WhoOwns is a UK-focused ownership lookup guide for checking ownership, control, operation, licensing, regulation and parent-company relationships behind companies, brands, websites, financial products, media properties, football clubs and trade marks.
Start with the category below, then use the linked guides to understand which public records, registers or official sources can help verify the latest position.
Important: ownership can change. WhoOwns explains what public records, official registers and reliable sources indicate, but it is not legal, financial, tax, regulatory or investment advice. Always check the latest official register before relying on ownership information.
Choose an ownership lookup category
Choose the ownership category that best matches what you are checking.
Company ownership
Find the registered company, shareholders, persons with significant control, parent companies and group structures behind UK businesses.
Start here: Company ownership
Practical guide: UK company ownership lookup
Brand ownership
Check which company owns, operates, licenses or sits behind a brand. This is useful when the trading name is different from the legal company name.
Start here: Brand ownership database
Practical guide: Who owns this brand?
Financial product ownership
Find the bank, lender, issuer, broker, platform, investment manager or authorised firm behind a financial product or service.
Start here: Financial product ownership
Practical guide: Check if a firm is FCA authorised
Football club owners
Understand who owns or controls a football club, including club companies, holding companies, investors and governance checks.
Start here: Football club owners
League approval, ownership tests and club-company filings can help explain club control, but they do not always provide a complete public map of beneficial ownership.
Media ownership
Check the companies, publishers, broadcasters, licence holders or parent groups behind newspapers, broadcasters and media brands.
Start here: Media ownership UK
Popular guide: Who owns UK newspapers?
For media ownership, official and regulatory sources may help explain licence holders, plurality rules, public interest tests and ownership restrictions. Company filings and publisher disclosures are often still needed to understand the ownership structure.
Trade mark ownership
Find out who owns or has registered a UK trade mark. A trade mark owner is not always the same as the company selling the product or operating the brand.
Start here: Trade mark ownership UK
Practical guide: Trademark owner lookup UK
Ownership glossary
Use the glossary if you are unsure what terms such as parent company, ultimate parent, PSC, beneficial owner, licensee, subsidiary or regulator mean.
Start here: Ownership glossary
Popular ownership lookups
Use these guides if you already know what type of ownership question you need to answer.
- Company shareholder search UK
- Parent company lookup UK
- Brand parent company lookup
- Financial services parent companies
- UK bank parent companies
- Credit card issuer lookup UK
- Check if a firm is FCA authorised
- Who owns UK newspapers?
- Trademark owner lookup UK
What “owns” can mean
The word “owns” can mean different things depending on what you are checking.
A company may have a legal owner, a parent company, an ultimate parent, shareholders, subsidiaries and persons with significant control. A brand may have a brand owner, trade mark owner, licence holder, franchise operator or local trading company.
Financial products can be more complicated. A credit card, savings account, loan, app or investment platform may involve a brand, issuer, lender, broker, authorised firm, custodian, investment manager or payment network.
WhoOwns separates ownership roles wherever possible, including:
- legal owner
- parent company
- ultimate parent
- shareholder
- person with significant control
- subsidiary
- brand owner
- trade mark owner
- licensee or franchise operator
- issuer, platform operator or regulator
- publisher, broadcaster or rights holder
How we check ownership information
WhoOwns pages prioritise official and authoritative sources where possible.
For UK companies, Companies House is usually the starting point because it provides public company information including registered details, filing history, officers and company documents.
For financial services, the FCA Financial Services Register is important because it is the public record of firms, individuals and other bodies authorised by the FCA or PRA. The FCA also provides the FCA Firm Checker, which helps consumers check whether a firm is authorised and has permission to provide financial products or services.
For trade marks, the GOV.UK trade mark search service can be used to search by owner and check who owns a trade mark.
For media ownership, Ofcom’s media plurality and ownership resources can help explain rules and regulatory context.
Where official records do not show the full picture, WhoOwns may also refer to annual reports, investor relations pages, stock exchange announcements, company websites, regulatory filings, official press releases and reputable news reporting.
What public records may not show
Public records are useful, but they have limits.
Ownership can change after a filing date. Company records may lag behind a sale, restructuring or change of control. Some private-company structures are complex. Overseas entities, nominee arrangements, funds, trusts and investment structures can make beneficial ownership harder to identify from public information alone.
A customer-facing brand may also be a trading name rather than the legal company. A product may be marketed by one business but provided by another authorised firm. A trade mark may sit in an intellectual-property holding company rather than the operating company.
For that reason, WhoOwns pages should be used as practical ownership guides, not as legal or regulatory determinations.
FAQs
What is WhoOwns?
WhoOwns is a UK-focused ownership lookup site. It helps explain ownership, control, operation, licensing, regulation and parent-company links behind companies, brands, financial products, media properties, football clubs, trade marks and related entities.
Is a parent company the same as the legal owner?
Not always. The legal owner may be the company that directly owns an asset or operates a business, while a parent company may control that company through a wider group structure.
Is a brand owner always the same as the company selling the product?
No. A brand may be owned by one company, operated by another, licensed to a third party, or registered as a trade mark by a separate group company.
How do I check who owns a UK company?
Start with Companies House records. Check the company profile, filing history, officers, persons with significant control and confirmation statements.
How do I check if a financial firm is authorised?
Use the FCA Register and check the exact legal name, trading names, permissions and status before relying on a financial brand.
Can ownership information change?
Yes. Companies can be bought, sold, renamed, restructured or dissolved. Brands can be licensed, trade marks can be assigned, and financial products can move between providers.
Not sure where to start?
Begin with company ownership if you are checking a registered business, brand ownership if you are checking a trading name, or financial product ownership if money, lending, banking, insurance or investments are involved.