26 July 2021
The number of terms, acronyms, and abbreviations relating to global financial markets, investing, and trading can confuse anyone, even industry professionals, sometimes.
Throughout the APAC region and beyond, these terms are frequently used by providers of prime broker services and other industry insiders. However, they can sometimes seem opaque and confusing to non-specialists.
Our comprehensive glossary provides a handy reminder to those that use prime broker services, especially if you have forgotten what some of them are. We all need an aid-mémoire occasionally.
While no means a completely comprehensive glossary, we’ve included most of the terms you’re likely to encounter in several different markets while providing prime services.
AAAC: Academic and Accreditation Advisory Committee
ABS: Asset-backed Securities
ACCA: Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, The
ACG: Asia-Pacific Central Securities Depository Group
ACGA: Asian Corporate Governance Association
ADB: Asian Development Bank
ADR: American depositary receipt
ADT: Average Daily Turnover
AGM: annual general meeting
AHFT: After-Hours Futures Trading
AHT: After-hours Trading
AIB: Audit Investigation Board
AIFMD: Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive
AIIB: Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
AIM: Alternative Investment Market【UK】
AIMR: Association for Investment Management and Research
ALP: Alternative Liquidity Pool
AMAC: Asset Management Association of China
AMCHAM: American Chamber of Commerce
AMEX: American Stock Exchange
AOSEF: Asian and Oceanian Stock Exchanges Federation
APEC: Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation
API: Application Programming Interface
APRC: Asia Pacific Regional Committee of IOSCO
ASC: Accounting Society of China
ASEAN: Association of Southeast Asian Nations
ASIC: Australian Securities and Investments Commission
ASP: Application Service Provider
AST System: Automated Screen Trading System
ASX: Australian Stock Exchange
ATI: Account Transfer Instruction
ATRS: Approved Trade Registration System
ATS: automated trading services
AUM: assets under management
BCAN: Broker-to-Client Assigned Number
BCCL: Bond Connect Company Limited
Bear ELI: Bear Equity Linked Instrument
BDI: Baltic Dry Index
BESS: Brokers' Electronic Support Services
BFI: Brokers' Fidelity Insurance Scheme
BIS: Bank for International Settlements
BOCE: Bohai Commodity Exchange
BSS: Broker Supplied System
BTF: Block Trade Facility; Block Trading Facility
Bull ELI: Bull Equity Linked Instrument
CAAP: China A-Share Access Products
CAPI: China Association for the Promotion of Investment
CAS: Closing Auction Session
CASBE: China Accounting Standards for Business Enterprises
CASIF: Chinese Association of Securities Investment Funds, The
CBBC: Callable Bull / Bear Contract
CBIRC: China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission
CBMX: China Beijing International Mining Exchange
CBO: Collateralised Bond Obligation
CBOE: Chicago Board Options Exchange
CBOT: Chicago Board of Trade
CBPL: Capital-based Position Limit
CBRC: China Banking Regulatory Commission
CCASS: Central Clearing and Settlement System
CCCG: China Connect Central Gateway
CCDC: China Central Depository & Clearing Company Limited
CCMS: Common Collateral Management System
CCP: Central Counterparty
CCS: Cross-currency Swap
CCSD: Conference of Central Securities Depositories
CDO: Collateralised Debt Obligation
CDR: Chinese depositary receipt
CDS: Credit Default Swap
CEINEX: China Europe International Exchange
CEPA: Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement
CES 120: CES China 120 Index
CES 280: CES China 280 Index
CES 300: CES Stock Connect 300 Index
CES A80: CES China A80 Index
CES FHY: CES Forecast High Dividend Yield Index
CES G10: CES Gaming Top 10 Index
CES HKMI: CES China HK Mainland Index
CES OBOR: CES Belt and Road Index
CES P Elite: CES China Private Elite Index
CES REIT: CES REIT Index
CES SCHK50: CES Stock Connect Hong Kong Premier 50 Index
CES SCHK100: CES Stock Connect Hong Kong Select 100 Index
CES SCHK E&L: CES SCHK Pan-Entertainment and Leisure Index
CES SCHK HYLV: CES SCHK High Yield Low Volatility Index
CESC: China Exchanges Services Company Limited
