Derivatives
Definition of "Derivatives"
Securities that derive their value from other financial instruments that are used by the insurance company to hedge its bets on which direction the market is moving. For example, cattle futures are a simple derivative in that the cattle futures contract increases or decreases in value as future prices change for cows on the hoof. When insurance companies use derivatives, they are more likely to use them in association with currency and interest rate transactions as a means of protecting themselves against adverse moves in interest rates or foreign currency exchanges. This instrument provides a mechanism for hedging against the interest rate risks that are inherent within insurance products by pricing in that risk in advance and protecting against future negative occurrences.
Popular Insurance Terms
Pension plan format. After deciding how much to contribute, the employer can suspend, reduce, or discontinue contributions during the first 10 years only for reasons of business necessity; ...
Latin phrase meaning "beyond power or authority" describing an act by a corporation that exceeds its legal powers. For example, corporations do not have the authority to engage in the ...
Process of discovering sources of loss concerning the property risk faced by individuals and business firms. The first step is to analyze possible perils that can damage or destroy both ...
Coverage that will indemnify the insured for the expenses, up to the limits of the policy, if a building is damaged by a peril such as fire, and zoning requirements and/or building codes ...
Right of survivors to the interest in property of a deceased joint tenant as the result of property held in joint tenancy. ...
Investments restricted to short-term financial instruments issued by state, city, and county governments and agencies. Interest paid by those instruments are not subject to federal income ...
Technique of risk management. It ensures that an individual or business does not incur any liability relating to a given activity by avoiding the activity in question. For example, a ...
Coverage in a separate policy or as an endorsement to the commercial general liability (CGL) form, for liability exposures for an employee who drives a leased car or his or her own ...
Day on which the New York Stock Exchange is open for transactions; used in calculating accumulation unit values for variable dollar insurance products. ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.