Glossary

Financial Glossary

Clear, institutional definitions of 86 financial terms covering ilgili otorite, Borsa İstanbul, VIOP and international markets.

85 terms

A

US Dollar (ABD Doları): The currency of the United States, dominant in global trade, reserve holdings and commodity pricing, and used as the reference rate in international capital flows.
Call Option (Alım Opsiyonu): An option contract that grants the buyer the right — but not the obligation — to purchase the underlying asset at a pre-agreed strike price by a stated expiry.
Principal (Anapara): The initial amount committed at the outset of an investment, on which returns or losses are calculated; in some structured products it may be partially or fully protected.
Intermediary Institution (Aracı Kurum): A firm authorised by the relevant regulator to conduct capital-markets activities, routing orders, providing custody and offering investment services on behalf of investors.
Arbitrage (Arbitraj): The simultaneous purchase and sale of the same or similar financial asset in different markets to exploit a price discrepancy; it helps prices converge in efficient markets.
Average Monthly Volume (Aylık Ortalama Hacim): The average of daily trading volumes in a financial instrument over the previous month, used as an indicator of liquidity and investor interest.
Short Selling (Açığa Satış): Selling an equity the investor does not own by borrowing it, aiming to profit if the price falls and the position is closed at a lower price; subject to specific rules of Borsa İstanbul and the relevant regulator.

B

BIST: Abbreviation for Borsa İstanbul — the regulated exchange that brings together Türkiye's securities, derivatives and precious-metals markets.
BIST 100: Broad-based benchmark index covering 100 companies on Borsa İstanbul's Equity Market, reflecting the overall direction of the Turkish equity market.
BIST 30: Benchmark index of the 30 highest market-cap and most-liquid equities on Borsa İstanbul; serves as the key underlying for index contracts on VIOP.
Bollinger Bands (Bollinger Bantları): A technical indicator that plots upper and lower standard-deviation bands around a moving average of a price series; used to read volatility and overbought/oversold zones.
Borsa İstanbul: Türkiye's sole organised exchange for securities, derivatives and precious metals, operating the equity market, VIOP and precious-metals markets under one umbrella.
Bull Market (Boğa Piyasası): A market condition of sustained rising prices and strengthening investor confidence, typically coinciding with economic growth and positive earnings expectations.

D

Floating Exchange Rate (Dalgalı Kur): An exchange-rate regime in which the central bank does not target a fixed level and the rate is determined freely by market supply and demand.
Support Level (Destek Seviyesi): In technical analysis, a price zone where downward movement is expected to slow or halt because buyers typically concentrate there.
Devaluation (Devalüasyon): The official reduction in the value of a country's currency against other currencies under fixed or semi-fixed exchange-rate regimes.
Diversification (Diversifikasyon): Spreading portfolio exposure across different asset classes, sectors, geographies and maturities to reduce risk and limit dependence on any single holding.
Exchange Rate (Döviz Kuru): The value of one currency expressed in terms of another; quoted as spot, forward or cross rate.
Downtrend (Düşüş Trendi): A general downward market direction in which prices form successively lower highs and lower lows; in technical analysis it may overlap with a bear market.

E

ETF (Exchange-Traded Fund): An investment fund that tracks an index, commodity or basket of assets and trades on the exchange like a stock; it offers low-cost diversification.
Issuance / Emission (Emisyon): The process by which a company or public body issues new equity, bonds or similar securities to raise capital or debt financing.
Commodity (Emtia): Basic raw materials such as gold, silver, oil and agricultural products that are traded in standardised quality in spot and futures markets.
Index (Endeks): A statistical measure of the performance of a market or market subset; BIST 30 and BIST 100 are the leading indices of the Turkish equity market.
Inflation (Enflasyon): A sustained rise in the general price level over a period; it erodes purchasing power and directly affects the calculation of real returns.

F

Interest (Faiz): The amount received or paid as compensation for the time value of lent money; expressed in nominal or real terms and can be fixed or variable.
Price/Earnings Ratio (F/K): A valuation multiple obtained by dividing a company's share price by its earnings per share; it shows the price paid per unit of earnings.
Forex: The global foreign-exchange market in which currencies are priced against one another; an over-the-counter market that operates around the clock.
Futures (Vadeli Sözleşme): Standardised contracts requiring the purchase or sale of an underlying asset at a predetermined price on a future date; traded on VIOP.

