Bering Straits Native Corporation is owned by more than 8,000 Alaska Native shareholders. These include original shareholders, heirs and gift recipients residing inside and outside Alaska. BSNC shareholders who are Alaska Native are eligible to vote for the Board of Directors or on other advisory matters that come to the shareholders for a vote at the Annual Meeting.

BSNC shareholders who are Alaska Native are eligible to vote for the board of directors and on other advisory matters that come to the annual meeting. Please be sure to participate in person or through voting.

It is important that shareholder names and addresses are current to ensure you receive dividends in a timely manner. At-large shareholders are entitled to annual 7(j) distributions.

The BSNC Beringia Settlement Trust now provides shareholder bereavement assistance in the amount of $2,500 to help defray the cost of funeral expenses for an original BSNC shareholder, a lineal descendant of an original BSNC shareholder, or the spouse of a living original BSNC shareholder. The deadline for filing for bereavement assistance is within three months of the date of death.

Under the 1991 Amendments to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et. seq.), shareholders may give stock to a person who is their child, grandchild, greatgrandchild, niece, nephew, brother or sister and who also is a Native or descendent of a Native. H.R. 3157 “The Alaska Land Status Technical Corrections Act of 1992,” allows for gift of stock to siblings. The law defines a Native as a person who is at least one-fourth degree Alaska Indian, Eskimo, Aleut blood, or any combination; a descendant of a Native is a lineal descendant (child, grandchild, great-grandchild, etc.) of a Native or an adoptee of a Native or descendant of a Native who is adopted before the age of 18.

Once your gift is completed on the corporate books, the recipient of your shares will own and have all the stock rights for those shares, including the right to vote the shares at the shareholder meetings, to receive dividends and distributions on the shares, to bequeath the shares upon death, or to give the shares to a relative. Once gifting is completed, you
will have no rights with respect to the shares you gave away.

If you are interested in the gift process, please contact:
BSNC Shareholder Department
P.O. Box 1008
Nome, AK 99762

Please note that if you are a shareholder of the village corporations of Sitnasuak, Unalakleet, Stebbins or Shishmaref and you wish to gift at the village level, you must contact the respective village corporation to request information and forms directly from them.