Definition of Disintermediation

Disintermediation

Withdrawal of funds from a financial institution in order to invest them directly.

Intermediation

Investment through a financial institution. Related: disintermediation.

Financial Intermediation

The process whereby financial intermediaries channel funds from lender/savers to borrower/spenders.

Agency pass-throughs

Mortgage pass-through securities whose principal and interest payments are
guaranteed by government agencies, such as the Government National Mortgage Association ("Ginnie Mae"), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation ("Freddie Mac") and Federal National Mortgage Association ("Fannie Mae").

Beta (Mutual Funds)

The measure of a fund's or stocks risk in relation to the market. A beta of 0.7 means
the fund's total return is likely to move up or down 70% of the market change; 1.3 means total return is likely
to move up or down 30% more than the market. Beta is referred to as an index of the systematic risk due to
general market conditions that cannot be diversified away.

Beta equation (Mutual Funds)

The beta of a fund is determined as follows:
[(n) (sum of (xy)) ]-[ (sum of x) (sum of y)]
[(n) (sum of (xx)) ]-[ (sum of x) (sum of x)]
where: n = # of observations (36 months)
x = rate of return for the S&P 500 Index
y = rate of return for the fund

Buy limit order

A conditional trading order that indicates a security may be purchased only at the designated
price or lower.
Related: Sell limit order.

Changes in Financial Position

Sources of funds internally provided from operations that alter a company's
cash flow position: depreciation, deferred taxes, other sources, and capital expenditures.

Comprehensive due diligence investigation

The investigation of a firm's business in conjunction with a
securities offering to determine whether the firm's business and financial situation and its prospects are
adequately disclosed in the prospectus for the offering.

Conventional pass-throughs

Also called private-label pass-throughs, any mortgage pass-through security not
guaranteed by government agencies. Compare agency pass-throughs.

Corporate financial management

The application of financial principals within a corporation to create and
maintain value through decision making and proper resource management.

Corporate financial planning

financial planning conducted by a firm that encompasses preparation of both
long- and short-term financial plans.

Cost of funds

Interest rate associated with borrowing money.

Country financial risk

The ability of the national economy to generate enough foreign exchange to meet
payments of interest and principal on its foreign debt.

Cross-border risk

Refers to the volatility of returns on international investments caused by events associated
with a particular country as opposed to events associated solely with a particular economic or financial agent.

Day order

An order to buy or sell stock that automatically expires if it can't be executed on the day it is entered.

Dividend reinvestment plan (DRP)

Automatic reinvestment of shareholder dividends in more shares of a
company's stock, often without commissions. Some plans provide for the purchase of additional shares at a
discount to market price. Dividend reinvestment plans allow shareholders to accumulate stock over the Long
term using dollar cost averaging. The DRP is usually administered by the company without charges to the
holder.

Dividend yield (Funds)

Indicated yield represents return on a share of a mutual fund held over the past 12
months. Assumes fund was purchased 1 year ago. Reflects effect of sales charges (at current rates), but not
redemption charges.

Dupont system of financial control

Highlights the fact that return on assets (ROA) can be expressed in terms
of the profit margin and asset turnover.

Economic order quantity (EOQ)

The order quantity that minimizes total inventory costs.

Endowment funds

investment funds established for the support of institutions such as colleges, private
schools, museums, hospitals, and foundations. The investment income may be used for the operation of the
institution and for capital expenditures.

Expected return on investment

The return one can expect to earn on an investment. See: capital asset
pricing model.

Federal funds

Non-interest bearing deposits held in reserve for depository institutions at their district Federal
Reserve Bank. Also, excess reserves lent by banks to each other.

Federal funds market

The market where banks can borrow or lend reserves, allowing banks temporarily
short of their required reserves to borrow reserves from banks that have excess reserves.

Federal funds rate

This is the interest rate that banks with excess reserves at a Federal Reserve district bank
charge other banks that need overnight loans. The Fed funds rate, as it is called, often points to the direction
of U.S. interest rates.

Federally related institutions

Arms of the federal government that are exempt from SEC registration and
whose securities are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government (with the exception of the
Tennessee Valley Authority).

Fill or kill order

A trading order that is canceled unless executed within a designated time period.
Related: open order.

Financial analysts

Also called securities analysts and investment analysts, professionals who analyze
financial statements, interview corporate executives, and attend trade shows, in order to write reports
recommending either purchasing, selling, or holding various stocks.

Financial assets

Claims on real assets.

Financial control

The management of a firm's costs and expenses in order to control them in relation to
budgeted amounts.

Financial distress

Events preceding and including bankruptcy, such as violation of loan contracts.

Financial distress costs

Legal and administrative costs of liquidation or reorganization. Also includes
implied costs associated with impaired ability to do business (indirect costs).

Financial engineering

Combining or dividing existing instruments to create new financial products.

