Industry WIKI
Digital assets and currencies
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Option-adjusted spread
Option-adjusted spread (OAS) is the yield spread which has to be added to a benchmark yield curve to discount a security's payments to match its market price, using a dynamic pricing model that accounts for embedded options. OAS is hence model-dependent. This concept can be applied to a mortgage-backed security (MBS), or another bond with embedded options, or any other interest rate deri
FinanceOriginal sin (economics)
Original sin is a term in economics literature, proposed by Barry Eichengreen, Ricardo Hausmann, and Ugo Panizza in a series of papers to refer to a situation in which "most countries are not able to borrow abroad in their domestic currency."
BankingOvernight rate
The overnight rate is generally the interest rate that large banks use to borrow and lend from one another in the overnight market. In some countries (the United States, for example), the overnight rate may be the rate targeted by the central bank to influence monetary policy. In most countries, the central bank is also a participant on the overnight lending market, and will lend or borr
Trading basicsPaper wealth
Paper wealth means financial assets or possessions as measured by their monetary value, as reflected in the price of assets – how much money one's assets could be sold for. Paper wealth is contrasted with real wealth, which refers to one's actual physical assets. For example, if one owns a house and its assessed value increases (relative to the general price level, i.e., assuming no infl
BankingPassbook
A passbook or bankbook is a paper book used to record bank or building society transactions on a deposit account.
Payments & settlementPayPal
PayPal Holdings, Inc. is an American multinational financial technology company operating an online payments system in the majority of countries that support online money transfers; it serves as an electronic alternative to traditional paper methods such as checks and money orders. The company operates as a payment processor for online vendors, auction sites and many other commercial and
BankingPeel's Bill
Peel's Bill, or the Resumption of Cash Payments Act 1819 (59 Geo. 3. c. 49) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that marked the return of the British currency to the gold standard, after the Bank Restriction Act 1797 (37 Geo. 3. c. 45) saw paper money replacing convertibility to gold and silver under the financial pressures of the French Revolutionary Wars.
Payments & settlementPepper (payment application)
Pepper (Hebrew: פפר) is an Israeli online banking service of Bank Leumi where all banking services are offered exclusively through a mobile app.
FinancePerpetual bond
A perpetual bond, also known colloquially as a perpetual or perp, is a bond with no maturity date, therefore allowing it to be treated as equity, not as debt. Issuers pay coupons on perpetual bonds forever, and they do not have to redeem the principal. Perpetual bond cash flows are, therefore, those of a perpetuity.
FinancePfandbrief
The Pfandbrief (plural: Pfandbriefe), a mostly triple-A rated German bank debenture, has become the blueprint of many covered bond models in Europe and beyond. The Pfandbrief is collateralized by long-term assets such as property mortgages or public sector loans as stipulated in the Pfandbrief Act. Total volume outstanding in Pfandbriefe was EUR 806 billion as at end-2008. Pfandbrief bon
Payments & settlementPlastic card
Plastic cards usually serve as identity documents, thus providing authentication. In combination with other assets that complement the data stored on the card, like PINs, they also serve authorization purposes, most often as debit or credit cards for allowing their holders to make financial transactions. Early and simpler cards feature only hard-to-imitate integrated photographs, securit
Securities & exchangesPromissory note
A promissory note, sometimes referred to as a note payable, is a financial instrument in which one party (the maker or issuer) promises in writing to pay a determinate sum of money to another (the payee), subject to any terms and conditions specified within the document.
Trading basicsPuttable bond
Puttable bond (put bond, putable or retractable bond) is a bond with an embedded put option. The holder of the puttable bond has the right, but not the obligation, to demand early repayment of the principal. The put option is exercisable on one or more specified dates.
BankingRaast
Raast (Urdu: راست; lit. 'direct') is Pakistan's first instant payment system operated by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). It operates using the state-of-the-art Pakistan Faster Payment System (PFPS), facilitating real-time settlement of small-value retail payments, including inter-bank peer-to-peer (P2P) and person-to-merchant (P2M) transactions.
Trading basicsReal bills doctrine
The real bills doctrine says that as long as bankers lend to businessmen only against the security (collateral) of short-term 30-, 60-, or 90-day commercial paper representing claims to real goods in the process of production, the loans will be just sufficient to finance the production of goods. The doctrine seeks to have real output determine its own means of purchase without affecting
Securities & exchangesResidential mortgage-backed security
Residential mortgage-backed security (RMBS) are a type of mortgage-backed security backed by residential real estate mortgages.
Trading basicsRetalix
Retalix Ltd. is a former Israeli software company that developed, licensed, implemented and supported software applications for retailers, wholesalers and distributors of fast-moving consumer goods, mainly in the grocery, convenience store, and foodservice industries.
