Home > Terms > English, UK (UE) > Derivative financial instruments

Derivative financial instruments

Financial instruments such as financial options, futures and forwards, interest rate swaps and AG15–AG16 currency swaps, which create rights and obligations that have the effect of transferring between the parties to the instrument one or more of the financial risks inherent in an underlying primary financial instrument. On inception, derivative financial instruments give one party a contractual right to exchange financial assets or financial liabilities with another party under conditions that are potentially favourable, or a contractual obligation to exchange financial assets or financial liabilities with another party under conditions that are potentially unfavourable. However, they generally do not result in a transfer of the underlying primary financial instrument on inception of the contract, nor does such a transfer necessarily take place on maturity of the contract. Some instruments embody both a right and an obligation to make an exchange. Because the terms of the exchange are determined on inception of the derivative instrument, as prices in financial markets change those terms may become either favourable or unfavourable.

This is auto-generated content. You can help to improve it.
0
Collect to Blossary

Member comments

You have to log in to post to discussions.

Terms in the News

Featured Terms

Harry8L
  • 0

    Terms

  • 0

    Blossaries

  • 1

    Followers

Industry/Domain: Astronomy Category: Mars

Curiosity

Curiosity is NASA's car-sized, nuclear-powered Mars rover that was launched aboard a NASA spacecraft on November 26, 2011 and landed on Mars on August ...

Contributor

Featured blossaries

Unusual Sports

Category: Sports   2 3 Terms

Best Mobile Phones 2014

Category: Technology   2 2 Terms

Browers Terms By Category