Disney shelves iconic stock certificates The company's stock certificates - which feature Bambi, Mickey Mouse and Pinocchio as well as an image of founder Walt Disney - have served as a collectors item and have been used to teach children about investing. However, Disney said it would stop issuing the certificates next week, due to the dwindling number of investors buying physical certificates. "Like hundreds of other companies, Disney will no longer be issuing paper stock certificates in an effort to create a more secure and efficient system," the company said, in an announcement seen as a cost-cutting measure. The announcement is expected to lead to a rush of investments in the company as collectors snap up the certificates, although they will not be the cheapest of collectibles. Disney shares has risen by a third this year and now stand at $64 each. The certificates, which date back to Disney's initial public offering in 1940, and ones signed by Walt Disney himself can exchange hands for more than $25,000. They are traded online and pitched as a Christmas gift for children as a way of educating them about share ownership.