G

Return (Getiri): The gain or loss from an investment over a given period, expressed as a ratio of the principal; may be quoted as nominal, real or risk-adjusted.
Benchmark Yield (Gösterge Faiz): The reference bond yield that reflects the market's general perception of credit cost; used to price public borrowing costs and other interest rates.

H

Initial Public Offering (Halka Arz): A company's first offer of its shares to a broad group of investors and the beginning of exchange listing; requires a prospectus approved by the relevant regulator.
Treasury Bill (Hazine Bonosu): A short-term discounted debt instrument issued by the Turkish Treasury for financing purposes, with a maturity of up to one year.
Hedge (Hedge): Positions taken to offset the risk of an existing or anticipated exposure by using derivatives, options or correlated assets.
Stock / Equity (Hisse Senedi): A capital-markets instrument representing a share in the equity of a joint-stock company, entitling the holder to dividends and voting rights.

K

Leverage (Kaldıraç): The ability to hold a large position with a small margin; it enlarges both profit and loss potential in equal proportion and carries high risk.
Crypto-asset (Kripto Varlık): Digital assets issued on distributed-ledger technology for value transfer or utility purposes; their regulatory status varies between jurisdictions.
Coupon (Kupon): The interest amount paid by a bond's issuer to the investor at fixed intervals; may be fixed, floating or zero-coupon.
Profit Margin (Kâr Marjı): The percentage of profit a company earns from its sales; can be calculated at gross, operating or net levels.
Short Position (Kısa Pozisyon): A position that profits from a decline in an asset's price; can be taken via short-selling equities or selling a derivative contract.

L

Liquidity (Likidite): The ability of an asset to be converted into cash quickly without materially affecting its price; assets with high trading volume are generally considered more liquid.
Limit Order (Limit Emir): An order placed to execute at the investor's specified price or better; if it is not matched it remains resting in the order book.
Lot (Lot): The minimum tradable contract unit on an exchange; in the equity market it typically means one share, while in derivatives it represents the contract size.

M

MKK (Merkezi Kayıt Kuruluşu): The central securities depository of Türkiye that holds capital-markets instruments in book-entry form and maintains ownership records.
Macroeconomics (Makroekonomi): The branch of economics that studies economy-wide variables such as growth, inflation, employment, external balance and monetary policy.
Margin (Marjin): The collateral deposited to open and maintain a derivatives position; tracked at two distinct levels — initial margin and maintenance margin.
Security (Menkul Kıymet): A subset of capital-markets instruments that conveys ownership or creditor rights, is issued in series and provides periodic returns; equities and bonds are key examples.

N

Cash Flow (Nakit Akımı): The cash inflows and outflows produced by an investment, company or project over given periods; central to measuring liquidity, valuation and debt-service capacity.
Net Asset Value (NAV): The value of an investment fund calculated by subtracting liabilities from total assets and expressed per unit.

O

Option (Opsiyon): A derivative contract giving the buyer the right — but not the obligation — to buy (call) or sell (put) an underlying asset at a specified price and expiry.
Medium-Term Investment (Orta Vadeli Yatırım): An investment approach with a horizon typically of one to three years, aiming to smooth short-term fluctuations and capture medium-term trends.

P

Share (Pay Senedi): A security representing a specific share in a joint-stock company's equity capital and the associated ownership rights; synonymous with equity stock.
Brent Crude (Petrol Brent): A light, low-sulphur crude oil sourced from the North Sea; it serves as the leading global benchmark for crude oil pricing.
Market Capitalisation (Piyasa Kapitalizasyonu): A measure of a listed company's market value, calculated as the share price multiplied by the total number of shares outstanding.
Market Maker (Piyasa Yapıcı): A broker or bank that continuously quotes bid and ask prices in a financial instrument to provide liquidity and earns income from the spread.
Portfolio (Portföy): The combined holdings of equities, bonds, funds, derivatives and other assets owned by an investor; its risk and return profile is shaped by the mix.

