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Finance

2006–2012 New Zealand finance company collapses

Between May 2006 and the end of 2012 there were 67 finance company collapses in New Zealand, including companies entering into liquidation, receivership or moratoria. An inquiry by the New Zealand Parliament estimated losses at over $3 billion that affected between 150,000 and 200,000 depositors. The most high-profile collapses were South Canterbury Finance, Hanover Finance and Bridgecor

Fiat currencies

Alexander del Mar

Alexander del Mar (aka Alexander Del Mar and Alexander Delmar; August 9, 1836 – July 1, 1926) was an American political economist, historian, numismatist and author. He was the first Director of the Bureau of Statistics at the U.S. Treasury Department from 1866 to 1869.

Fiat currencies

Asian Monetary Fund

The Asian Monetary Fund (AMF) was an idea put forward by the Japanese government during the 1997 Asian financial crisis at the G7-IMF meetings in Hong Kong during September 20–25, 1997, that was never implemented. The proposal was that an institution be formed to work towards setting up a regional network funded by Asian countries to overcome current and future economic crisis.

Finance

Association for the Taxation of Financial Transactions and for Citizens' Action

The Association for the Taxation of Financial Transactions and for Citizens' Action (French: Association pour la Taxation des Transactions financières et pour l'Action Citoyenne, ATTAC) is an activist organisation originally created to promote the establishment of a tax on foreign exchange transactions.

Trading basics

Australian Securities Exchange

Australian Securities Exchange Ltd (ASX) is an Australian public company that operates Australia's primary securities exchange, the Australian Securities Exchange. The ASX was formed on 1 April 1987, through incorporation under legislation by the Parliament of Australia as an amalgamation of the six state securities exchanges. It merged with the Sydney Futures Exchange in 2006.

Payments & settlement

Balance of trade

Balance of trade is the difference between the monetary value of a nation's exports and imports of goods over a certain time period. Sometimes, trade in services is also included in the balance of trade but the official IMF definition only considers goods. The balance of trade measures a flow variable of exports and imports over a given period of time. The notion of the balance of trade

Fiat currencies

Bank reserves

Bank reserves are a commercial bank's cash holdings physically held by the bank, and deposits held in the bank's account with the central bank. In most countries, the central bank may set minimum reserve requirements that mandate commercial banks under their purview to hold cash or deposits at the central bank equivalent to at least a prescribed percentage of their liabilities, such as c

Banking

Banking in Australia

Banking in Australia is a central component of the country's financial system and one of the most concentrated banking sectors in the world. As of 2025 the sector contributes 7.5% of GDP and employs 450,000 people.

Trading basics

British investment in Argentina

Foreign direct investment by Great Britain into Argentina was attempted, initially with little success, from the early years after Argentina's independence from Spain in the 1820s. However, it grew to large proportions in the second half of the 19th century and remained so up to the Second World War, in association with greater political stability and favourable policies in Argentina. Br

Finance

Canada Savings Bond

The Canada Savings Bond (French: Obligations d’épargne du Canada) was an investment instrument offered by the Government of Canada from 1945 to 2017, sold between early October and December 1 of every year. It was issued by the Bank of Canada and was intended to offer a competitive interest rate, and had a guaranteed minimum interest rate.

Securities & exchanges

Canadian Securities Administrators

The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA; French: Autorités canadiennes en valeurs mobilières, ACVM) is an umbrella organization of Canada's provincial and territorial securities regulators whose objective is to improve, coordinate, and harmonize regulation of the Canadian capital markets.

Trading basics

Cape Verdean escudo

The escudo (sign: ; ISO 4217: CVE) is the currency of the Republic of Cape Verde. One escudo is subdivided into one hundred centavos.

Fiat currencies

Carbon quantitative easing

Carbon quantitative easing (CQE) is an unconventional monetary policy or monetary program that is featured in a proposed international climate policy, called a global carbon reward or simply, the carbon reward. The main goal of CQE is to guarantee the price floor of a carbon reward market so that this market can scale to decarbonise the world economy. The market instrument is also called

Fiat currencies

Chiang Mai Initiative

The Chiang Mai Initiative (CMI) is a multilateral currency swap arrangement among the ten members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the People's Republic of China (including Hong Kong), Japan, and South Korea. It draws from a foreign exchange reserves pool worth US$120 billion and was launched on 24 March 2010. That pool has been expanded to $240 billion in 2012.

