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Digital assets and currencies

Understand assets, networks and trading mechanics with sources you can check.

Trading basics

2025 Czech government Bitcoin scandal

The 2025 Czech government Bitcoin scandal was a scandal in the Czech Republic that involved a donation of 468 Bitcoins to the country's Ministry of Justice. The Czech daily newspaper, Deník N, reported that the Minister of Justice, Pavel Blažek, accepted the donation from Tomáš Jiřikovský, which was worth one billion Czech koruna at the time (approximately $45,000,000 USD). Jiřikovský ha

Finance

Anti–money laundering

Anti–money laundering (AML) refers to a set of laws, regulations and institutional practices designed to help financial institutions and other regulated entities prevent, detect, and report money laundering and related financial crime. (Anti–money laundering is sometimes paired with combating the financing of terrorism, using the initialism AML/CFT.) In addition to regulatory and supervi

Trading basics

Bareboat charter

A bareboat charter, or demise charter, is an arrangement for the chartering or hiring of a ship or boat for which no crew or provisions are included as part of the agreement. Instead, the renter of the vessel from the owner is responsible for taking care of whatever the agreement specifies – insurance, maintenance, repairs, etc.. The act is commonly known as bareboating or bareboat chart

Finance

Base erosion and profit shifting

Base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) is a category of corporate tax avoidance strategies used by multinationals to "shift" profits from higher-tax jurisdictions to lower-tax jurisdictions or no-tax locations where there is little or no economic activity, thus "eroding" the "tax-base" of the higher-tax jurisdictions using deductible payments such as interest or royalties. For the gover

Trading basics

Bath Clean Air Zone

Bath Clean Air Zone is an area of central Bath, England where traffic is restricted to reduce air pollution. It became the second Clean Air Zone in the UK (after London) when it was introduced in March 2021. It has been credited with helping to reduce nitrogen dioxide pollution in the city by around a quarter since 2019, and has raised over £7 million in fines. However, critics of the sc

Trading basics

Black budget

A black budget or covert appropriation is a government budget that is allocated for classified or other secret operations of a state. The black budget is an account of expenses and spending related to military research and covert operations. The black budget is mostly classified because of security reasons.

Trading basics

Bradford Clean Air Zone

Bradford Clean Air Zone is a road traffic low-emission programme in the City of Bradford in West Yorkshire, England. Plans were advanced for many cities in England to have Clean Air Zones (CAZ), but of the ones put forward in West Yorkshire, only Bradford's CAZ has been taken to an operational stage. The scheme commenced on 26 September 2022, and all vehicles, barring private cars and mo

Finance

Brass plate company

A brass plate company, or brass plate trust, is a legally constituted company lacking meaningful connection with the location of incorporation. Brass plate refers to the only tangible existence of an organization in its jurisdiction of incorporation being a nameplate attached to the wall outside its registered office. The registered office is often the same office and address of the loca

Trading basics

Capital accumulation

Capital accumulation is the dynamic that motivates the pursuit of profit, involving the investment of money or any financial asset with the goal of increasing the initial monetary value of said asset as a financial return whether in the form of profit, rent, interest, royalties or capital gains. The goal of accumulation of capital is to create new fixed capital and working capital, broad

Finance

Capital Market Authority (Saudi Arabia)

The Capital Market Authority (CMA; Arabic: هيئة السوق المالية) is the Saudi government's financial regulatory authority responsible for capital markets in Saudi Arabia. The CMA is a government organization applying full financial, legal, and administrative independence, and has direct links with the Prime Minister. Its responsibilities include setting and policing financial rules and r

Finance

Car costs

A car's internal costs are all the costs consumers pay to own and operate a car. Normally these expenditures are divided into fixed or standing costs and variable or running costs. Fixed costs are those which do not depend on the distance traveled by the vehicle and which the owner must pay to keep the vehicle ready for use on the road, like insurance or road taxes. Variable or running c

Finance

Castle Bank & Trust (Bahamas)

Castle Bank & Trust was a Bahamian bank that was involved in tax evasion, as well as covertly funneling funds for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). The bank was founded in 1962 by Paul Helliwell, a former Office of Strategic Services and latter CIA officer, and Burton Kanter, a tax lawyer.

Finance

Conduit and sink OFCs

Conduit OFC and sink OFC is an empirical quantitative method of classifying corporate tax havens, offshore financial centres (OFCs) and tax havens.

