How are stocks traded on multiple exchanges

Question

How does it work, when one company trades on two or more stock exchanges, in different countries? Are the shares bought on the primary and secondary exchanges equivalent ? Can I buy on one, and sell on another ? What difference is there for me whether I buy on one or the other ?

Lets take hypothetical example: company ABC, based in UK, and trading on exchanges in London and New York. If I buy in New York, do I get dividends in USD or GBP ? Do I pay any currency conversion fees ?

Another example: Newcrest Mining trades officially only on Australian Stock Exchange (ASX). But I can also buy Newcrest Mining on BX Swiss, a stock exchange in Switzerland, traded in CHF. If my trading account is also denominated in Swiss Francs (CHF), and I want to minimize currency conversions, is it better to buy on ASX (in AUD) or BX Swiss (in CHF)? In which currency do I get my dividends ?

If buying on BX Swiss, do I get any disadvantage, such as lower liquidity?

Answer 1

Companies can list their stock on multiple exchanges.

Sometimes the securities traded are the same (they have the same ISIN number) but the exchange may trade the securities with a different currency.

Alternatively Automated Depository Receipts (ADRs) may be listed. This is where a bank may hold some of the overseas shares in deposit, and list the receipts of these shares on the local exchange. The bank sponsoring the ADR may redeem the receipts for the overseas shares for a conversion fee on request.

Where a security is multiply listed, the company will typically pay their dividends in their base currency and convert the dividends to the currency of the foreign exchange listings at the prevailing rate for the foreign shareholders when the dividend is paid.