CFA: Corporate Finance Association, The
CFD: Contract for Differences
CFETS: China Foreign Exchange Trade System
CFFEX: China Financial Futures Exchange
CFMMC: China Futures Margin Monitoring Center Co., Ltd
CFTC: Commodity Futures Trading Commission【US】
CGSE: Chinese Gold and Silver Exchange Society, The
CGT: Capital Gains Tax
CHATS: Clearing House Automated Transfer System
CHESS: Clearing House Electronic Subregister System【Australia】
China Clear or CSDC: China Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation Limited
CHIS: Computershare Hong Kong Investor Services Limited
CIBM: China interbank bond market
CIC: China Investment Corporation Ltd
CICC: China International Capital Corporation Ltd
CICPA: Chinese Institute of Certified Public Accountants, The
CID: Client Identification Data
CIIS: China Investment Information Services Limited
CIMA: Chartered Institute of Management Accountants
CIPS: RMB Cross-border Inter-bank Payment System
CIRC: China Insurance Regulatory Commission
CIS: Collective Investment Scheme
CLN: Credit-linked Note
CLO: Collateralised Loan Obligation
CME: Chicago Mercantile Exchange
CMU: Central Moneymarkets Unit【HKMA】
CNAPS: China National Advanced Payment System
CNS: Continuous Net Settlement
CoCo Bond: Contingent Convertible Bond
COD: Cash on Delivery
COP: Calculated Opening Price
Corpfin: Corporate Finance Association
COT Report: Commitments of Traders Report
Corporate Form CIS: Corporate Form Collective Investment Scheme
CPI: Capital Protected Instrument
CPMI: Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures
CPSS: Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems, The
CPT: Continuous Professional Training
CRMA: Credit Risk Mitigation Agreement
CRMW: Credit Risk Mitigation Warrant
CSA: Credit Support Annex
CSC: China Stock Connect
CSDC or China Clear: China Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation Limited
CSF: China Securities Finance Corporation Limited
CS: China Securities Index Company Limited
CSR: Corporate Social Responsibility
CSRC: China Securities Regulatory Commission
D-Lite: Derivatives Lite
DCASS: Derivatives Clearing and Settlement System
DCE: Dalian Commodity Exchange
DCI: Direct Credit Instruction
DCP: Direct Clearing Participant
DDF: Digital Data Feed
DDI: Direct Debit Instruction
DION System: Disclosure of Interests Online System
DMDS: Direct Margin Debiting System
DNS: Depository and Common Nominee System
DRP: Disciplinary Review Panel
DTB: Deutsche Terminborse
DTC: Deposit-taking Company
DTC【US】: Depository Trust Company【US】
DTCA: DTC Association, The
DTCC: Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation【US】
DTDC: Dual Tranche, Dual Counter
DvP: Delivery vs Payment
EAOSEF: East Asian and Oceanian Stock Exchanges Federation
EAS Price: Estimated Average Settlement Price
EBRD: European Bank of Reconstruction and Development
ECN: Electronic Communication Network
ECP: Electronic Communication Platform
EDGAR: Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval【US】
EERI: Effective Exchange Rate Index for the Hong Kong Dollar
EFIL: Exchange Fund Investment Limited
EFN: Exchange Fund Note
EGM: Extraordinary General Meeting
EIPO: Electronic Initial Public Offering service
ELI: Equity Linked Instrument
ELN: Equity Linked Note
EMIR: European Market Infrastructure Regulation
EMSIS: Electronic Mailing Stock Information Service
EMU: European Economic and Monetary Union
EPI: Electronic Payment Instruction
EP: Earning Per Share
EPS: Electronic Publication System
ESMA: European Securities and Markets Authority
ESN: Ecosystem Network
ESS: Electronic Submission System
ETC: Exchange Traded Certificate
ETD: Exchange Traded Derivatives
ETF: Exchange Traded Fund
ETN: Exchange Traded Note
ETP: Exchange Traded Product
Fannie Mae: Federal National Mortgage Association 【US】
FATCA: Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act 【US】
FCA: Financial Conduct Authority【UK】
FDRC: Financial Dispute Resolution Centre Ltd
FIC: Fixed Income and Currency
FIFO: First In, First Out
FOMC: Federal Open Market Committee 【US】
FPS: Faster Payments System【HKMA】
FRA: Forward Rate Agreement
FRC: Financial Reporting Council, The
FRCD: Floating Rate Certificate of Deposit
Freddie Mac: Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation 【US】
