This is a glossary of terms that are, for the most part, unique to the world of financial investigations, or terms that have a different meaning than that which is commonly understood when they are used in this context.

Take A Bath: Said of an investor who sustains a large loss on an investment or speculation.

Take A Flier: The process of buying securities with the full knowledge that the investment is highly risky. The investor is said to be speculating.

Take A Position: 1) Term used when a broker-dealer has a security that is held in inventory. The position may be either long or short. 2) Said of investors who buy securities with the intention of holding them for the long term or using them to take control of the company.

Takeover: A change in a corporation's controlling interest through either a friendly acquisition or a hostile bid. Hostile takeovers aim to replace the target company's existing management and are usually attempted through a public tender offer. Other takeover methods are unsolicited merger proposals to directors, accumulation of shares in the open market, or proxy fights.

Taking Delivery: Procedure whereby the buyer's broker accepts receipt of security certificates from the seller's broker.

Tape: Commonly called a "ticker tape", it is a service that reports the prices and size of transactions that took place on major exchanges. The term also refers to the Dow Jones news wire, however, this is more commonly known as the "Broad Tape".

Target Company: A firm that has been deemed as attractive for takeover by a potential acquirer.

Tax Deferred: Phrase used to describe investments whose accumulated earnings are not taxed until the investor takes possession of them. In IRAs, for example, all dividends, interest and appreciation accumulate until the account owner starts withdrawing funds from the account, usually at age 59 1/2.

Tax Exempt Money Market Fund: A mutual fund that invests in short term municipal securities that are tax-exempt. The fund distributes the income tax-free to shareholders.

Tax Exempt Security: A debt obligation whose interest is exempt from federal, state and/or local taxes--commonly called a "municipal bond" or just "municipals". All tax-exempt bonds are federally exempt as well as in the state and, if applicable, local jurisdiction in which the securities are issued.

Tax Haven: An international banking and financial center providing privacy and tax benefits.

Tax Regimen: The local tax treatment of income tax, foreign source income, nonresident treatment and special tax concessions which, when combined, form complex issues.

Tax Selling: Securities sold to realize a loss that can be used to offset any capital gains. This is usually done at the end of the year.

T-Bill (Treasury Bill): A short-term debt obligation of the US Government that is purchased at a discount from face value--that is, they are bought at a discounted price and mature at face value. The amount of the discount is considered the interest. They are sold in denominations of $10,000 to $1 million and have maturities of either 13 weeks, 26 weeks or 52 weeks. T-bills are a common abbreviation for "Treasury bills".

T-Bond (Treasury Bond): A long term debt obligation of the US government that has a maturity of more than 10 years. They are issued in $1,000 denominations and pay interest semiannually. T-bonds are a common abbreviation for "Treasury bonds".

TCI: Turks and Caicos Islands.

TD (Time Deposit): Certificate of deposits or savings accounts that are held in a financial institution for a set amount of time. The funds cannot be withdrawn until the depositor gives the institution notice. Technically, certificates of deposit do not require any notification to withdraw as the date is set beforehand.
Tear Sheet: A sheet (report) from Standard & Poor's Stock Reports. The reports provide information on over 4000 corporations. Each report details a corporation's financial data and provides data on the company's fundamental business and its future outlook. These reports are often torn out of the books by brokers and mailed to their clients--hence, the origination of the term.

Technical Analysis: Research and examination of the market and securities as it relates to their supply and demand in the marketplace. The technician uses charts and computer programs to identify and project price trends. The analysis includes studying price movements and trading volumes to determine patterns such as Head and Shoulder Formations and W Formations. Other indicators include support and resistance levels, and moving averages. In contrast to fundamental analysis, technical analysis does not consider a corporation's financial data.

Technical Analyst: A person who examines all data available on the overall market and individual stocks to ascertain their supply and demand in the marketplace.

Technical Rally: A brief rise in securities' prices within a general market descent. These rallies usually occur when analysts observe a support level at which securities will rebound or bargain hunters perceive the securities to be good buy. Once the market has rebounded, it normally resumes its decline.

Technical Sign: A short term trend that a technician ascertains as being significant in a security's price movement.

Tender: 1) Act of surrendering ownership in a corporation's securities in response to an offer to buy them at a set price as in a tender offer. 2) The submittal of a bid to buy a security such as in a US Treasury bill auction.

Tender Offer: An offer to buy shares from the target company's stockholders by another company or organization. The offer may be for cash, securities or both. Often, the goal is to take control of the target company. The suitor may be hostile or friendly. During a specified time period, shareholders are asked to tender (surrender) their shares for a stated value, usually at a premium, subject to the tendering of a minimum and maximum number of shares.

Testamentary Trust: A trust that is established within a person's will. This differs from an Inter Vivos Trust that is created during the grantor's lifetime.