Financial future

A contract entered into now that provides for the delivery of a specified asset in exchange
for the selling price at some specified future date.

Financial intermediaries

institutions that provide the market function of matching borrowers and lenders or
traders.

Financial lease

Long-term, non-cancelable lease.

Financial leverage

Use of debt to increase the expected return on equity. financial leverage is measured by
the ratio of debt to debt plus equity.

Financial leverage clientele

A group of investors who have a preference for investing in firms that adhere to
a particular financial leverage policy.

Financial leverage ratios

Related: capitalization ratios.

Financial market

An organized institutional structure or mechanism for creating and exchanging financial assets.

Financial objectives

Objectives of a financial nature that the firm will strive to accomplish during the period
covered by its financial plan.

Financial plan

A financial blueprint for the financial future of a firm.

Financial planning

The process of evaluating the investing and financing options available to a firm. It
includes attempting to make optimal decisions, projecting the consequences of these decisions for the firm in
the form of a financial plan, and then comparing future performance against that plan.

Financial press

That portion of the media devoted to reporting financial news.

Financial ratio

The result of dividing one financial statement item by another. Ratios help analysts interpret
financial statements by focussing on specific relationships.

Financial risk

The risk that the cash flow of an issuer will not be adequate to meet its financial obligations.
Also referred to as the additional risk that a firm's stockholder bears when the firm utilizes debt and equity.

Flow-through basis

An account for the investment credit to show all income statement benefits of the credit
in the year of acquisition, rather than spreading them over the life of the asset acquired.

Flow-through method

The practice of reporting to shareholders using straight-line depreciation and
accelerated depreciation for tax purposes and "flowing through" the lower income taxes actually paid to the
financial statement prepared for shareholders.

Foreign direct investment (FDI)

The acquisition abroad of physical assets such as plant and equipment, with
operating control residing in the parent corporation.

Forward Fed funds

Fed funds traded for future delivery.

Fully modified pass-throughs

Agency pass-throughs that guarantee the timely payment of both interest and
principal. Related: modified pass-throughs
Functional currency As defined by FASB No. 52, an affiliate's functional currency is the currency of the
primary economic environment in which the affiliate generates and expends cash.

Funds From Operations (FFO)

Used by real estate and other investment trusts to define the cash flow from
trust operations. It is earnings with depreciation and amortization added back. A similar term increasingly
used is funds Available for Distribution (FAD), which is FFO less capital investments in trust property and
the amortization of mortgages.

Future investment opportunities

The options to identify additional, more valuable investment opportunities
in the future that result from a current opportunity or operation.

Guaranteed investment contract (GIC)

A pure investment product in which a life company agrees, for a
single premium, to pay the principal amount of a predetermined annual crediting (interest) rate over the life of
the investment, all of which is paid at the maturity date.

Institutional investors

Organizations that invest, including insurance companies, depository institutions,
pension funds, investment companies, mutual funds, and endowment funds.

Institutionalization

The gradual domination of financial markets by institutional investors, as opposed to
individual investors. This process has occurred throughout the industrialized world.

Investment analysts

Related: financial analysts

Investment bank

financial intermediaries who perform a variety of services, including aiding in the sale of
securities, facilitating mergers and other corporate reorganizations, acting as brokers to both individual and
institutional clients, and trading for their own accounts. Underwriters.

Investment decisions

Decisions concerning the asset side of a firm's balance sheet, such as the decision to
offer a new product.

Investment grade bonds

A bond that is assigned a rating in the top four categories by commercial credit
rating companies. For example, S&P classifies investment grade bonds as BBB or higher, and Moodys'
classifies investment grade bonds as Ba or higher. Related: High-yield bond.

Investment income

The revenue from a portfolio of invested assets.
investment management Also called portfolio management and money management, the process of
managing money.

Investment manager

Also called a portfolio manager and money manager, the individual who manages a
portfolio of investments.

Investment product line (IPML)

The line of required returns for investment projects as a function of beta
(nondiversifiable risk).

Investment tax credit

Proportion of new capital investment that can be used to reduce a company's tax bill
(abolished in 1986).

Investment trust

A closed-end fund regulated by the investment Company Act of 1940. These funds have a
fixed number of shares which are traded on the secondary markets similarly to corporate stocks. The market
price may exceed the net asset value per share, in which case it is considered at a "premium." When the
market price falls below the NAV/share, it is at a "discount." Many closed-end funds are of a specialized
nature, with the portfolio representing a particular industry, country, etc. These funds are usually listed on US
and foreign exchanges.

Investment value

Related:straight value.

Investments

As a discipline, the study of financial securities, such as stocks and bonds, from the investor's
viewpoint. This area deals with the firm's financing decision, but from the other side of the transaction.

Investor

The owner of a financial asset.

Investor fallout

In the mortgage pipeline, risk that occurs when the originator commits loan terms to the
borrowers and gets commitments from investors at the time of application, or if both sets of terms are made at closing.

