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Asset Class
In finance, an asset class is a group of marketable financial assets that have similar financial characteristics and behave similarly in the marketplace. These instruments can be distinguished as either having to do with real assets or having to do with financial assets. Often, assets within the same asset class are subject to the same laws and regulations; however, this is not always true. For instance, futures on an asset are often considered part of the same asset class as the underlying instrument but are subject to different regulations than the underlying instrument. Many investment funds are composed of the two main asset classes, both of which are securities: equities (share capital) and fixed-income ( bonds). However, some also hold cash and foreign currencies. Funds may also hold money market instruments and they may even refer to these as cash equivalents; however, that ignores the possibility of default. Money market instruments, being short-term fixed inco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Real Assets
Real assets is an investment asset class that covers investments in physical assets such as real estate, energy, and infrastructure. Real assets have an inherent physical worth. Real assets differ from financial assets in that financial assets get their value from a contractual right and are typically intangible. Real assets are categorized into three categories: * Real Estate: REITs, commercial real estate, and residential * Natural Resources: Energy, Oil & gas, MLPs, timber, agriculture, solar, mining, and commodities *Infrastructure: Transportation (roads, airports, railroads), utilities, telecommunications infrastructure Real assets are appealing to investors for four reasons: high current income, inflation protection / equity appreciation, low correlation to equity markets, and favorable tax treatment. Background Investing in real assets has existed since the advent of property ownership. However, public investment only began in 1965, when the first publicly traded REIT ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Volatility (finance)
In finance, volatility (usually denoted by "sigma, σ") is the Variability (statistics), degree of variation of a trading price series over time, usually measured by the standard deviation of logarithmic returns. Historic volatility measures a time series of past market prices. Implied volatility looks forward in time, being derived from the market price of a market-traded derivative (in particular, an option). Volatility terminology Volatility as described here refers to the actual volatility, more specifically: * actual current volatility of a financial instrument for a specified period (for example 30 days or 90 days), based on historical prices over the specified period with the last observation the most recent price. * actual historical volatility which refers to the volatility of a financial instrument over a specified period but with the last observation on a date in the past **near synonymous is realized volatility, the square root of the realized variance, in turn c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
CNBC
CNBC is an American List of business news channels, business news channel owned by the NBCUniversal News Group, a unit of Comcast's NBCUniversal. The network broadcasts live business news and analysis programming during the morning, Daytime television in the United States, daytime trading day, and early-evening hours, with the remaining hours (such as weekday prime time and weekends) are filled by business-related Television documentary, documentaries and reality television programming, as well as occasional NBC Sports presentations. CNBC operates an accompanying financial news website, CNBC.com, which includes news articles, video and podcast content, as well as subscription-based services. CNBC's headquarters and main studios are located in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, while it also maintains a studio at the Nasdaq MarketSite in Times Square, New York City. CNBC was originally founded in April 1989 as the Consumer News and Business Channel, a joint venture between NBC ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Decentralized Finance
Decentralized finance (often stylized as DeFi) provides financial instruments and services through smart contracts on a programmable, permissionless blockchain. This approach reduces the need for intermediaries such as brokerages, exchanges, or banks. DeFi platforms enable users to lend or borrow funds, speculate on asset price movements using derivatives, trade cryptocurrencies, insure against risks, and earn interest in savings-like accounts. The DeFi ecosystem is built on a layered architecture and highly composable building blocks. While some applications offer high interest rates, they carry high risks. Coding errors and hacks are a common challenge in DeFi. DeFi protocols exhibit varying degrees of decentralization, with truly decentralized protocols potentially acting as neutral infrastructure, while false decentralization leaves protocols open to manipulation and fraud or to being regulated as financial intermediaries. History Decentralized exchanges (abbreviated DEXs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cryptocurrency
A cryptocurrency (colloquially crypto) is a digital currency designed to work through a computer network that is not reliant on any central authority, such as a government or bank, to uphold or maintain it. Individual coin ownership records are stored in a digital ledger or blockchain, which is a computerized database that uses a consensus mechanism to secure transaction records, control the creation of additional coins, and verify the transfer of coin ownership. The two most common consensus mechanisms are proof of work and proof of stake. Despite the name, which has come to describe many of the fungible blockchain tokens that have been created, cryptocurrencies are not considered to be currencies in the traditional sense, and varying legal treatments have been applied to them in various jurisdictions, including classification as commodities, securities, and currencies. Cryptocurrencies are generally viewed as a distinct asset class in practice. The first cryptocu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Commodities
