CHECK KITING |
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Check kiting is any sort of fraud that involves drawing out money from a bank account that does not have sufficient funds to cover the check. It is typically achieved by taking advantage of the float, the time between the negotiation of the check and its clearance at the check-writer's bank. This fraud is also known as paper hanging and carries a heavier pejorative connotation. Before the passage of the Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act, when checks could take 3 or more days to clear, playing the float was fairly common practice in otherwise-honest low-income families who encountered emergencies right before payday.
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INVESTMENT BANKING |
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Investment banks assist public and private corporations in raising funds in the capital markets (both equity and debt), as well as in providing strategic advisory services for mergers, acquisitions and other types of financial transactions. They also act as intermediaries in trading for clients. Investment banks differ from commercial banks, which take deposits and make commercial and retail loans. In recent years, however, the lines between the two types of structures have blurred, especially as commercial banks have offered more investment banking services. In the US, the Glass-Steagall Act, initially created in the wake of the Stock Market Crash of 1929, prohibited banks from both accepting deposits and underwriting securities; Glass-Steagall was repealed by the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act in 1998. Investment banks may also differ from brokerages, which in general assist in the purchase and sale of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. However some firms operate as both brokerages and investment banks; this includes some of the best known financial services firms in the world.
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LENDING - LOANS |
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A loan is a type of debt. All material things can be lent but this article focuses exclusively on monetary loans. Like all debt instruments, a loan entails the redistribution of financial assets over time, between the lender and the borrower. The borrower initially receives an amount of money from the lender, which they pay back, usually but not always in regular installments, to the lender. This service is generally provided at a cost, referred to as interest on the debt.
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