Trading basics

Congestion pricing

Congestion pricing or congestion charges is a system of charging users of public goods that are subject to congestion through excess demand, such as through higher peak charges for use of bus services, electricity, metros, railways, telephones, and road pricing to reduce traffic congestion; airlines and shipping companies may be charged higher fees for slots at airports and through canal

Finance

Corvinus International Investment Ltd.

Corvinus International Investment Ltd. is a Hungarian state-owned asset management company. It is responsible for the execution of transactions related to company holdings in line with the strategic objectives of economic development and for the preservation and growth of the assets owned by the company.

Trading basics

Crescent City Connection

The Crescent City Connection (CCC), formerly the Greater New Orleans (GNO) Bridge, is a pair of cantilever bridges that carry U.S. Highway 90 Business (US 90 Bus.) over the Mississippi River in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. They are tied as the fifth-longest cantilever bridges in the world.

Assets

Cryptojacking

Cryptojacking is the act of exploiting a computer to mine cryptocurrencies, often through websites, against the user's will or while the user is unaware. One notable piece of software used for cryptojacking was Coinhive, which was used in over two-thirds of cryptojacks before its March 2019 shutdown. The cryptocurrencies mined the most often are privacy coins—coins with hidden transactio

Trading basics

Dedicated short-range communications

Dedicated short-range communications (DSRC) is a technology for direct wireless exchange of vehicle-to-everything (V2X) and other intelligent transportation systems (ITS) data between vehicles, other road users (pedestrians, cyclists, etc.), and roadside infrastructure (traffic signals, electronic message signs, etc.). DSRC, which can be used for both one- and two-way data exchanges, use

Trading basics

Electronic Road Pricing

The Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system is an electronic toll collection scheme adopted in Singapore to manage traffic by way of road pricing, and as a usage-based taxation mechanism to complement the purchase-based Certificate of Entitlement system. As of September 2026, only 33 ERP gantries are in operation, the currently operating and surviving gantries will be rebranded as "road cha

Trading basics

Electronic road pricing (Hong Kong)

Electronic road pricing (ERP, Chinese: 電子道路收費系統) is an electronic toll collection scheme first proposed in Hong Kong as early as in the 1980s to manage traffic by congestion pricing. (Singapore, which first adopted ERP in 1998, was the first city in the world to implement electronic congestion pricing.)

Finance

Financial integration

Financial integration is a phenomenon in which financial markets in neighboring, regional and/or global economies are closely linked together. Various forms of actual financial integration include: Information sharing among financial institutions; sharing of best practices among financial institutions; sharing of cutting edge technologies (through licensing) among financial institutions;

Finance

Financial Secrecy Index

The Financial Secrecy Index (FSI) is the report published by the advocacy organization Tax Justice Network (TJN) which ranks countries by financial secrecy indicators, weighted by the economic flows of each country.

Finance

Flag of convenience

Flag of convenience (FOC) refers to a business practice whereby a ship's owners register a merchant ship in a ship register of a country other than that of the ship's owners, and the ship flies the civil ensign of that country, called the flag state. The term is often used pejoratively, and although common, the practice is sometimes regarded as contentious.

Trading basics

Foreign ownership

Foreign ownership refers to the ownership of a portion of a country's assets (businesses, natural resources, property, bonds, equity, etc.) by individuals who are not citizens of that country or by companies whose headquarters are not in that country.

Finance

Global 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

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.

Trading basics

Global recession

A global recession is a recession that affects many countries around the world—that is, a period of global economic slowdown or declining economic output. Since World War II, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has identified five such recessions, with the COVID-19 recession being the most severe.

Trading basics

Gothenburg congestion tax

The Gothenburg congestion tax (Swedish: Trängselskatt i Göteborg), also referred to as the Gothenburg congestion charge, is a congestion pricing system implemented as a tax levied on most vehicles entering and exiting central Gothenburg, Sweden, as well as some main roads passing by the city. The congestion tax was introduced on 1 January 2013, with the Stockholm congestion tax as a mode

Trading basics

High-occupancy toll lane

A high-occupancy toll lane (HOT lane) is a type of traffic lane or roadway that is available to high-occupancy vehicles and other exempt vehicles without charge; other vehicles are required to pay a variable fee that is adjusted in response to demand. Unlike toll roads, drivers have an option to use general purpose lanes, on which a fee is not charged. Express toll lanes, which are less

Trading basics

Housing stress

Housing stress describes a situation where the cost of housing (either as rental, or as a mortgage) is high relative to household income. It may also be used to describe inadequate housing for a proportion of the population.

