Securities are paper assets with financial worth, although the paper is sometimes dispensed with in favour of an electronic record of ownership. It is an extremely broad-ranging term and includes such things as bonds, corporate stocks, even banknotes. Securities are generally grouped into two broad categories: debt securities and equity securities. Debt securities are forms of bond and equity securities are forms of share.

In general, people or institutions wish to hold securities in order to make a profit. This profit can come either through income to which the security may grant a right, for example shares in a company entitle their owner to receive dividends issued by the company; or through a rise in value of the security itself, which is formally known as a capital gain, for example a rise in the price of a company’s shares on the stock market.

In addition, some securities may be desired for reasons other than their pure financial value. Some shares grant voting rights in how a company should be run, for example, or entitle their owner to be given certain kinds of other private information. Some debentures carry membership privileges, allowing their owners to go to certain exclusive places, attend performances and so forth.

In the context of finance, the term acquisition usually refers to the takeover by one company of another. Acquisitions can be motivated by the desire to bring some unique capability held by the purchased company under the control of the purchasing company. For example, the acquired company may have developed unique software. Alternatively, acquisitions can be motivated by the belief that cost savings can be made in the acquired company’s running costs by utilising the already existing capabilities of the company doing the acquiring. For example, the purchasing company may have a strong marketing capability and may feel it will be possible to dispense with the marketing arm of the newly acquired company, thus realizing significant cost savings and raising the overall profit levels.

In most acquisitions, the purchasing company is significantly larger than the company being purchased. When the companies are of around the same size, the acquisition is sometimes portrayed as a merger. Mergers are similar to acquisitions but are usually undertaken on a mutually agreed basis. Often there will be an accord about what will happen after the merger is cemented, which management staff will be retained, and how the divisions of the new company will be reshaped.

A mortgage can be refinanced when the terms are up or if you pay a late penalty fee to end the mortgage. Sometimes this pays to do so especially if the interest rates have dropped like they have recently. But can you do the same thing with a reverse mortgage? Yes, currently you can get a line of credit for your reverse mortgage and then this will be what you take for refinancing. When your house prices go up, the amount of the reverse mortgage can be reevaluated and refinanced according to the new value of the house. This can come in handy if property prices go through the roof which they tend to do – especially as there is a no negative equity guarantee meaning you will never owe more than the value of your home. Maybe this kind of refinancing is worth a look?