FRN: Floating Rate Note
FRR: Financial Resources Rules
FRRC: Financial Reporting Review Committee
FRRP: Financial Reporting Review Panel
FSA: Financial Services Authority【UK】
FSDC:Financial Services Development Council
FXI China 25: FTSE / Xinhua China 25 Index
GAAP: Generally Accepted Accounting Principles
GBA-GFA: Greater Bay Area Green Finance Alliance
GCP: General Clearing Participant
GDGFC: Green Finance Committee of Guangdong Society for Finance and Banking
GDP: Gross Domestic Product
GDR: Global Depositary Receipt
GLEIS: Global Legal Entity Identifier System
GNP: Gross National Product
GRI: Global Reporting Initiative
GTC: Good-till-cancelled Order
GTD: Good-till-date Order
Hang Seng Indexes: Hang Seng Indexes Company Limited
HDR: Hong Kong Depositary Receipt
H-Fin: Hang Seng China H-Financials Index
HIBOR: Hong Kong Interbank Offered Rate
HKAB: Hong Kong Association of Banks
HKAOB: Hong Kong Association of Online Brokers Limited, The
HKATS: Hong Kong Futures Automated Trading System
HKCC: HKFE Clearing Corporation Limited
HKEX: Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited
HKEX-IS: HKEX Information Services Limited
HKF: Hong Kong Futures Exchange Limited
HKFRS: Hong Kong Financial Reporting Standards
HKICL: Hong Kong Interbank Clearing Limited
HKICPA: Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants
HKICS: Hong Kong Institute of Company Secretaries, The
HKIFA: Hong Kong Investment Funds Association
HKII: Hong Kong Institute of Investors
HKIMR: Hong Kong Institute for Monetary Research
HKIRA: Hong Kong Investor Relations Association, The
HKMA: Hong Kong Monetary Authority
HKMEx: Hong Kong Mercantile Exchange
HKSCC: Hong Kong Securities Clearing Company Limited
HKSI: Hong Kong Securities and Investment Institute
HKSIR: Hong Kong Standards on Investment Circular Reporting Engagements
HONIA: Hong Kong Dollar Overnight Index Average
HSBCI: Hang Seng Broad Consumption Index
HSCCI: Hang Seng China-Affiliated Corporations Index
HSCEEWI: Hang Seng China Enterprises Equal Weighted Index
HSCEI: Hang Seng China Enterprises Index
HSCEIGTRI Futures: Hang Seng China Enterprises Index (Gross Total Return Index) Futures
HSCEINTRI Futures: Hang Seng China Enterprises Index (Net Total Return Index) Futures
HSCI: Hang Seng Composite Index
HSEWI: Hang Seng Equal Weighted Index
HSHBI: Hang Seng High Beta Index
HSI: Hang Seng Index
HSIGTRI Futures: Hang Seng Index (Gross Total Return Index) Futures
HSINTRI Futures: Hang Seng Index (Net Total Return Index) Futures
HSII: Hang Seng Infrastructure Index
HSITHI: Hang Seng IT Hardware Index
HSLI: Hang Seng Composite LargeCap Index
HSLVI: Hang Seng Low Volatility Index
HSM iBoxx: Hang Seng Markit iBoxx Offshore RMB Bond Index family
HSMBI: Hang Seng Mainland Banks Index
HSMCGI: Hang Seng Mainland Consumer Goods Index
HSMHI: Hang Seng Mainland Healthcare Index
HSMI: Hang Seng Composite MidCap Index
HSML25: Hang Seng Mainland 25
HSML100: Hang Seng Mainland 100
HSMLCI: Hang Seng Mainland Composite Index
HSMLFI: Hang Seng Mainland Freefloat Index
HSMOGI: Hang Seng Mainland Oil & Gas Index
HSMPI: Hang Seng Mainland Properties Index
HSN: HKEX Service Network
HSNRI: Hang Seng Natural Resources Index
HSNVP: HSN Virtual Port
HSSCHI: Hang Seng SCHK Mainland China Healthcare Index
HSSI: Hang Seng Composite SmallCap Index
HSSSI: Hang Seng Software & Services Index
VHSCEI: HSCEI Volatility Index
IAASB: International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, The
IAS: International Accounting Standards
IASB: International Accounting Standards Board iBond see inflation-linked retail bond
ICA England & Wales: Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales
ICE: Intercontinental Exchange
ICO: initial coin offering
ICPA: Institute of Certified Public Accountants【US】
IEC: Investor Education Centre
IEP: Indicative Equilibrium Price
IEV: Indicative Equilibrium Volume
IFAC: International Federation of Accountants
IFC: International Finance Corporation
IFRS: International Financial Reporting Standards
IIRC: International Integrated Reporting Council
IMF: International Monetary Fund
IMRO: Investment Management Regulatory Organisation
INED: Independent Non-executive Director
IOC: Immediate-or-Cancel order
IoD: Institute of Directors【UK】
