The face value or nominal value assigned to a security at issuance, representing the minimum price at which shares can be issued and the amount repaid to bondholders at maturity. For stocks, par value is often set artificially low for legal purposes.
From Latin 'par' (equal, equivalent) and Old French 'value' (worth). The concept originated in 17th-century banking when paper money needed to specify its equivalent value in gold or silver, later applied to corporate securities.
Par value is mostly a legal fiction for stocks - Apple might set par value at $0.00001 per share even though shares trade for $150, just to satisfy state laws requiring a minimum value. For bonds, however, par value ($1000 typically) is real money - it's exactly what you get back when the bond matures!
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