Finance

Compound annual growth rate

Compound annual growth rate (CAGR) is a business, economics and investing term representing the mean annualized growth rate for compounding values over a given time period. CAGR smooths the effect of volatility of periodic values that can render arithmetic means less meaningful. It is particularly useful to compare growth rates of various data values, such as revenue growth of companies,

Finance

Credit Institute of Canada

The Credit Institute of Canada (CIC) (French: Institut de crédit du Canada) is a not-for-profit organization created by a special Act of Parliament on June 11, 1928. The CIC provides credit management resources, education and certification to its members and is the only organization that grants official designations to professionals in the Canadian credit management field.

Payments & settlement

Current account (balance of payments)

In macroeconomics and international finance, a country's current account records the value of exports and imports of both goods and services and international transfers of capital. It is one of the two components of the balance of payments, the other being the capital account (also known as the financial account). Current account measures the nation's earnings and spendings abroad and it

Banking

European Banking Federation

The European Banking Federation (EBF) is a trade association representing national banking associations in countries of the European Union, the European Free Trade Association, and the United Kingdom. It represents over 5,000 institutions It was established in 1960 as the Fédération bancaire européenne.

Finance

Federal financing for small businesses in Canada

Federal financing for small businesses in Canada is facilitated via a number of programs and agencies. Financing is available in the form of grants (sometimes called "non-repayable contributions"), loans, loan guarantees, income support and subsidized hiring and/or training programs. The government also provides funding for no-cost or subsidized services to small businesses, including wo

Finance

Financial Supervisory Service

The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) is South Korea's integrated financial regulator that examines and supervises financial institutions under the broad oversight of the Financial Services Commission (FSC), the government regulatory authority staffed by civil servants.

Finance

Financial system in Australia

The Australian financial system consists of the arrangements covering the borrowing and lending of funds and the transfer of ownership of financial claims in Australia, comprising:

Trading basics

Foreign direct investment

Foreign direct investment (FDI) is an ownership stake in a company, made by a foreign investor, company, or government from another country. More specifically, it describes a controlling ownership of an asset in one country by an entity based in another country. The magnitude and extent of control, therefore, distinguishes it from a foreign portfolio investment or foreign indirect invest

Trading basics

Foreign direct investment and the environment

Foreign direct investment and the environment involves international businesses and their interactions and impact on the natural world. These interactions can be observed through the stringency applied to foreign direct investment policy and the responsiveness of capital or labor incentive for investment inflows. The laws and regulations created by a country that focuses on environmental

Trading basics

Foreign direct investment in Iran

Foreign direct investment in Iran (FDI) refers to investment by foreign individuals or companies in businesses operating in the country. Net FDI inflows to Iran are recorded in the World Bank's World Development Indicators, using data from the International Monetary Fund, UN Trade and Development, and official national sources. It has been hindered by unfavorable or complex operating req

Fiat currencies

Formosa bond

A Formosa bond (Chinese: 福爾摩莎債券; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Hok-ní-mô͘-sá Chè-kǹg) is a bond issued in Taiwan but denominated in a currency other than the New Taiwan Dollar. They are issued by the Taiwan branches of publicly traded overseas financial institutions and to be traded must have a credit rating of BBB or higher.

Banking

Four pillars policy

The four pillars policy is an Australian Government policy to maintain the separation of the four largest banks in Australia by rejecting any merger or acquisition between the four major banks. The policy, rather than formal regulation, first articulated in 1990, reflects the competitive concerns of more concentration as well as the broad political unpopularity of further bank mergers. A

Finance

Freetrade

Freetrade is a UK-based fintech company founded in 2016 by Adam Dodds, Davide Fioranelli and André Mohamed. It operates a mobile trading platform for retail investors in the UK, allowing users to trade equities and ETFs through iOS and Android applications.

