Industry WIKI
Digital assets and currencies
Understand assets, networks and trading mechanics with sources you can check.
Acquisition of Credit Suisse by UBS
On 19 March 2023, Swiss bank UBS Group AG agreed to buy Credit Suisse for CHF 3 billion (US$3.2 billion) in an all-stock deal brokered by the government of Switzerland and the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. The Swiss National Bank supported the deal by providing more than CHF 100 billion (US$104 billion) in liquidity to UBS following its takeover of Credit Suisse's operati
BankingBanking software
Banking software refers to computer systems used by financial institutions to manage and deliver banking services. These systems support functions such as account management, transaction processing, record keeping, and customer interactions across various channels. Banking software may include core baking systems as well as applications for online, mobile, and automated services. Its
FinanceBasel I
Basel I, or the 1988 Basel Accord, is a framework on banking regulations published by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision in 1988. It arose from deliberations by central banks from major countries during the late 1970s and 1980s. By 1992, it had been transposed into law by all Group of Ten (G10) countries.
Fiat currenciesBretton Woods system
The Bretton Woods system of monetary management established the rules for commercial relations among 44 countries, including the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, European countries, and Australia, after the 1944 Bretton Woods Agreement until the Jamaica Accords in 1976. The Bretton Woods system was the first example of a fully negotiated monetary order intended to govern monetary r
FinanceCapital adequacy ratio
Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) also known as Capital to Risk (Weighted) Assets Ratio (CRAR), is the ratio of a bank's capital to its risk-weighted assets (or credit exposure). National regulators track a bank's CAR and ensure it complies with statutory capital requirements to verify it can absorb a reasonable amount of loss (default of loans) without collapsing. The enforcement of regulate
FinanceCapital Requirements Directives
The Capital Requirements Directives (CRD) for the financial services industry have introduced a supervisory framework in the European Union which reflects the Basel II and Basel III rules on capital measurement and capital standards.
FinanceCash out refinancing
Cash out refinancing (in the case of real property) occurs when a loan is taken out on property already owned in an amount above the cost of transaction, payoff of existing liens, and related expenses. Strictly speaking, all refinancing of debt is "cash-out," when funds retrieved are utilized for anything other than repaying an existing loan.
BankingCentral bank independence
Central bank independence refers to the degree of autonomy and freedom a central bank has in conducting its monetary policy and managing the financial system and inflation targeting. The purpose of central bank independence is to maintain price stability, enhance the effectiveness of monetary policy, and ensure the stability of the financial system. Independent central banks have more cr
FinanceCredit risk
Credit risk is the chance that a borrower does not repay a loan or fulfill a loan obligation. For lenders the risk includes late or lost interest and principal payment, leading to disrupted cash flows and increased collection costs. The loss may be complete or partial. In an efficient market, higher levels of credit risk will be associated with higher borrowing costs. Because of this, me
BankingDiscount policy
Discount policy is a policy tool used by central banks to control the money in circulation by raising or lowering interest rates.
Fiat currenciesExchange rate regime
An exchange rate regime is a way a monetary authority of a country or currency union manages the currency about other currencies and the foreign exchange market. It is closely related to monetary policy and the two are generally dependent on many of the same factors, such as economic scale and openness, inflation rate, the elasticity of the labor market, financial market development, and
Trading basicsFinance
Finance refers to the management, movement, investment, and raising of money.
FinanceFinancial regulation
Financial regulation is a broad set of policies that apply to the financial sector in most jurisdictions, justified by two main features of finance: systemic risk, which implies that the failure of financial firms involves public interest considerations; and information asymmetry, which justifies curbs on freedom of contract in selected areas of financial services, particularly those tha
FinanceFinancial risk
Financial risk is any of various types of risk associated with financing, including financial transactions that include company loans in risk of default. Often it is understood to include only downside risk, meaning the potential for financial loss and uncertainty about its extent.
FinanceFinancial Stability Board
The Financial Stability Board (FSB) is an international body that monitors and makes recommendations about the global financial system. It was established in the 2009 G20 Pittsburgh Summit as a successor to the Financial Stability Forum (FSF). The Board includes all G20 major economies, FSF members, and the European Commission. Hosted and funded by the Bank for International Settlements,
FinanceFinancial Stability Forum
The Financial Stability Forum (FSF) was a group consisting of major national financial authorities such as finance ministries, central bankers, and international financial bodies. It was first convened in April 1999 in Washington. At the 2009 G20 London summit, the G20 nations established a successor to the FSF, called the Financial Stability Board with an expanded membership and broaden
FinanceFinancial supervisory authority
A financial regulatory authority or financial supervisory authority, alternatively financial regulator or financial supervisor, is a public authority whose role is to ensure the proper implementation of financial regulation within its scope of responsibility. Some, though not all, such authorities also set financial rules of their own.