In economics, a commodity is an economic good, usually a resource, that specifically has full or substantial fungibility: that is, the market treats instances of the good as equivalent or nearly so with no regard to who produced them. The price of a commodity good is typically determined as a function of its market as a whole: well-established physical commodities have actively traded spot and derivative markets. The wide availability of commodities typically leads to smaller profit margins and diminishes the importance of factors (such as brand name) other than price. Most commodities are raw materials, basic resources, agricultural, or mining products, such as iron ore, sugar, or grains like rice and wheat. Commodities can also be mass-produced unspecialized products such as chemicals and computer memory. Popular commodities include crude oil, corn, and gold. Other definitions of commodity include something useful or valued and an alternative term for an econo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Private Equity
Private equity (PE) is stock in a private company that does not offer stock to the general public; instead it is offered to specialized investment funds and limited partnerships that take an active role in the management and structuring of the companies. In casual usage "private equity" can refer to these investment firms rather than the companies in which they invest. Private-equity capital (economics), capital is invested into a target company either by an investment management company (private equity firm), a venture capital fund, or an angel investor; each category of investor has specific financial goals, management preferences, and investment strategies for profiting from their investments. Private equity can provide working capital to finance a target company's expansion, including the development of new products and services, operational restructuring, management changes, and shifts in ownership and control. As a financial product, a private-equity fund is private capital ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World Pensions & Investments Forum
The World Pensions Forum, also called World Pensions & Investments Forum, is a research and policy oriented conference organised by M. Nicolas Firzli, founder of the World Pensions Council (WPC), in partnership with regional and supranational organisations, large public and private institutional investors from G10 countries, the emerging nations of Eastern Europe, Latin America, Asia and the MENA area. The ''first edition'' of the forum was held in Paris at the OECD: on that occasion, leading experts from the OECD, the University of Cambridge, the IMF, the World Bank and various US, UK and Mainland European institutions presented the latest advances in the fields quantitative asset allocation, financial risk management, socially responsible investing and corporate governance. The ''second edition'' was held in Paris at the headquarters of the Society for the Encouragement of National Industry (SEIN): discussions focused on long term investments, infrastructure assets, i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Infrastructure
Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function. Infrastructure is composed of public and private physical structures such as roads, railways, bridges, airports, public transit systems, tunnels, water supply, sewers, electrical grids, and telecommunications (including Internet connectivity and broadband access). In general, infrastructure has been defined as "the physical components of interrelated systems providing commodities and services essential to enable, sustain, or enhance societal living conditions" and maintain the surrounding environment. Especially in light of the massive societal transformations needed to mitigate and adapt to climate change, contemporary infrastructure conversations frequently focus on sustainable development and green infrastructure. Acknowledging this importance, the international co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cash
In economics, cash is money in the physical form of currency, such as banknotes and coins. In book-keeping and financial accounting, cash is current assets comprising currency or currency equivalents that can be accessed immediately or near-immediately (as in the case of money market accounts). Cash is seen either as a reserve for payments, in case of a structural or incidental negative cash flow or as a way to avoid a downturn on financial markets. Etymology The English word ''cash'' originally meant , and later came to have a secondary meaning . This secondary usage became the sole meaning in the 18th century. The word ''cash'' comes from the Middle French , which comes from the Old Italian , and ultimately from the Latin . History In Western Europe, after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, coins, silver jewelry and hacksilver (silver objects hacked into pieces) were for centuries the only form of money, until Venetian merchants started using silver bars for larg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Inflation
In economics, inflation is an increase in the average price of goods and services in terms of money. This increase is measured using a price index, typically a consumer price index (CPI). When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reduction in the purchasing power of money. The opposite of CPI inflation is deflation, a decrease in the general price level of goods and services. The common measure of inflation is the inflation rate, the annualized percentage change in a general price index. Changes in inflation are widely attributed to fluctuations in Real versus nominal value (economics), real demand for goods and services (also known as demand shocks, including changes in fiscal policy, fiscal or monetary policy), changes in available supplies such as during energy crisis, energy crises (also known as supply shocks), or changes in inflation expectations, which may be self-fulfilling. Moderat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