Fiat currencies

George Selgin

George Selgin (; born February 15, 1957) is an American economist. Before retiring in July 2025, he was a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute, the founding Director of its Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives, and editor-in-chief of that Center's online publication, Alt-M. He is also Professor Emeritus of economics at the Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia,

Trading basics

Global labor arbitrage

Global labor arbitrage is an economic phenomenon where, as a result of the removal of or disintegration of barriers to international trade, jobs move to nations where labor and the cost of doing business (such as environmental regulations) are inexpensive and/or impoverished labor moves to nations with higher paying jobs.

Finance

Green finance and the Belt and Road Initiative

Green finance is officially promoted as an important feature of the Belt and Road Initiative, China's signature global economic development initiative. The official vision for the BRI calls for an environmentally friendly "Green Belt and Road".

Fiat currencies

Heiner Flassbeck

Heiner Flassbeck (born 12 December 1950) is a German economist and public intellectual. From 1998 to 1999 he was a State Secretary in the German Federal Ministry of Finance (German: Bundesministerium der Finanzen) where he also advised former finance minister Oskar Lafontaine on a reform of the European Monetary System. He became the Chief of Macroeconomics and Development of the United

Finance

Illicit financial flows

Illicit financial flows, in economics, are a form of illegal capital flight that occurs when money is illegally earned, transferred, or spent. This money is intended to disappear from any record in the country of origin, and earnings on the stock of illicit financial flows outside a country generally do not return to the country of origin.

Trading basics

International investment agreement

An international investment agreement (IIA) is a type of treaty between countries that addresses issues relevant to cross-border investments, usually for the purpose of protection, promotion and liberalization of such investments. Most IIAs cover foreign direct investment (FDI) and portfolio investment, but some exclude the latter. Countries concluding IIAs commit themselves to adhere to

Fiat currencies

International monetary system

An international monetary system is a set of internationally agreed rules, conventions and supporting institutions that facilitate international trade, cross border investment and generally the reallocation of capital between states that have different currencies. It should provide means of payment acceptable to buyers and sellers of different nationalities, including deferred payment. T

Finance

Internationalization of the renminbi

Since the late 2000s, the People's Republic of China (PRC) has sought to internationalize its official currency, the renminbi (RMB) or Chinese yuan (CNY). This initiative aims to reduce dependence on the United States dollar and enhance China's influence in the global financial system. Key strategies have included promoting the use of the yuan in international trade invoicing, cross-bord

Trading basics

Investment Canada Act

The Investment Canada Act (ICA; French: Loi sur Investissement Canada, LIC) is a Canadian federal law governing foreign direct investment in Canada. The ICA was one of the first acts of Brian Mulroney's newly elected Progressive Conservative government, receiving royal assent on 20 June 1985. It has been amended at various times, including recently through Bill C-34, An Act to amend th

Fiat currencies

Iranian oil bourse

The Iranian Oil Bourse (Persian: بورس نفت ایران; also referred to as the International Oil Bourse, Iran Petroleum Exchange, Kish Exchange or Oil Bourse in Kish or Iran Crude Oil Exchange) is a commodity exchange on the island of Kish, Iran, which opened its first phase on 17 February 2008.

Finance

Islamic banking in Malaysia

Islamic banking in Malaysia began in September 1963 when Perbadanan Wang Simpanan Bakal-Bakal Haji (PWSBH) was established. PWSBH was set up as an institution for Muslims to save for their Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) expenses. In 1969, PWSBH merged with Pejabat Urusan Haji to form Lembaga Urusan dan Tabung Haji (now known as Lembaga Tabung Haji).

Trading basics

Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation

The Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC) is a South Korean deposit insurance corporation, established in 1996 to protect depositors and maintain the stability of the financial system. The main functions of KDIC are insurance management, risk surveillance, resolution, recovery, and investigation.

Trading basics

Korea Exchange

Korea Exchange (KRX, Korean: 한국거래소) is the sole securities exchange operator in South Korea. It is headquartered in Busan, and has an office for cash markets and market oversight in Seoul.