Fiat currenciesForeign exchange reserves
Foreign exchange reserves (also called forex reserves or FX reserves) are cash and other reserve assets such as gold and silver held by a central bank or other monetary authority that are primarily available to balance payments of the country, influence the foreign exchange rate of its currency, and to maintain confidence in financial markets. Reserves are held in one or more reserve cur
BankingFractional-reserve banking
Fractional-reserve banking is the system of banking under which banks that take deposits from the public keep only part of their deposit liabilities in liquid assets as a reserve, and lend a percentage to borrowers, thus increasing the money supply by the loaned amount. Bank reserves are held as cash in the bank or as balances in the bank's account at the central bank. Fractional-reserv
FinanceGlobal financial system
The global financial system is the worldwide framework of legal agreements, institutions, and both formal and informal economic action that together facilitate international flows of financial capital for purposes of investment and trade financing. Since emerging in the late 19th century during the first modern wave of economic globalization, its evolution is marked by the establishment
Securities & exchangesInterest rate swap
In finance, an interest rate swap (IRS) is an interest rate derivative (IRD). It involves exchange of interest rates between two parties. In particular it is a "linear" IRD and one of the most liquid, benchmark products. It has associations with forward rate agreements (FRAs), and with zero coupon swaps (ZCSs).
FinanceLegal risk
Legal risk as a subset of operational risk that comprises the uncertainty associated with a business becoming a subjects of legal liability and obligations as a result of its operation.
Fiat currenciesMonetary base
In economics, the monetary base (also base money, money base, high-powered money, reserve money, outside money, central bank money or, in the UK, narrow money) in a country is the total amount of money created by the central bank. This includes:
Fiat currenciesMonetary reform
Monetary reform refers to proposals to change a country's monetary system, including how money is created, regulated, and distributed. Such reforms seek to address perceived problems with current monetary schemes, like financial instability, wealth inequality, or inflation. Monetary reform movements grow during economic crises, proposing alternatives to prevailing systems.
BankingMonetary system
A monetary system is a system where a government manages money in a country's economy. Modern monetary systems usually consist of a national treasury, a mint, central banks and commercial banks.
BankingMoney creation
Money creation, or money issuance, is the process by which the money supply of a country or economic region is increased. In most modern economies, both central banks and commercial banks create money. Central banks issue money as a liability, typically called reserve deposits, which is available only for use by central bank account holders. These account holders are generally large comm
Securities & exchangesMortgage servicing rights
In the mortgage industry of the United States, mortgage servicing rights (MSR) are the contractual rights to service a mortgage after the mortgage origination process is complete. Mortgage servicing is the management of the repayment of mortgage debt on behalf of the lender, including the collection and recording of mortgage payments. The legal entity that holds the mortgage servicing ri
Trading basicsPrivate-equity secondary market
In finance, the Private Equity Secondary Market (also often called Private Equity Secondaries or Secondaries) refers to the buying and selling of pre-existing investor commitments to private equity and other alternative investment funds or the underlying private equity assets (e.g., credit secondaries). Unlike public markets, private-equity interests lack an established trading exchange,
FinanceQuantitative easing
Quantitative easing (QE) is a monetary policy action where a central bank purchases predetermined amounts of government bonds, company shares, or other financial assets (liquidity) in order to artificially stimulate economic activity. Quantitative easing is a novel form of monetary policy that began in Japan and came into wide application in the US following the 2008 financial crisis. It
FinanceQuantitative tightening
Quantitative tightening (QT) is a contractionary monetary policy tool applied by central banks to decrease the amount of liquidity or money supply in the economy. A central bank implements quantitative tightening by reducing the financial assets it holds on its balance sheet by selling them into the financial markets, which decreases asset prices and raises interest rates. QT is the re
BankingReserve requirement
Reserve requirements are central bank regulations that set the minimum amount that a commercial bank must hold in liquid assets. This minimum amount, commonly referred to as the commercial bank's reserve, is generally determined by the central bank on the basis of a specified proportion of deposit liabilities of the bank. This rate is commonly referred to as the cash reserve ratio or sh
FinanceReturn on tangible equity
Return on Tangible Equity (ROTE) is a financial performance metric that measures a company's profitability relative to its tangible common equity. Unlike Return on Equity, ROE, which includes intangible assets such as goodwill, ROTE focuses solely on the tangible portion of shareholders' equity, excluding intangible assets and preferred equity. This makes ROTE particularly useful for eva
FinanceRisk-adjusted return on capital
Risk-adjusted return on capital (RAROC) is a risk-based profitability measurement framework for analysing risk-adjusted financial performance and providing a consistent view of profitability across businesses. The concept was developed by Bankers Trust and principal designer Dan Borge in the late 1970s. Note, however, that increasingly return on risk-adjusted capital (RORAC) is used as a
Securities & exchangesStandardized approach (counterparty credit risk)
The standardized approach for counterparty credit risk (SA-CCR) is the capital requirement framework under Basel III addressing counterparty risk for derivative trades.
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
FinanceTreasury management
Treasury management (or treasury operations) entails management of an enterprise's financial holdings, focusing on the firm's liquidity, and mitigating its financial, operational and reputational risk.
Securities & exchangesXVA
In mathematical finance, X-Value Adjustment (XVA, xVA) is an umbrella term referring to a number of different "valuation adjustments" that banks must make when assessing the value of derivative contracts that they have entered into. The purpose of these is twofold: primarily to hedge for possible losses due to other parties' failures to pay amounts due on the derivative contracts; but al