IOMA: International Options Markets Association
IOSCO: International Organisation of Securities Commissions
IP: Investor Participant
IPMA: International Primary Markets Association
IPO: initial public offering
IRS: Interest Rate Swap
ISD: Investment Services Directive【European Union】
ISDA: International Swaps and Derivatives Association
ISIN: International Securities Identification Number
ISI: Investor Settlement Instruction
ISMA: International Securities Markets Association
ISO: International Organisation for Standardisation
ISSA: International Securities Services Association
IVRS: Interactive Voice Response System
LAF: Liquidity Adjustment Facility【HKMA】
LAN: Local Area Network
LAW: Liquidity Adjustment Window
LBO: Leveraged Buy-out
LEI: Legal Entity Identifier
LGFV: local government financing vehicle
L&I Products: Leveraged and Inverse Products
LIFO: Last In, First Out
LISA: Listing Information Support Application
LOBO: Long Only Brokers for Options
LOF: Listed Open-end Fund
LSE: London Stock Exchange
LTOM: London Traded Options Market
MACD: Moving Average ConvergenceDivergence
MAP: Market Access Product
Mass ATI: Mass Account Transfer Instruction
MBO: Management Buy-out
MCS: mandatory convertible securities
MDS: Market Data System
MIC: Market Identifier Code
MiFID II: Markets in Financial Instruments Directives II
MLF: Medium-term Lending Facility【Mainland】
MMDH: Mainland Market Data Hub
MORC: Memorandum of Regulatory Cooperation
MOU: memorandum of understanding
MPF: Mandatory Provident Fund
MTF: Multilateral Trading Facility
MWS: Multi-workstation System
NAFMII: National Association of Financial Market Institutional Investors
NASDAQ: National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations【US】
NCD: Negotiable Certificate of Deposit
NCP: Non-Clearing Participant or Non-Clearing Options Trading Participant【options trading】
NDF: Non-deliverable Forward Contract
NDIRS: Non-deliverable IRS
NDRC: National Development and Reform Commission
NEEQ: National Equities Exchange and Quotations
NETS: National Electronic Trading System【Mainland】
New Third Board: National Equities Exchange and Quotations【Mainland】
NHMPE: Non-H-share Mainland Private Enterprise
NSSF: National Social Security Fund
NSTD: New Securities Trading Device
NYX: NYSE Euronext
OAPI: OMnet Application Programming Interface
OASIS: OTC Account Services Information System
OBC: Order Book Changes
OBEP: Options Broker Exchange Participant
OCASS: OTC Clearing and Settlement System
OCG: HKEX Orion Central Gateway
OIS: Overnight Index Swap
OMD: HKEX Orion Market Data Platform
OMS: Order Management System
ORE: Options Reference Educator
ORS: Order Routing System
OTC: Over the Counter
OTC Clear: OTC Clearing Hong Kong Limited
OTEP: Options Trading Exchange Participant
OTP: Orion Trading Platform
PAI: Price Alignment Interest
PBC: People’s Bank of China
PCS: Provisional Clearing Statement
P/E: Price/Earnings ratio
PFMI: Principles for Financial Market Infrastructures
PHIP: Post Hearing Information Pack
PIN: Personal Identification Number
PIOB: Public Interest Oversight Board
PIS: Participants Information System
PMI: Purchasing Managers’ Index
PMSC:Panel Member Selection Committee
PNS: Proprietary Network System
POSIT: Portfolio System for Institutional Traders【Australia】
PPP: Public Private Partnership
PPP: purchasing power parity
PriME: Portfolio Risk Margining System of HKEX
PRS: Price Reporting System【futures】
PRO: Participant Remote Operating Platform
PG: Participant Gateway
PSL: pledged supplementary lending
PSS: Participant Supplied System
PT: Particular Transfer
PTRM: Pre-Trade Risk Management
PUE: Power Usage Efficiency
PvP: Payment vs Payment【banking】
QDIE: Qualified Domestic Investment Enterprise
QDII: Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor
QDII2: Qualified Domestic Individual Investor
QDLP: Qualified Domestic Limited Partner
QFII: Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor
QFLP: Qualified Foreign Limited Partner
QME: Qianhai Mercantile Exchange Company Limited
Range ELI: Range Equity Linked Instrument
RCEP: Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership
RDDS: Realtime Digital Data Service
REIT: Real Estate Investment trust
REPO: Repurchase Agreement
RFA Announcement: Request for Assistance Announcement