Finance

Korea Financial Investment Association

The Korea Financial Investment Association (KOFIA; Korean: 금융투자협회; RR: Geumnyung Tuja Hyeophoe) is a non-profit, self-regulatory organization (SRO) in South Korea, founded under the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act. It was established on February 4, 2009 through the merger of the Korea Securities Dealers Association, the Korea Futures Association, and the Asset Manag

Finance

Korea Minting and Security Printing Corporation

The Korea Minting, Security Printing and ID Card Operating Corporation (KOMSCO; Korean: 한국조폐공사) is a state-owned corporation which is responsible to print and mint the banknotes and coins and other government documents. Its headquarters are located in Daejeon, South Korea.

Finance

KOSPI

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI; Korean: 한국종합주가지수) is the index of all common stocks traded on the Stock Market Division—previously, Korea Stock Exchange—of the Korea Exchange. It is the representative stock market index of South Korea, analogous to the S&P 500 in the United States.

Finance

Le Freeport

Le Freeport, formerly known as Singapore Freeport, is a high-security storage and display facility in Singapore. Since 2022, the facility is owned by Chinese-born Singaporean cryptocurrency billionaire Jihan Wu through his holding company Bitdeer Technologies. Prior to that, a majority stake was held by Natural Le Coultre S.A. of art dealer and shipper Yves Bouvier. Opened near Singapore

Banking

Lender of last resort

In public finance, a lender of last resort (LOLR) is a financial entity, generally a central bank, that acts as the provider of liquidity to a financial institution which finds itself unable to obtain sufficient liquidity in the interbank lending market when other facilities or such sources have been exhausted. It functions as a government guarantee of liquidity to financial institutions

Fiat currencies

Lucas islands model

The Lucas islands model is an economic model of the link between money supply and price and output changes in a simplified economy using rational expectations. It delivered a new classical explanation of the Phillips curve relationship between unemployment and inflation. The model was formulated by Robert Lucas, Jr. in a series of papers in the 1970s.

Finance

Luxembourg High Security Hub

Luxembourg High Security Hub, until 2021 known as Luxembourg Freeport, is a €50-million high security storage facility adjacent to Luxembourg Findel Airport. The freeport opened in September 2014.

Finance

Ministry of Economy and Finance (Morocco)

The Ministry of Economy and Finance is the ministerial department of the government of Morocco responsible for the development and implementation of the country's economic policy and financial policy.

Finance

Ministry of Finance & National Economy (Bahrain)

The Ministry of Finance & National Economy (MOFNE) is responsible for formulating and implementing the financial policies of the Kingdom of Bahrain within the overall vision of the Bahrain Government. The Ministry prepares the state general budget in coordination with other ministries and public entities in a way that reflects the financial and economic objectives of the Kingdom, particu

Finance

Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (Rwanda)

The Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN) is the ministry of the Government of Rwanda in charge of public finance and economic planning. It was created in 1997 by merging the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Planning.

Trading basics

Montreal Exchange

The Montreal Exchange (MX; French: Bourse de Montréal), formerly the Montreal Stock Exchange (MSE), is a derivatives exchange, located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada that trades futures contracts and options on equities, indices, currencies, ETFs, energy and interest rates. Since 1965, it has been located in the Tour de la Bourse (Stock Exchange Tower), Montreal's third-tallest building. I

Fiat currencies

Negative interest on excess reserves

Negative interest on excess reserves is an instrument of unconventional monetary policy applied by central banks to encourage lending by making it costly for commercial banks to hold their excess reserves at central banks so they will lend more readily to the private sector. Such a policy is usually a response to very slow economic growth, deflation, and deleveraging.

Finance

Net capital outflow

Net capital outflow (NCO) is the net flow of funds being invested abroad by a country during a certain period of time (usually a year). A positive NCO means that the country invests outside more than the world invests in it. NCO is one of two major ways of characterizing the nature of a country's financial and economic interaction with the other parts of the world (the other being the ba

Banking

Official cash rate

The official cash rate (OCR) is the term used in Australia and New Zealand for the bank rate and is the rate of interest which the central bank charges on overnight loans between commercial banks. This allows the Reserve Bank of Australia and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand to adjust the interest rates that apply in each country's economy. The OCR cannot be changed by transactions betwee