Securities & exchangesReverse convertible securities
A reverse convertible security is a type of convertible security where a bond or short-term note can be converted to cash, debt or equity at a set date by the issuer based on an underlying stock. In effect it is a type of option on the maturity date where the bond can be converted to shares or cash. For the investor they get the advantage of a steady stream of income due to the payment o
FinanceRisk-free bond
A risk-free bond is a theoretical bond that repays interest and principal with absolute certainty. The rate of return would be the risk-free interest rate. It is primary security, which pays off 1 unit no matter state of economy is realized at time
BankingRobert Morris (financier)
Robert Morris Jr. (January 20, 1734 – May 8, 1806) was a British-born American merchant, investor, and politician, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Morris served in the Pennsylvania legislature, the Second Continental Congress, and the United States Senate. He was one of only two individuals (along with Roger Sherman) to sign the Declaration of Independence, the Arti
FinanceRotating savings and credit association
A rotating savings and credit association (ROSCA) is a group of individuals who agree to meet for a defined period in order to save and borrow together, a form of combined peer-to-peer banking and peer-to-peer lending. Members all chip in regularly and take turns withdrawing accumulated sums.
BankingRouting number (Canada)
A routing number is the term for bank codes in Canada. Routing numbers consist of eight numerical digits with a dash between the fifth and sixth digit for paper financial documents encoded with magnetic ink character recognition and nine numerical digits without dashes for electronic funds transfers. Routing numbers are regulated by Payments Canada, formerly known as the Canadian Payment
BankingRouting transit number
In the United States, an ABA routing transit number (ABA RTN) is a nine-digit code printed on the bottom of checks to identify the financial institution on which it was drawn. The American Bankers Association (ABA) developed the system in 1910 to facilitate the sorting, bundling, and delivering of paper checks to the drawer's (check writer's) bank for debit to the drawer's account.
AssetsRoyal Mint Gold
Royal Mint Gold was a digital gold currency and a cryptocurrency backed by gold reserves in the UK Royal Mint. The Royal Mint launched a digitized token called RMG, representing one gram of physical gold per token, in 2016. It began testing blockchain transactions in April 2017. The first test transaction was in August 2017. The rollout was originally scheduled to occur by the end of 20
Payments & settlementSADAD
The SADAD payment system was established by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) to be the national electronic bill presentment and payment (EBPP) service provider for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The core mandate for SADAD is to facilitate and streamline bill payment transactions of end consumers through all channels of the KSA (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) Banks. SADAD was launched on June
AssetsSafeMoon
SafeMoon LLC was an American cryptocurrency and blockchain company created in March 2021. The company created the SafeMoon token (SFM) which traded on the BNB Chain blockchain. The token charged a 10% fee on transactions, with 5% redistributed (or reflected) to token holders and 5% directed to wallets in a different currency, Binance Coin (BNB), controlled by the coin's authors. The toke
Securities & exchangesSeeking Alpha
Seeking Alpha is a crowd-sourced content service that publishes news on financial markets. It is accessible via a website and mobile app and offers both free and paid subscriptions. Independent contributors, mostly from the buy side, write almost all of the articles published by the service and are paid based on how many subscribers access their articles.
BankingShadow banking system
The shadow banking system is the collection of non-bank financial intermediaries (NBFIs), or nondepository financial institutions (NDFIs) that legally provide services similar to traditional commercial banks but outside normal banking regulations. S&P Global estimates that, at end-2022, shadow banking held about $63 trillion in financial assets in major jurisdictions around the world, re
Securities & exchangesShare (finance)
A share (sometimes referred to as stock or equity) is a unit of equity ownership in the capital stock of a corporation. It can refer to units of mutual funds, limited partnerships, and real estate investment trusts. Share capital refers to all of the shares of an enterprise. The owner of shares in a company is a shareholder (or stockholder) of the corporation. A share expresses the owner
FinanceShort-term European paper
Short-term European paper (STEP) is a short-term financing instrument and investment tool, and also a tool for the European Union to align the market standards and practices to promote the integration of the European market. The EU has accepted the STEP market as a non-regulated market due to collateral purposes; meanwhile, this will not influence the existing national and European legis
Payments & settlementSIA S.p.A.
SIA S.p.A. is an Italian company operating in the area of ICT, providing services to the banking and finance sector in addition to platforms for financial markets and e-payment services.
FinanceSpeculative attack
In economics, a speculative attack is a precipitous selling of untrustworthy assets by previously inactive speculators and the corresponding acquisition of some valuable assets (currencies, gold). The first model of a speculative attack was contained in a 1975 discussion paper on the gold market by Stephen Salant and Dale Henderson at the Federal Reserve Board. Paul Krugman, who visited
Trading basicsStock market simulator
A stock market simulator is computer software that reproduces behavior and features of a stock market, so that a user may practice trading stocks without financial risk. Paper trading, sometimes also called "virtual stock trading", is a simulated trading process in which would-be investors can practice investing without committing money.
