Base Currency | The first currency quoted in a currency pair on forex. It is also typically considered the domestic currency or accounting currency. For accounting purposes, a firm may use the base currency to represent all profits and losses. It is sometimes referred to as the “primary currency”. For example, if you were looking at the CAD/USD currency pair, the Canadian dollar would be the base currency and the U.S. dollar would be the quote currency. The price represents how much of the quote currency is needed for you to get one unit of the base currency. More Information: |
Basis Point | A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1% and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument. The basis point is commonly used for calculating changes in interest rates, equity indexes and the yield of a fixed-income security. The relationship between percentage changes and basis points can be summarized as follows: 1% change = 100 basis points, and 0.01% = 1 basis point. So, a bond whose yield increases from 5% to 5.5% is said to increase by 50 basis points; or interest rates that have risen 1% are said to have increased by 100 basis points. |
Beta | A measure of the volatility, or systematic risk, of a security or a portfolio in comparison to the market. Beta is used in the capital asset pricing model (CAPM), a model that calculates the expected return of an asset based on its beta and expected market returns. Also known as “beta coefficient.” Beta is calculated using regression analysis, and you can think of beta as the tendency of a security’s returns to respond to swings in the market. A beta of 1 indicates that the security’s price will move with the market. A beta of less than 1 means that the security will be less volatile than the market. A beta of greater than 1 indicates that the security’s price will be more volatile than the market. For example, if a stock’s beta is 1.2, it’s theoretically 20% more volatile than the market. Many utilities stocks have a beta of less than 1. Conversely, most high-tech, Nasdaq-based stocks have a beta of greater than 1, offering the possibility of a higher rate of return, but also posing more risk. |
BCB | Banco Central do Brasil (BCB), the central bank agency of Brazil. |
BOC | Bank of Canada, the central bank agency of Canada. |
BOE | Bank of England, the central bank agency of the United Kingdom. |
BOJ | Bank of Japan, the central bank agency of Japan. |
Bitcoin | The original cryptocurrency, Bitcoin was created in 2008 using a new technology called Blockchain. This digital currency used encryption techniques to regulate the generation of units of currency and verify the transfer of funds, operating independently of a Central Bank or equivalent government agency. More Information: |
Bitcoin Cash | Bitcoin cash is a cryptocurrency (“fork”) of the original Bitcoin. It is the split of the Bitcoin transaction ledger, also known as the Blockchain. This was launched in August 2017 and operates under a set of different rules. Bitcoin Cash effectively increased the size of blocks (from 1mb to 8mb), allowing for more transactions to be processed. More Information: |
Bid | The highest price a buyer is willing to pay for a product is referred to as the ‘bid’. X More Information: |
Blockchain | A digital ledger in which transactions made in cryptocurrencies or digital assets are recorded chronologically and publicly. The decentralized, distributed, and public ledger is spread across many computers so that records cannot be altered retroactively. The inedible record cannot be changed, and the authenticity can be verified by the entire community using the blockchain. It was originally developed as the accounting method for the first digital currency Bitcoin. More Information: |
Bull Market | A market distinguished by rising prices. Bullish investors have a positive opinion about a market, believing that prices will continue to rise. |
Buy Limit Entry Order | An order to open a buy position only at the designated price or lower. X |
Buy Stop Entry Order | An order to open a buy position only at the designated price or higher. X |