Securities acquired in unregistered, private sales from the issuer or its affiliate, through employee stock benefit plans, or as compensation for professional services are generally classified as restricted securities and are subject to resale limitations. These securities typically bear a “restrictive” legend clearly stating that they may not be resold in the public marketplace unless the sale is exempt from the SEC’s registration requirements.
Even if such securities subsequently meet the SEC Rules for public sale, they still cannot be sold to the public until the legend is removed. Only a transfer agent can remove a restrictive legend and this will generally require issuer consent and an opinion letter to the transfer agent. If you want to remove the restrictive legend, you should contact the company that issued the securities or their transfer agent to ask about the procedures and paperwork for removing a legend.
As this is a specialized service for which IBKR does not offer assistance, we recommend that you consult an attorney who specializes in securities law to remove a legend.