RFQ: Request for Quote
RIQ: Recognised Industry Qualifications
RLB: Restricted Licence Bank
RMA: Reciprocal Membership Arrangement
RPF: Risk Parameter File
RQDII: RMB Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor
RQFII: RMB Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor
RRR: Reserve Requirement Ratio
RSI: Relative Strength Index
RTGS: Real Time Gross Settlement System【HKMA】
RVM: Realised Variation Margin
RXY: Thomson Reuters/HKEX RMB Currency Indices
SAAC: Securities Analysts Association of China
SAC: Securities Association of China, The
SAFE: State Administration of Foreign Exchange【Mainland】
SAN: Storage Area Network
SASAC: State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission
SBLA: Securities Borrowing and Lending Agreement
SCCLR: Standing Committee on Company Law Reform
SCEFI: Steering Committee on the Enhancement of Financial Infrastructure, The
SCP: Self Clearing Participant
SDR: Special Drawing Right
SEC: Securities and Exchange Commission【US】
SEE: Shanghai Equity Exchange
SEHK: Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited, The
SEIS: Stock Exchange Information Services Limited
SEOCH: SEHK Options Clearing House Limited, The
SFAT: Securities and Futures Appeals Tribunal
SFC: Securities and Futures Commission, The
SGX: Singapore Exchange
SHCH: Shanghai Clearing House
SHFE: Shanghai Futures Exchange
SHHKSI: Hang Seng CSI Shanghai-Hong Kong AH Smart Index
SI: Settlement Instruction
SIB: Securities and Investment Board【UK】
SMARTS: Securities Markets Automated Research Training & Surveillance
SME Board: Small and Medium Enterprise Board【SZSE】
SMFP: share margin finance provider
SOES: Small Order Entry System / Small Order Execution System【US】
SOPL: Stock Option Position Limit
SPAC: Special Purpose Acquisition Company
SPAN: Standard Portfolio Analysis of Risk
SPDR: Standard & Poor’s Depositary Receipt
SPRINTS: Structured Products Integrated Transaction System
SPSA: Special Segregated Account
SPV: Special Purpose Vehicle
SSA: Stock Segregated Account with Statement Service【CCASS】
SSAP: Statement of Standard Accounting Practice
SSE: Shanghai Stock Exchange
STAGE: Sustainable and Green Exchange
STAQS: Securities Trading Automated Quotation System【Mainland】
STSC: Single Tranche, Single Counter
SUAEE: Shanghai United Assets and Equity Exchange
SWIFT: Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications
SZGFC see Green Finance Committee of Financial Society of Shenzhen Special Economic Zone
SZSE: Shenzhen Stock Exchange
T
TAIEX: Taiwan Stock Exchange Capitalisation Weighted Stock Index
TAIFEX: Taiwan Futures Exchange
TCFD: Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures
TDCC: Taiwan Depository & Clearing Corporation
TIPS: Theoretical Indicative Pricing System【futures】
TMA: Treasury Markets Association
TMC: Tailor-Made Combination
TOPIC: Teletext Output of Price Information by Computer【UK】
TOPS: Traded OPtions System
TPC: Third Party Clearing
TPEx: Taipei Exchange
TraHK: Tracker Fund of Hong Kong
TSF: RMB Equity Trading Support Facility
TWAP: Time Weighted Average Price
TWSE: Taiwan Stock Exchange Corporation
UAT: User Acceptance Test
UCITS: Undertakings in Collective Investments in Transferable Securities
UNFCCC: United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
UNPRI: United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment
UNSDGs: United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
UPS: Uninterrupted Power Supply
USM: Uncertificated Securities Market
VCM: Volatility Control Mechanism
VHSI: HSI Volatility Index
VIE: Variable Interest Entity
VSR: Volatility Scan Range
VWAP: Volume-weighted Average Price
WFE: World Federation of Exchanges
WPIP: Web Proof Information Pack
ZCE: Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange
Want to know more?
As you can see, there are a multitude of terms that you may encounter as a prime broker. While some of them are specialists, others are more commonplace and will be part of your usual trading vocabulary.
If you encounter any terms that are not included or would like to find out more about the complete prime broker service offered by GIS HK, our experienced team would be happy to hear from you.
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