Financial Markets and Institutions Flashcards
Explain the functions of the financial services industry in allocating capital within the global economy
What are the four main functions of the financial services industry:
- Financial intermediation: providing channels for funds to move from savers to borrowers.
- Pooling and managing risks: provides mechanisms to manage risk. Pooled investment products allow multiple savers to invest in a wider variety of investments than they would otherwise be able to individually.
- Payment and settlement services: enables money and assets to be managed, transmitted and received.
- Portfolio management: allows investors to manage their wealth by offering access to markets, specialist advice and investment management services.
What are the 4 roles of the government:
- Provision of public sector services
- Regulation
- Intervention in the distribution of income
- Stabilisation of the economy
Define the role of primary markets:
Markets that facilitate the initial sale of securities. - Commonly referred to as an IPO
What are the 3 roles of the secondary market:
- Facilitates the subsequent trading following an IPO.
- Creates liquidity and provide information to investors (price discovery)
- Facilitates trade agreements
PRICE TRANSPARENCY AND LIQUIDITY:
What are the two types of price dissemination:
- Pre-trade transparent: displays price data before trade.
- Post-trade transparent: displays price data after trade.
What are the the 3 main types of transaction costs:
Brokerage commissions: usually a fixed percentage of the capital amount of the transaction or a fixed amount per trade.
Bid Ask spreads: the difference between the asking price and the offering price of a security or other asset.
Taxes and other charges:
- Stamp duty reserve tax - 0.5% of the purchase amount) which is charged to buyers
- PTM Levy (the PTM are a panel on takeovers and mergers, they are funded by the PTM Levy) - £1 government levy that is automatically charged to investors when they buy or sell shares for over £10,000.
What are the types of financial markets (UK Equity Markets):
UK SECURITIES
1. London Stock Exchange: a. operates an order-driven system called SETS for FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and FTSE Small Cap constituents. this operates continuous order book trading b. Operates a quote-displays system called SEAQ for fixed-interest securities and AIM (Alternative investment market) securities.
- SETsqx: where less liquid stocks, listed on the main market are traded. it combines a periodic auction book along with quote-driven market making. This combines periodic electronic order book and quote-driven market making.
INTERNATIONAL SECURITIES:
1. International Order Book (IOB) - depositary receipts on the international securities.
- European Quoting Service (EQS) - European Union Liquid Securities.
What is the LCH and what function does it serve:
LCH is a clearing company. It provides a central counterparty services . It acts as a clearing house whereby the seller sells to the CCP and the buyer buys from the CCP. Therefore, neither parties need to worry about default risk - this is known as novation risk
What are gilts and what are the features of them?
Gilts are UK Government bonds.
- They are AUCTIONED by the Debt Management Office (DMO)
2.Gilt coupons are usually paid GROSS and SEMI-ANNUALLY.
- Ex-dividend date is SEVEN DAYS before the coupon payment.
- Deals settle via CREST ( a settlement system).
- The market for gilts is OTC - decentralised dealers.
Who are GEMMS (Gilt-edged market makers):
- GEMMS are market participants with access to auctions held by DMOs.
- They must bid in DMO primary auctions
- They have special dealing arrangements with the DMO and inter-dealer brokers (IDBs)
How are corporate bonds issued
How are corporate bonds traded
- Corporate bonds are issued via private placements.
- Corporate bonds are traded on a decentralised, dealer-based OTC market.
What are the three main types of exchange trading, over-the-counter and alternative trading venues:
- Over the counter:
- decentralised trading
- securities are not listed on an exchange - Multilateral trading facilities (MFTs):
- trading platforms organised by investment firms. e.g. BATS Chi-X Europe Turquoise. - Systematic internalisers:
- Investment firms dealing own account in liquid shares outside a regulated market of multilateral trading facilitates.
What are organised trading facilitates (3)
- Multilateral system which is not a regulated market or multilateral trading facilities.
- Introduced by MIFID II to capture bonds and certain kinds of derivatives that would not be traded on organised markets of MFTs.
- Trading of organised trading facilities is discretionary.
What are dark pools (2)
- A dark pool is multilateral trading facilities that have opted out of the requirements for pre-trade transparency.
- It allows large trades to be traded without price impact and therefore getting a better price on sizeable orders.
What are the three settlement procedures in the UK (LSE Equity transactions and Gilt)
- LSE Equity Transactions : Settle on T+2 through crest.
- Gilts: Settle on T+1 through crest.
CREST is a computerised system allowing electronic holdings / transfer of shares