of the shares at the time of issuance. If the shares are not fully paid, the company could be impermissibly returning unpaid capital to shareholders, which can lead to significant legal and financial issues, including potential liability to creditors.

In many legal systems, a company is restricted from repurchasing shares until the obligations tied to those shares, such as payment, have been fulfilled. This principle helps ensure that companies maintain sufficient capital to support their operations and protect creditors' interests, as any share repurchase is typically funded by available profits or reserves that have been earned or accrued.

The other options do not reflect legal requirements related to share repurchase. For instance, while the existence of redeemable shares can facilitate share buybacks, it is not a strict requirement. Partially paid shares, by definition, cannot be repurchased because that would leave the company with unfulfilled financial obligations. Lastly, restrictions in the corporate articles or bylaws might limit share repurchase activities, but they do not serve as a requirement for the action to occur.