Thin Market: Market on a security that has too few bids and too few offers to sell. Large trades can have a marked affect on a security's prices, making the security much more volatile. Institutional investors usually avoid buying stocks that have a thin market for this reason--that is, it is hard for them to get in or out of a position without substantially affecting the security's price.

Third Market: Over-the-counter trading of exchange-listed securities among institutional investors and broker/dealers for their own accounts (not as agents for buyers and sellers). Stock exchange members or non-members may trade large blocks of stock off the floor to avoid the transaction's unsettling effect on the market, or avoid paying a commission on the sale.

Thirty Day Wash Rule: IRS rule stipulating that losses incurred from selling securities may not be used to offset gains if an equivalent security is bought within thirty days before or after the date of sale.

Tick: The downward or upward price movement in a security's transactions.

Ticker Symbol: Letters used in trading to identify a corporation's securities on the ticker tape.

Ticker Tape: Telegraphic system that displays security transactions within a minute after it occurred. Commonly called the "tape", it provides the trade's last sale price and volume.

Tight Market: Market for a security, or the overall market, that is characterized by very active trading and narrow bid and asked price spreads.

Tight Money: Tight credit--that is, an economic condition in which there is little money available for loans.

Time Deposit (TD): Certificate of deposits or savings accounts that are held in a financial institution for a set amount of time. The funds cannot be withdrawn until the depositor gives the institution notice. Technically, certificates of deposit do not require any notification to withdraw since the date is set beforehand.

Time Value: The amount of an option premium that exceeds the intrinsic value of an in-the-money option. A call option with a strike price of 30, for example, has a premium of 3. If the underlying stock is at 32, the call has an intrinsic value of 2, and the time value is 1. The premium for an option that is at- or out-of-the-money is all time value.

T-Note (Treasury Note): A intermediate term debt obligation of the US government that has maturities of one to ten years. They are issued in $1,000 denominations and pay interest semiannually. T-notes are a common abbreviation for "Treasury notes.

Topping Out: A market or security that has reached a point where its price is no longer rising. It is expected to plateau or decline.

Total Return: An investment’s annual return based on appreciation and dividends or interest.

Trade: The completion of an order to buy or sell securities--that is, an order is executed.

Trade Date: The day on which a securities order to buy or sell is executed.

Trader: An investor who buys and sells securities to take advantage of small price changes within a short time period--sometimes days or hours. A trader may also be an employee of a broker-dealer or financial institution who buys and sells securities for their firm's accounts or for the firm's clients.

Trading Authorization: Written document that permits a third party to do transactions on the behalf of the account owners. The document must be signed by all account owners. In brokerage, a full trading authorization allows the third party to place security orders and remove assets from the account. A limited authorization just allows buying and selling of securities--assets cannot be removed from the account.

Trading Floor: The area of an exchange where securities are bought and sold.

Trading Halt: A security that has temporarily stopped trading because of a major news announcement or an imbalance of orders to buy and sell.

Trading Range: A security's highest and lowest price in which it has traded over a specified time. Technical analysts watch trading ranges carefully as they believe It is of great importance when a security breaks out of its trading range--high or low end.

Trading Unit: Number of shares, bonds, or commodities that is considered the normal unit of trading on an exchange. For stocks, it is usually a round lot (100 shares). For corporate bonds, it is usually $1,000 or $5,000 par value. Commodities do not have a set unit--it varies depending upon the actual commodity.

Tranche: One of a related series of security issues—each with different cash flows, strike prices, expiration dates, and/or return patterns—created to meet differing investor or issuer requirements or to carve up the returns from a set of underlying cash flows in a marketable way. Mortgage-backed securities, equity-linked notes, and range warrants are often created in tranches.

Transaction: An order to buy or sell securities that has been executed.

Transfer: 1) Process whereby a seller's broker delivers the certificates to the buyer's broker to effect a legal change of ownership. 2) To record the change of ownership on a corporation's books by its transfer agent. The buyer's name is recorded and all dividends, financial reports, proxies, and other literature are mailed directly to the new owner.

Transfer Agent: Appointed by a corporation, an agent keeps records on registered shareholders, cancels sold certificates, issues new certificates to new owners, and resolves any problems arising from lost, stolen or damaged certificates.

Transfer And Hold: A designation made to a client's account to denote that securities are to be registered in the client's name and are to be kept for the client in the brokerage firm's vault. When the security is sold, the client will need to sign a stock/bond power allowing transferal to the new owner.

Transfer And Ship: A designation made to a client's account to denote that securities are to be registered in the client's name. The certificates are then mailed directly to the client at the address on record. This process normally takes two to six weeks. Upon receiving the certificate, the client must find a safe location to keep the certificates. If they are lost, stolen or damaged, it is the shareholder's responsibility to have the certificates replaced, which is a labor intensive process.