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

INIT SE

INIT Innovation in Traffic Systems SE is a German technology company serving the public transport market, based in Karlsruhe. The company was founded in 1983 by Gottfried Greschner, developing on his research on intelligent transportation systems at the University of Karlsruhe. INIT opened a North American subsidiary in Chesapeake, Virginia, in 1999, and has expanded to serve clients in

Securities & exchanges

Insider trading

Insider trading is the trading of a public company's stock or other securities (such as bonds or stock options) based on material, nonpublic information about the company. In many countries, trading based on insider information is illegal. The rationale for this prohibition of insider trading differs between countries and regions. Some view it as unfair to other investors in the market w

Trading basics

International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes

The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID; French: Centre international pour le règlement des différends relatifs aux investissements or CIRDI) is an international arbitration institution established in 1966 for legal dispute resolution and conciliation between international investors and States. ICSID is part of and funded by the World Bank Group, headquarter

Finance

International Development Association

The International Development Association (IDA) (French: Association internationale de développement) is a development finance institution which offers concessional loans and grants to the world's poorest developing countries. The IDA is a member of the World Bank Group and is headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States. It was established in 1960 to complement the existing In

Trading basics

Intrade

Intrade.com was a web-based prediction market which offered a platform where individuals could place bets on future outcomes. After having been forced to exclude US traders in 2012, on 10 March 2013 Intrade suspended all trading, citing possible "financial irregularities". For a time after the suspension, the intrade.com website stated that they were working on a relaunch of the site, ca

Trading basics

Investor–state dispute settlement

Investor–state dispute settlement (ISDS), or an investment court system (ICS), is a set of rules through which states (sovereign nations) can be sued by foreign investors for certain state actions affecting the foreign direct investments (FDI) of that investor. This most often takes the form of international arbitration between the foreign investor and the state. As of June 2024, over US

Finance

Jeffrey Sachs

Jeffrey David Sachs ( SAKS; born November 5, 1954) is an American economist and public policy analyst. He is a professor at Columbia University, at which he was formerly director of The Earth Institute and currently director of the Center for Sustainable Development.

Trading basics

KGS (electronic toll collection)

KGS, acronym for Kartlı Geçiş Sistemi (literally: Pass System with Card), was an electronic toll collection system of contactless smart card type available on toll roads and toll bridges in Turkey. It was abolished on 1 February 2013. The system was adopted to avoid traffic congestion at toll plazas. An alternative to KGS is the OGS system of radio-frequency identification (RFID) transpo

Trading basics

Market (economics)

In economics, a market is any structure that allows buyers and sellers to exchange goods, services and information. The exchange of goods or services, either with money or without it, is a transaction. In free market economies, they are the process by which prices and allocations of goods and services are established. Markets facilitate trade and enable the distribution and allocation of

Finance

Market manipulation

In economics and finance, market manipulation occurs when someone intentionally alters the supply or demand of a security to influence its price. This can involve spreading misleading information, executing misleading trades, or manipulating quotes and prices.

Finance

Michael Hudson (economist)

Michael Hudson (born March 14, 1939) is an American economist who is Professor of Economics at the University of Missouri–Kansas City and a researcher at the Levy Economics Institute at Bard College. He is a contributor to The Hudson Report, a weekly economic and financial news podcast produced by Left Out.

Finance

Ministry of Economy (Spain)

The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Enterprise (MINECO) is the department of the Government of Spain responsible for proposing and carrying out the government policy on economic affairs, through reforms to improve competitiveness and trade, focused on business support and the potential growth of the economy. At the same time, it directs the commercial policy of internationalization of com

Finance

Ministry of Finance (Spain)

The Ministry of Finance or Ministry of Treasury (Spanish: Ministerio de Hacienda, MH) is the department of the Government of Spain responsible for the design and implementation of the government policy on public finance and budget. It applies and manages the regional and local financing systems and the provision of information on the economic-financial activity of the different Public Ad

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.

Finance

Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (Uganda)

The Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MoFPED) is a cabinet-level government ministry of Uganda. Its mandate is to formulate sound economic and fiscal policies, mobilize resources for the implementation of government programmes, disburse public resources as appropriated by Parliament, and account for their use in accordance with national laws and international best p

Trading basics

Multilateral Agreement on Investment

The Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI) was a draft agreement negotiated in secret between members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) between 1995 and 1998. It sought to establish a new body of universal investment laws that would grant corporations unconditional rights to engage in financial operations around the world, without any regard to nati

Trading basics

Nookazon

Nookazon () is a fan-made website that allows players of the 2020 video game Animal Crossing: New Horizons to trade and sell items in-game using their services. The website is named after Amazon, although it more closely resembles Craigslist and eBay.

