A type of debt instrument used in a particular type of short-term loan agreement in which the seller of goods or merchandise sells them to the buyer…

A slang term used by mortgage-backed securities (MBS) traders and investors to refer to an MBS that is seasoned over some time period. MBSs typically…

Debt securities issued by a government for the purpose of financing military operations during times of war. It is an emotional appeal to patriotic citizens…

A line of credit extended by a financial institution to a loan originator to fund a mortgage that a borrower initially used to buy a property. The loan…

The weighted-average gross interest rates of the pool of mortgages that underlie a mortgage-backed security (MBS) at the time the securities were issued…

The weighted average of all the bond credit ratings in a bond fund. The measure gives investors an idea of how risky a fund's bonds are overall. The lower…

The average number of years for which each dollar of unpaid principal on a loan or mortgage remains outstanding. Once calculated, WAL tells how many years…

A dollar-weighted average measuring the age of the individual loans in a mortgage pass-through or pooled security, such as Ginnie Mae or a Freddie Mac…

The weighted average of the time until all maturities on mortgages in a mortgage-backed security (MBS). The higher the weighted average to maturity, the…

A term used to distinguish between an original mortgage loan and a pass-through security. Whole loans are usually larger in size than the maximum amount…

Slang for the Washington Public Power Supply System (WPPSS), which made the record books with the largest municipal bond default in history. During the…

A well known bond investment manager who is one of America's 400 richest people as of 2009. William Gross is the founder of Pacific Investment Management…

This phrase has several meanings. In a general sense, when the buyer of a promissory note or other negotiable instrument assumes the risk of default. Without…

The period of time in which temporary yield discrepancies between fixed income securities are adjusted. Investors typically take advantage of this period…

A bond denominated in U.S. dollars that is publicly issued in the U.S. by foreign banks and corporations. According to the Securities Act of 1933, these…

A certificate of deposit (CD) issued in the U.S. market, typically in New York, by a branch of a foreign bank. Yankee CDs are negotiable instruments…

A U.S. bulletin that gives updated bid and ask prices as well as other information on OTC bonds. Similar to the pink sheets that track non-exchange traded…

The income return on an investment. This refers to the interest or dividends received from a security and is usually expressed annually as a percentage…

A method of quoting the price of a fixed-income security as a yield percentage, rather than in dollars. This allows bonds with varying characteristics…

The illegal practice of underwriters marking up the prices on bonds for the purpose of reducing the yield on the bond. This practice, referred to as…

A line that plots the interest rates, at a set point in time, of bonds having equal credit quality, but differing maturity dates. The most frequently…

The risk of experiencing an adverse shift in market interest rates associated with investing in a fixed income instrument. The risk is associated with…

The point on the yield curve indicating the year in which the economy's highest interest rates occur. Yield curves play an important role in the pricing…

The interest rate on a taxable security that would render a return equivalent to that of a tax-exempt security, and vice versa, calculated as follows…

A prepayment premium that allows investors to attain the same yield as if the borrower made all scheduled mortgage payments until maturity. Yield maintenance…

A gain in yield achieved by selling one bond and buying another with a higher yield. Usually, this is simply called "pickup". If the bond rating/credit…

The difference between yields on differing debt instruments, calculated by deducting the yield of one instrument from another. The higher the yield spread…

The yield of a bond or note if you were to buy and hold the security until the call date. This yield is valid only if the security is called prior to…

The rate of return anticipated on a bond if it is held until the maturity date. YTM is considered a long-term bond yield expressed as an annual rate…

The lowest potential yield that can be received on a bond without the issuer actually defaulting. The yield to worst is calculated by making worst-case…

A type of debt-instrument-based option that derives its value from the difference between the exercise price and the value of the yield of the underlying…

A special type of bond class in a sequential pay collateralized mortgage obligation. This class of bond does not receive any interest or principal payments…

A debt security that doesn't pay interest (a coupon) but is traded at a deep discount, rendering profit at maturity when the bond is redeemed for its…

A zero-coupon bond issued by a corporation that can be converted into that corporation's common stock. Also known as a "split coupon bond". Because their…

The constant spread that will make the price of a security equal to the present value of its cash flows when added to the yield at each point on the spot…

A mathematical formula developed in the 1960s by NYU Professor Edward Altman that attempts to express the chances of a public company going bankrupt within…