Transmogrifying: Conversion of nonexempt assets to exempt assets.

Treasuries: Negotiable debt obligations backed by the full faith and credit of the US government. The obligation's maturity date determines whether it is a Treasury bill, Treasury bond or Treasury Note. All income generated from Treasuries are exempt from state and local taxes, but not federal.

Treasury Bill (T-Bill): A short term debt obligation of the US government that is purchased at a discount from face value--that is, they are bought at a discounted price and mature at face value. The amount of the discount is considered the interest. They are sold in denominations of $10,000 to $1 million and have maturities of either 13 weeks, 26 weeks or 52 weeks. Treasury bills are commonly abbreviated as "T-bills".

Treasury Bond (T-Bond): A long term debt obligation of the US government that has a maturity of more than 10 years. They are issued in $1,000 denominations and pay interest semiannually. Treasury bonds are commonly abbreviated as "T-bonds".

Treasury Note (T-Note): A intermediate term debt obligation of the US government that has a maturity from one to ten years. They are issued in $1,000 denominations and pay interest semiannually. Treasury notes are commonly abbreviated as "T-notes".

Treasury Stock: Issued stock that has been re-acquired by the corporation from the stockholders--it is not outstanding. The stock is not eligible to receive dividends or to vote. These shares may be held by the company indefinitely, reissued to the public or retired. Among other reasons, treasury stock may be created to counter a tender offer and to provide shares for the exercise of stock options, warrants and convertible securities.

Trend: The direction in which price and trading volume are moving over a short or long term basis. The movement may either be up, down or sideways. Technical analysts study market and security trends to forecast future movements.

Trendline: A chart used by technical analysts. A line is drawn by connecting the highest or lowest prices to which a security has risen or fallen within a period. The line's angle shows whether the security is in a downtrend or an uptrend. If the security's price rises above a downward sloping line or drops below a rising uptrend line, analysts believe the security will start to move in a new direction.

Trin: A measure of stock market strength that relates the number of stocks that advanced or declined to the total number of shares that advanced or declined. A trin under 1.00 is bullish and a trin over 1.00 is bearish.

Triple Tax Exempt: Municipal bonds in which interest is free from federal, state, or local taxes for residents of the states and localities that issue them. If the bondholder is not a resident of the state, the interest is only exempt from federal taxes. Typically, bonds issued by US territories are triple tax exempt.

Triple Witching Hour: The last trading hour on the third Friday on which stock options, stock index options, and stock index futures all expire simultaneously. This occurs in the months of March, June, September and December. There may be a large amount of trading as traders and investors attempt to close their positions in the option and/or the underlying stock. This may create a volatile market.

True Settlor: The true grantor is not the true settlor, and his or her identity is kept quite private by the trustee. See grantor trust.

Trust: An entity created for the purpose of protecting and conserving assets for the benefit of a third party, the beneficiary. A contract affecting three parties, the settlor, the trustee and the beneficiary. A trust protector is optional but recommended, as well. In the trust, the settlor transfers asset ownership to the trustee on behalf of the beneficiaries.

Trust Deed: An asset protection trust document or instrument.

Trust Indenture: A trust instrument such as a trust deed creating an offshore trust.

Trust Protector: A person appointed by the settlor to oversee the trust on behalf of the beneficiaries. In many jurisdictions, local trust laws define the concept of the trust protector. Has veto power over the trustee with respect to discretionary matters but no say with respect to issues unequivocally covered in the trust deed. Trust decisions are the trustee's alone. Has the power to remove the trustee and appoint trustees. Consults with the settlor, but the final decisions must be the protector's.

Trustee: A person totally independent of the settlor who has the fiduciary responsibility to the beneficiaries to manage the assets of the trust as a reasonable prudent business person would do in the same circumstances. Shall defer to the trust protector when required in the best interest of the trust. The trustee reporting requirements shall be defined at the onset and should include how often, to whom, how to respond to instructions or inquiries, global investment strategies, fees (flat and/or percentage of the valuation of the trust estate), anticipated future increases in fees, hourly rates for consulting services, seminars and client educational materials, etc. The trustee may have full discretionary powers of distributions to beneficiaries.
12B-1 Fees: A fee that is levied by a mutual fund--usually on a yearly basis and is usually about 1% or less of a fund's assets. The monies collected are usually used to pay broker-dealers for servicing accounts. A mutual fund that charges a 12B-1 fee must disclose this in writing. Mutual funds that assess 12B-1 fees generally are no-load funds.

Two Dollar Broker: A floor broker who executes orders for other brokers--hence, sometimes called a "broker's broker".

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