Trading basics

Offshore financial centre

An offshore financial centre (OFC) is defined as a "country or jurisdiction that provides financial services to nonresidents on a scale that is incommensurate with the size and the financing of its domestic economy."

Finance

Offshoring

Offshoring is the relocation of a business process from one country to another—typically an operational process, such as manufacturing, or supporting processes, such as accounting. Usually this refers to a company business, although state governments may also employ offshoring. More recently, technical and administrative services have been offshored.

Trading basics

OGS (electronic toll collection)

OGS (Turkish: Otomatik Geçiş Sistemi English: Automated Transit System) was an electronic toll collection system of RFID transponder type available on toll roads and toll bridges in Turkey. The system was adopted to avoid traffic congestion at toll plazas. The successor to OGS is the HGS system of RFID tag type implemented later on at the same toll plazas.

Fiat currencies

Pakistan Forex scam case

In November 2008, Munaf Kalia (CEO of Khanani and Kalia International (Pvt.) Ltd.), Yusuf Kalia, and associates, were charged with illegally transferring funds from Pakistan to Afghanistan. In light of the charges, the State Bank of Pakistan revoked the license for Khanani and Kalia International to operate its foreign exchange business and shut down its offices.

Trading basics

Public capital

Public capital is the aggregate body of government-owned assets that are used as a means for productivity. Such assets span a wide range including: large components such as highways, airports, roads, transit systems, and railways; local, municipal components such as public education, public hospitals, police and fire protection, prisons, and courts; and critical components including wate

Trading basics

Remittances to India

Remittances to India are money transfers from non-resident Indians (NRIs) employed outside the country to family, friends, or relatives residing in India. India is the world's top receiver of remittances, claiming more than 12% of the world's remittances in 2015. Remittances to India stood at US$125 billion in 2023, up from US$69 billion in 2017. Remittances from India to other countries

Trading basics

Remittances to Nepal

Remittances to Nepal are money transfers from Nepalese workers employed outside the country to friends or relatives in Nepal and form part of the wider global remittance transfers by migrant workers back to their home countries. Remittances constitute a substantial economic pillar for Nepal. In 2023, these inward transfers were valued at an estimated US$11 billion, contributing a signifi

Payments & settlement

SADAD

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

Assets

Scam center

A scam center, fraud factory, fraud park, scam factory, scam compound, scam hub, scam park, fraud center, fraud compound, or fraud hub is a collection of large fraudulent organizations usually involved in human trafficking operations, generally found in Southeast Asia and usually operated by a criminal gang. Scam center operators lure foreign nationals to scam hubs, where they are forced

Securities & exchanges

Securities fraud

Securities fraud, also known as stock fraud and investment fraud, is a deceptive practice in the stock or commodities markets that induces investors to make purchase or sale decisions on the basis of false information. The setups are generally made to result in monetary gain for the deceivers, and generally result in unfair monetary losses for the investors. They are generally violating

Finance

Shipbroking

Shipbroking is a financial service, which forms part of the global shipping industry. Shipbrokers are specialist intermediaries/negotiators (i.e. brokers) between shipowners and charterers who use ships to transport cargo, or between buyers and sellers of vessels.

Trading basics

Special economic zone

A special economic zone (SEZ) is an area in which the business and trade laws are different from the rest of the country. SEZs are located within a country's national borders, and their aims include increasing trade balance, employment, increased investment, job creation and effective administration. To encourage businesses to set up in the zone, financial policies are introduced. These

Finance

Tax haven

A tax haven is a term, often used pejoratively, to describe a place with very low tax rates for non-domiciled investors, even if the official rates may be higher.

Trading basics

Teras Teknologi

Teras Teknologi Sdn Bhd (TERAS), a subsidiary of PLUS Malaysia Berhad (PMB), is a Malaysian global corporation based in Petaling Jaya.

Trading basics

Trondheim toll scheme

Trondheim Toll Scheme or Trondheim Package (Norwegian: Trondheimspakken) was the result of that in the 1980s politicians and road authorities in Trondheim Municipality, Norway wanted to accelerate the investments in roads and motorways around the city through an investment package and toll scheme to ease construction and generate more funds. Between 1991 and 2005, there were more than 24

Trading basics

Turnstile

A turnstile (also called a gateline, baffle gate, automated gate, turn gate in some regions) is a form of gate which allows one person to pass at a time. A turnstile can be configured to enforce one-way human traffic. In addition, a turnstile can restrict passage only to people who insert a coin, ticket, transit pass, security credential, or other method of payment or verification. Mode