A partner can not have zero percent ownership. Doesn't matter if that partner is a living person, or another business such as a holding company. If the holding company has the minimum required 1% ownership, then one of the other two partners must have 49% ownership. I don't know if you can give the holding company 1% ownership and then the other two partners 49.5% ownership. I would expect you to be able to do that.
But if the holding company does not have more than zero percent ownership, then the holding company is just flat out not an owner in the business at all, and therefore is not entitled to any distributions or earnings of the business.
