| Securities are broadly categorised into debt and equity securities. The company or other entity issuing the security is called the issuer. A security is a fungible, negotiable interest representing financial value. Fungibility is a measure of how easily one good may be exchanged or substituted for another example of the same good at equal value.
Securities may be represented by a certificate or, more typically, by an electronic book entry interest. Certificates may be bearer, meaning they entitle the holder to rights under the security merely by holding the security, or registered, meaning they entitle the holder to rights only if he or she appears on a security register maintained by the issuer or an intermediary. They include shares of corporate stock or mutual funds, bonds issued by corporations or governmental agencies, stock options or other options, limited partnership units, and various other formal investment instruments that are negotiable and fungible.
Securities may be classified according to the following categories:
- Issuer
- Currency of denomination
- Ownership rights
- Term to maturity
- Degree of liquidity
- Income payments
- Tax treatment
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