algo n.— «Powerful algorithms—“algos,” in industry parlance—execute millions of orders a second and scan dozens of public and private marketplaces simultaneously. They can spot trends before other investors can blink, changing orders and strategies...
synthetic short n.— «At a time when traders would normally have shorted the stock as part of the trade, they’re instead bypassing the rising cost of doing so by assembling what are called “synthetic shorts.” In case you’re not familiar with that...
zirp n.— «The United States is repeating a Japanese experiment with a zero in one of the most important variables in financial markets: the official overnight interest rate. The so-called zirp, an acronym for zero interest-rate policy, is combined...
back up the truck v. phr.— «The safety of these securities caused financial firms to load upon on them (“back up the truck,” in Wall Street parlance). They were considered so safe that financial firms used borrowed funds to buy more, and more, and...
banging the close n.— «The CFTC alleges that the defendants employed a manipulative scheme commonly known as “banging” or “marking” the close. “Banging the close” refers to the practice of acquiring a substantial position leading up to the closing...
tail risk n.— «“Tail risk,” as it is known to quantitative traders, for where it falls in a bell-shaped probability curve. Tail risk, broadly speaking, is whatever financial cataclysm is believed by markets to have a 1 percent chance or less of...