BankingStrahan, Paul & Bates
Strahan, Paul & Bates was a London private banking house founded in the 17th century and with a reputation for respectability. The bank failed in 1855 with liabilities eventually estimated at £750,000 (equivalent to £70,000,000 in 2025). The subsequent bankruptcy proceedings revealed that customers' securities had been sold or otherwise disposed of by the partners and the proceeds had be
Securities & exchangesStreet name securities
The phrase street name securities or "nominee name securities" is used in the United States to refer to securities of companies which are held electronically in the account of a stockbroker or bank or custodian, similar to a bank account. The entity whose name is recorded as the legal owner of the securities is known as the "nominee owner," and that entity has ownership rights in the sec
Trading basicsSuggestion box
The suggestion box is used for collecting slips of paper with input from customers and patrons of a particular organization. Suggestion boxes may also exist internally, within an organization, such as means for garnering employee opinion.
FinanceSyndicated loan
A syndicated loan is one that is provided by a group of lenders and is structured, arranged, and administered by one or several commercial banks or investment banks known as lead arrangers.
Fiat currenciesTaylor rule
The Taylor rule is a monetary policy targeting rule. The rule was proposed in 1992 by American economist John B. Taylor for central banks to use to stabilize economic activity by appropriately setting short-term interest rates. The rule considers the federal funds rate, the price level and changes in real income. The Taylor rule computes the optimal federal funds rate based on the gap be
Payments & settlementTelephone card
A telephone card (also telecard, teleca, calling card or phone card for short) is a credit card-size plastic or paper card used to pay for telephone services (often international or long-distance calling). It is not necessary to have the physical card except with a stored-value system; knowledge of the access telephone number to dial and the PIN is sufficient. Standard cards which can be
StablecoinsTether (cryptocurrency)
Tether is a stablecoin—a digital currency whose value aims to maintain a stable value relative to the United States dollar—launched by Tether Limited in 2014. It is represented by its currency codes USD₮ and USDT.
Fiat currenciesThe Market for Lemons
"The Market for 'Lemons': Quality Uncertainty and the Market Mechanism" is a widely cited seminal paper in the field of economics which explores the concept of asymmetric information in markets. The paper was written in 1970 by George Akerlof and published in the Quarterly Journal of Economics. The paper's theory has since been applied to many types of markets.
Securities & exchangesTicker symbol
A ticker symbol or stock symbol is an abbreviation used to uniquely identify publicly traded shares of a particular publicly listed company or security on a particular stock exchange. Ticker symbols are arrangements of symbols or characters (generally Latin letters or digits) which provide a shorthand for investors to refer to, purchase, and research securities. Some exchanges include ti
Securities & exchangesTicker tape
Ticker tape was the earliest electrical dedicated financial communications medium, transmitting stock price information over telegraph lines, in use from around 1870 to 1970. It consisted of a paper strip that ran through a machine called a stock ticker, which printed abbreviated company names as alphabetic symbols followed by numeric stock transaction price and volume information. The t
FinanceTobin's q
Tobin's q (or the q ratio, and Marris's v), is the ratio between a physical asset's market value and its replacement cost. It was first introduced by Robin Marris as a firm-level microeconomic variable in his 1964 book The Economic Theory of Managerial Capitalism, and was shortly afterwards further analysed by Richard Kahn in early drafts of his paper Notes on the Rate of Interest and th
FinanceTrade credit insurance
Trade credit insurance, business credit insurance, export credit insurance, or credit insurance is a type of insurance policy and a risk management product offered by private insurance companies and governmental export credit agencies to business entities wishing to protect their accounts receivable from loss due to credit risks such as protracted default, insolvency or bankruptcy. This
Securities & exchangesUnderwriting
Underwriting (UW) services are provided by some large financial institutions, such as banks, insurance companies and investment houses, whereby they guarantee payment in case of damage or financial loss and accept the financial risk for liability arising from such guarantee. An underwriting arrangement may be created in a number of situations including insurance, issues of security in a
Securities & exchangesWarrant (finance)
In finance, a warrant is a security that entitles the holder to buy or sell stock, typically the stock of the issuing company, at a fixed price called the strike price.
Securities & exchangesWarren Buffett
Warren Edward Buffett ( BUFF-it; born August 30, 1930) is an American investor and philanthropist who is the chairman emeritus and former CEO of the conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway. As a result of his success, Buffett is one of the best-known investors in the world. According to Forbes, as of January 2026, Buffett's estimated net worth stood at US$148.9 billion, making him the ninth-rich
AssetsWorld (blockchain)
World, also known as World Network, is a humanity verification project and financial network. It was developed and launched as the cryptocurrency project Worldcoin. Among other organizations, contributors to the project include Tools for Humanity, a company founded in 2019 by Sam Altman, Max Novendstern, and Alex Blania. World's stated mission is to provide a reliable and anonymous way t
FinanceYield to maturity
The yield to maturity (YTM), book yield or redemption yield of a fixed-interest security is an estimate of the total rate of return anticipated to be earned by an investor who buys it at a given market price, holds it to maturity, and receives all interest payments and the capital redemption on schedule.
Trading basicsZ-spread
The Z-spread, ZSPRD, zero-volatility spread, or yield curve spread of a bond is the parallel shift or spread over the zero-coupon Treasury yield curve required for discounting a predetermined cash flow schedule to arrive at its present market price. The Z-spread is also widely used in the credit default swap (CDS) market as a measure of credit spread that is relatively insensitive to the