Investor relations

The process by which the corporation communicates with its investors.

Investor's equity

The balance of a margin account. Related: buying on margin, initial margin requirement.

Legal investments

investments that a regulated entity is permitted to make under the rules and regulations
that govern its investing.

Limit order

An order to buy a stock at or below a specified price or to sell a stock at or above a specified
price. For instance, you could tell a broker "Buy me 100 shares of XYZ Corp at $8 or less" or to "sell 100
shares of XYZ at $10 or better." The customer specifies a price and the order can be executed only if the
market reaches or betters that price. A conditional trading order designed to avoid the danger of adverse
unexpected price changes.

Limit order book

A record of unexecuted limit orders that is maintained by the specialist. These orders are
treated equally with other orders in terms of priority of execution.

London International Financial Futures Exchange (LIFFE)

A London exchange where Eurodollar futures
as well as futures-style options are traded.

Long-term financial plan

financial plan covering two or more years of future operations.

London International Financial Futures Exchange (LIFFE)

London exchange where Eurodollar futures as well as futures-style options are traded.

Market order

This is an order to immediately buy or sell a security at the current trading price.

Mathematical programming

An operations research technique that solves problems in which an optimal
value is sought subject to specified constraints. Mathematical programming models include linear
programming, quadratic programming, and dynamic programming.

Modified pass-throughs

Agency pass-throughs that guarantee (1) timely interest payments and (2) principal
payments as collected, but no later than a specified time after they are due. Related: fully modified passthroughs

Mortgage pass-through security

Also called a passthrough, a security created when one or more mortgage
holders form a collection (pool) of mortgages sells shares or participation certificates in the pool. The cash
flow from the collateral pool is "passed through" to the security holder as monthly payments of principal,
interest, and prepayments. This is the predominant type of MBS traded in the secondary market.

Mutually exclusive investment decisions

investment decisions in which the acceptance of a project
precludes the acceptance of one or more alternative projects.

Negotiable order of withdrawal (NOW)

Demand deposits that pay interest.

Net investment

Gross, or total, investment minus depreciation.

Net present value of future investments

The present value of the total sum of NPVs expected to result from
all of the firm's future investments.

Non-financial services

Include such things as freight, insurance, passenger services, and travel.

Notes to the financial statements

A detailed set of notes immediately following the financial statements in
an annual report that explain and expand on the information in the financial statements.

Open (good-til-cancelled) order

An individual investor can place an order to buy or sell a security. That
open order stays active until it is completed or the investor cancels it.

Pass-through rate

The net interest rate passed through to investors after deducting servicing, management,
and guarantee fees from the gross mortgage coupon.

Pass-through securities

A pool of fixed-income securities backed by a package of assets (i.e. mortgages)
where the holder receives the principal and interest payments. Related: mortgage pass-through security

Pass-through coupon rate

The interest rate paid on a securitized pool of assets, which is less than the rate
paid on the underlying loans by an amount equal to the servicing and guaranteeing fees.

Passive investment strategy

See: passive management.

Passive investment management

Buying a well-diversified portfolio to represent a broad-based market
index without attempting to search out mispriced securities.

Payable through drafts

A method of making payment that is used to maintain control over payments made
on behalf of the firm by personnel in noncentral locations. The payer's bank delivers the payable through draft
to the payer, which must approve it and return it to the bank before payment can be received.

Pecking-order view (of capital structure)

The argument that external financing transaction costs, especially
those associated with the problem of adverse selection, create a dynamic environment in which firms have a
preference, or pecking-order of preferred sources of financing, when all else is equal. Internally generated
funds are the most preferred, new debt is next, debt-equity hybrids are next, and new equity is the least
preferred source.

Perfectly competitive financial markets

Markets in which no trader has the power to change the price of
goods or services. Perfect capital markets are characterized by the following conditions: 1) trading is costless,
and access to the financial markets is free, 2) information about borrowing and lending opportunities is freely
available, 3) there are many traders, and no single trader can have a significant impact on market prices.

Private-label pass-throughs

Related: Conventional pass-throughs.

Pro forma financial statements

financial statements as adjusted to reflect a projected or planned transaction.

Reinvestment rate

The rate at which an investor assumes interest payments made on a debt security can be
reinvested over the life of that security.

Reinvestment risk

The risk that proceeds received in the future will have to be reinvested at a lower potential
interest rate.

REIT (real estate investment trust)

Real estate investment trust, which is similar to a closed-end mutual
fund. REITs invest in real estate or loans secured by real estate and issue shares in such investments.

REMIC (real estate mortgage investment conduit)

A pass-through tax entity that can hold mortgages
secured by any type of real property and issue multiple classes of ownership interests to investors in the form
of pass-through certificates, bonds, or other legal forms. A financing vehicle created under the Tax Reform
Act of 1986.

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