R

Wealth Effect (Refah Etkisi): The rise in household consumption that follows an increase in financial asset prices as households feel wealthier; one of the monetary-policy transmission channels.
Repo (Repo): The sale of a fixed-income security with a commitment to repurchase it at a predetermined price on a specified date; a short-term funding instrument.
Risk Management (Risk Yönetimi): The set of processes and tools applied to identify, measure and control financial risks; it includes disciplines such as diversification and stop-loss rules.
Reverse Repo (Ters Repo): The counterparty side of a repo; the investor buys a security and commits to sell it back at a pre-agreed price on a set date.

S

Fixed-Income Security (Sabit Getirili Menkul Kıymet): Debt instruments that promise pre-set coupon payments and principal repayment at maturity; bonds and bills are the main examples.
Spread: The difference between the bid and ask prices of a financial instrument; a narrow spread typically reflects high liquidity and a wide spread low liquidity or higher volatility.
Withholding Tax (Stopaj): An advance income tax withheld at source on certain payments on behalf of the taxpayer and remitted to the tax authority.
Swap: A derivative contract in which two parties exchange cash flows under pre-agreed terms for a specified period; interest-rate and currency swaps are common types.

T

Bond (Tahvil): A debt security issued with a maturity longer than one year; classified as public or corporate bond depending on the issuer.
Takasbank: İstanbul Settlement and Custody Bank; the authorised institution providing clearing, settlement, custody and central counterparty services in Turkish capital markets.
Dividend (Temettü): The portion of a company's period profit distributed to shareholders in cash or shares under a general-meeting decision.
Collateral (Teminat): Cash, securities or other liquid assets provided to a counterparty to secure the performance of a financial obligation.
Derivative (Türev Ürün): A financial instrument whose value is linked to the performance of an underlying asset; futures, options and swaps are the main types.

U

Appropriateness Test (Uygunluk Testi): A test measuring an investor's risk-return preferences, investment experience and financial situation, applied before investment services under the relevant regulator regulation.

V

VIOP (Borsa İstanbul Derivatives Market): The organised derivatives market within Borsa İstanbul where futures and options on equities, indices, currencies and commodities are traded.
Warrant (Varant): A securitised option-like instrument issued by a provider that grants the right to buy or sell an underlying asset at a pre-determined price.
Volatility (Volatilite): A statistical measure of the magnitude of price variation in a financial asset; the most widely used gauge of risk and uncertainty levels.

Y

YTM (Investor Compensation Centre): The public guarantee mechanism that compensates investors up to the statutory cap set by the relevant regulator regulation when an intermediary is unable to return assets due to financial difficulty.
Foreign Investor (Yabancı Yatırımcı): A natural or legal person resident outside Türkiye who invests in Turkish capital markets; may be subject to specific reporting and tax rules.
Structured Product (Yapılandırılmış Ürün): A financial product that usually combines a bond and a derivative component and whose return profile is linked to one or more underlying assets.
Mutual Fund (Yatırım Fonu): A collective investment vehicle that pools funds from investors and deploys them in a diversified portfolio under professional management principles.
Suitability Test (Yerindelik Testi): A test measuring whether a specific investment product or service is suitable for the investor's financial situation, goals and experience, mandatory under the relevant regulator regulation.

Z

Stop Loss (Zarar Kes): A risk-management order that automatically closes a position when a predefined price level is reached; it is used to cap potential losses.

Ç

Cross Rate (Çapraz Kur): An exchange-rate pair between two currencies that does not include the US dollar; for example EUR/JPY trades as a cross pair.
Multilateral Netting (Çok Taraflı Netleştirme): A settlement method that reduces multiple parties' receivables and payables to a single net amount; Takasbank performs this role as a central counterparty.

Ö

Return on Equity (ROE): A core profitability ratio calculated by dividing net profit by average equity, indicating a company's earnings per unit of equity.

Ü

Country Risk (Ülke Riski): The combined political, economic and legal risks that may arise when investing in a given country; measurable via credit rating, CDS spreads and policy uncertainty.

İ

Trading Volume (İşlem Hacmi): The aggregate amount or number of trades executed in an instrument or market over a period; one of the core indicators of liquidity.
Trading Session (İşlem Seansı): The period during which orders are routed and matched on an exchange; it may be divided into pre-opening, continuous trading and closing sub-sessions.

Ş

Corporate Bond (Şirket Tahvili): A fixed-income security issued by a company to raise debt financing, providing coupon payments and principal repayment at maturity.

Browse the FAQ →