Financial instrument

Financial instruments are monetary contracts between parties. They can be created, traded, modified and settled. They can be cash (currency), evidence of an ownership interest in an entity or a contractual right to receive or deliver in the form of currency; debt (bonds, loans); equity (shares); or derivatives (options, futures, forwards).

International Accounting Standards IAS 32 and 39 define a financial instrument as "any contract that gives rise to a financial asset of one entity and a financial liability or equity instrument of another entity".[1]

Financial instruments may be categorized by "asset class" depending on whether they are equity-based (reflecting ownership of the issuing entity) or debt-based (reflecting a loan the investor has made to the issuing entity). If the instrument is debt it can be further categorized into short-term (less than one year) or long-term. Foreign exchange instruments and transactions are neither debt- nor equity-based and belong in their own category.

Types

Financial instruments can be either cash instruments or derivative instruments:

Asset class Instrument type
Securities Other cash Exchange-traded derivatives OTC derivatives
Debt (long term)
 1 year
Bonds Loans Bond futures
Options on bond futures
Interest rate swaps
Interest rate caps and floors
Interest rate options
Exotic derivatives
Debt (short term)
 1 year
Bills, e.g. T-bills
Commercial paper
Deposits
Certificates of deposit
Short-term interest rate futures Forward rate agreements
Equity Stock N/A Stock options
Equity futures
Stock options
Exotic derivatives
Foreign exchange N/A Spot foreign exchange Currency futures Foreign exchange options
Outright forwards
Foreign exchange swaps
Currency swaps

Some instruments defy categorization into the above matrix, for example repurchase agreements.

Measuring gain or loss

The gain or loss on a financial instrument is as follows:

Instrument Type Categories Measurement Gains and losses
Assets Loans and receivables Amortized costs Net income when asset is derecognized or impaired (foreign exchange and impairment recognized in net income immediately)
Assets Available for sale financial assets Deposit accountfair value Other comprehensive income (impairment recognized in net income immediately)

See also

  • Off-balance-sheet issues
  • IFRS 9 – Accounting standard titled "Financial Instruments"
  • IFRS 7  Accounting standard titled "Financial Instruments: Disclosures"

References

  1. International Accounting Standard (IAS) 32.11
  2. Understanding Derivatives. Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. Accessed August 2, 2015.
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