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Margin (finance)
In finance, margin is the collateral that a holder of a financial instrument has to deposit with a counterparty (most often a broker or an exchange) to cover some or all of the credit risk the holder poses for the counterparty. This risk can arise if the holder has done any of the following:
The collateral for a margin account can be the cash deposited in the account or securities provided, and represents the funds available to the account holder for further share trading. On United States futures exchanges, margins were formerly called performance bonds. Most of the exchanges today use SPAN ("Standard Portfolio Analysis of Risk") methodology, which was developed by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in 1988, for calculating margins for options and futures.
A margin account is a loan account with a broker which can be used for share trading. The funds available under the margin loan are determined by the broker based on the securities owned and provided by the trader, which act as collateral for the loan. The broker usually has the right to change the percentage of the value of each security it will allow toward further advances to the trader, and may consequently make a margin call if the balance available falls below the amount actually utilised. In any event, the broker will usually charge interest and other fees on the amount drawn on the margin account.
If the cash balance of a margin account is negative, the amount is owed to the broker, and usually attracts interest. If the cash balance is positive, the money is available to the account holder to reinvest, or may be withdrawn by the holder or left in the account and may earn interest. In terms of futures and cleared derivatives, the margin balance would refer to the total value of collateral pledged to the CCP (central counterparty clearing) and or futures commission merchants.
Margin buying refers to the buying of securities with cash borrowed from a broker, using the bought securities as collateral. This has the effect of magnifying any profit or loss made on the securities. The securities serve as collateral for the loan. The net value—the difference between the value of the securities and the loan—is initially equal to the amount of one's own cash used. This difference has to stay above a minimum margin requirement, the purpose of which is to protect the broker against a fall in the value of the securities to the point that the investor can no longer cover the loan.
Margin lending became popular in the late 1800s as a means to finance railroads. In the 1920s, margin requirements were loose. In other words, brokers required investors to put in very little of their own money, whereas today, the Federal Reserve's margin requirement (under Regulation T) limits debt to 50 percent. During the 1920s leverage rates of up to 90 percent debt were not uncommon. When the stock market started to contract, many individuals received margin calls. They had to deliver more money to their brokers or their shares would be sold. Since many individuals did not have the equity to cover their margin positions, their shares were sold, causing further market declines and further margin calls. This was one of the major contributing factors which led to the stock market crash of 1929, which in turn contributed to the Great Depression. However, as reported in Peter Rappoport and Eugene N. White's 1994 paper published in The American Economic Review, "Was the Crash of 1929 Expected", all sources indicate that beginning in either late 1928 or early 1929, "margin requirements began to rise to historic new levels. The typical peak rates on brokers' loans were 40–50 percent. Brokerage houses followed suit and demanded higher margin from investors".
For example, Jane buys a share in a company for $100 using $20 of her own money and $80 borrowed from her broker. The net value (the share price minus the amount borrowed) is $20. The broker has a minimum margin requirement of $10. Suppose the share price drops to $85. The net value is now only $5 (the previous net value of $20 minus the share's $15 drop in price), so, to maintain the broker's minimum margin, Jane needs to increase this net value to $10 or more, either by selling the share or repaying part of the loan.
Short selling refers to the selling of securities that the trader does not own, borrowing them from a broker, and using the cash as collateral. This has the effect of reversing any profit or loss made on the securities. The initial cash deposited by the trader, together with the amount obtained from the sale, serve as collateral for the loan. The net value—the difference between the cash amount and the value of loan security—is initially equal to the amount of one's own cash used. This difference has to stay above a minimum margin requirement, the purpose of which is to protect the broker against a rise in the value of the borrowed securities to the point that the investor can no longer cover the loan.
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Margin (finance)
In finance, margin is the collateral that a holder of a financial instrument has to deposit with a counterparty (most often a broker or an exchange) to cover some or all of the credit risk the holder poses for the counterparty. This risk can arise if the holder has done any of the following:
The collateral for a margin account can be the cash deposited in the account or securities provided, and represents the funds available to the account holder for further share trading. On United States futures exchanges, margins were formerly called performance bonds. Most of the exchanges today use SPAN ("Standard Portfolio Analysis of Risk") methodology, which was developed by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in 1988, for calculating margins for options and futures.
A margin account is a loan account with a broker which can be used for share trading. The funds available under the margin loan are determined by the broker based on the securities owned and provided by the trader, which act as collateral for the loan. The broker usually has the right to change the percentage of the value of each security it will allow toward further advances to the trader, and may consequently make a margin call if the balance available falls below the amount actually utilised. In any event, the broker will usually charge interest and other fees on the amount drawn on the margin account.
If the cash balance of a margin account is negative, the amount is owed to the broker, and usually attracts interest. If the cash balance is positive, the money is available to the account holder to reinvest, or may be withdrawn by the holder or left in the account and may earn interest. In terms of futures and cleared derivatives, the margin balance would refer to the total value of collateral pledged to the CCP (central counterparty clearing) and or futures commission merchants.
Margin buying refers to the buying of securities with cash borrowed from a broker, using the bought securities as collateral. This has the effect of magnifying any profit or loss made on the securities. The securities serve as collateral for the loan. The net value—the difference between the value of the securities and the loan—is initially equal to the amount of one's own cash used. This difference has to stay above a minimum margin requirement, the purpose of which is to protect the broker against a fall in the value of the securities to the point that the investor can no longer cover the loan.
Margin lending became popular in the late 1800s as a means to finance railroads. In the 1920s, margin requirements were loose. In other words, brokers required investors to put in very little of their own money, whereas today, the Federal Reserve's margin requirement (under Regulation T) limits debt to 50 percent. During the 1920s leverage rates of up to 90 percent debt were not uncommon. When the stock market started to contract, many individuals received margin calls. They had to deliver more money to their brokers or their shares would be sold. Since many individuals did not have the equity to cover their margin positions, their shares were sold, causing further market declines and further margin calls. This was one of the major contributing factors which led to the stock market crash of 1929, which in turn contributed to the Great Depression. However, as reported in Peter Rappoport and Eugene N. White's 1994 paper published in The American Economic Review, "Was the Crash of 1929 Expected", all sources indicate that beginning in either late 1928 or early 1929, "margin requirements began to rise to historic new levels. The typical peak rates on brokers' loans were 40–50 percent. Brokerage houses followed suit and demanded higher margin from investors".
For example, Jane buys a share in a company for $100 using $20 of her own money and $80 borrowed from her broker. The net value (the share price minus the amount borrowed) is $20. The broker has a minimum margin requirement of $10. Suppose the share price drops to $85. The net value is now only $5 (the previous net value of $20 minus the share's $15 drop in price), so, to maintain the broker's minimum margin, Jane needs to increase this net value to $10 or more, either by selling the share or repaying part of the loan.
Short selling refers to the selling of securities that the trader does not own, borrowing them from a broker, and using the cash as collateral. This has the effect of reversing any profit or loss made on the securities. The initial cash deposited by the trader, together with the amount obtained from the sale, serve as collateral for the loan. The net value—the difference between the cash amount and the value of loan security—is initially equal to the amount of one's own cash used. This difference has to stay above a minimum margin requirement, the purpose of which is to protect the broker against a rise in the value of the borrowed securities to the point that the investor can no longer cover the loan.