Finance

Overnight policy rate

The overnight policy rate is an overnight interest rate set by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) used for monetary policy direction. It is the target rate for the day-to-day liquidity operations of the BNM. The overnight policy rate (OPR) is the interest rate at which a depository institution lends immediately available funds (balances within the central bank) to another depository institution

Payments & settlement

Pan-African Payment and Settlement System

The Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) is a Pan-African real-time gross settlement (RTGS) infrastructure for cross-border payments in distinct local currencies. It was publicly launched on January 13, 2022 by the African Union (AU) and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) to compliment trading under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) with further roll

Finance

Panama as a tax haven

The Republic of Panama is one of the oldest and best-known tax havens in the Caribbean, as well as one of the most established in the region. Panama has had a reputation for tax avoidance since the early 20th century, and Panama has been cited repeatedly in recent years as a jurisdiction which does not cooperate with international tax transparency initiatives.

Fiat currencies

Panda bonds

A Panda bond is a Chinese renminbi-denominated bond from a non-Chinese issuer, sold in the People's Republic of China. Unlike the dim sum bond, Panda bonds are issued in the onshore market for onshore renminbi.

Trading basics

Permanent Court of Arbitration

The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered at the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands, which was built to house the PCA.

Fiat currencies

Polak model

The Polak model is a monetary approach to the balance of payment published by J. J. Polak in 1957. It seeks to model a small, open economy operating under fixed nominal exchange rate. Polak suggest explicit links between the monetary and external sectors. Polak results continue to form the theoretical bases on which the IMF Financial Programming are carried out.

Finance

Portugal's list of tax havens

Under Ministerial Order n. 150/2004 of 13 February, issued by the Portuguese Ministry of Finance and consequently updated, Portugal defines an official blacklist of countries and jurisdictions considered for legal and tax purposes as tax havens.

Finance

SCO Interbank Consortium

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Interbank Consortium (abbreviated as SCO IBC) is a platform for joint financing of development projects by members and other participants of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

Payments & settlement

Single Euro Payments Area

The Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) is a payment-integration system of the European Union that makes cross-border bank transfers in euros as fast, cheap, and simple as domestic payments. It allows individuals and businesses to make cashless euro transfers to any account within the zone using a single bank account and an International Bank Account Number, under the same basic conditions

Trading basics

Sterling area

The sterling area (or sterling bloc, legally scheduled territories) was a group of countries that either adopted or pegged their currencies to the pound sterling.

Banking

SUCRE

The SUCRE ([ˈsukɾe]; Spanish: Sistema Unitario de Compensación Regional, "Unified System for Regional Compensation") was a regional currency proposed for commercial exchanges between members of the regional trade bloc Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA), which was created as an alternative to the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas (FTAA). The SUCRE was intended to replace the

Finance

Tax compliance software

Tax compliance software is software that assists tax compliance, and may cover income tax, corporate tax, VAT, service tax, customs, sales tax, use tax, or other taxes its users may be required to pay. The software automatically calculates a user's tax liabilities to the government, keeps track of all transactions (in case of indirect taxes), keeps track of eligible tax credits, etc. The

Finance

Taxation in Cyprus

Taxes in Cyprus are levied by both the central and local governments. Tax revenue stood at 39.2% of GDP in 2012. The most important revenue sources are the income tax, social security, value-added tax and corporate tax, and are all collected by the central government.

Fiat currencies

Taxpayers' money

Taxpayers' money or taxpayer dollars is a phrase that supposes government spending is dispersed from an aggregation of tax revenues, and emphasises a putative cohort of taxpayers from whom said revenue is collected. The phrase is associated with Margaret Thatcher, who asserted in 1983 that "the state has no source of money, other than the money people earn themselves. If the state wishes

Trading basics

Trade and Investment Framework Agreement

A Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) is a trade pact that establishes a framework for expanding trade and resolving outstanding disputes between countries.

Finance

Venture capital in Israel

Venture capital in Israel refers to the financial capital provided to early-stage, high-potential, high risk, growth startup companies based in Israel. The country's venture capital industry was born in the mid-1980s and has rapidly developed. Israel currently has more than 276 active venture capital funds, of which 71 are international VCs with Israeli offices. Israel's venture capital