Quasi Contract
What is a 'Quasi Contract' A quasi contract is an agreement between two parties without previous obligations to one another that has been created and legally recognized by the court system. under a quasi-contract, neither involved party is expected to create such an agreement; this contract is arranged and imposed by a judge to correct a circumstance in which one...
Quanto Swap
What is 'Quanto Swap' A swap with varying combinations of interest rate, currency and equity swap features, where payments are based on the movement of two different countries' interest rates. This is also referred to as a differential or "diff" swap. Explaining 'Quanto Swap' Though they deal with two different currencies, payments...
Quantitative Trading
What is 'Quantitative Trading' Quantitative trading consists of trading strategies based on quantitative analysis, which rely on mathematical computations and number crunching to identify trading opportunities. As quantitative trading is generally used by financial institutions and hedge funds, the transactions are usually large in size and may involve the purchase and sale of hundreds of thousands of shares and other...
Quick-Rinse Bankruptcy
What is 'Quick-Rinse Bankruptcy' A bankruptcy proceeding that is structured to move through legal proceedings faster than the average bankruptcy. The term "quick-rinse bankruptcy" first emerged during the credit crisis that started in 2008 and was used to describe the planned bankruptcies of U.S. automotive giants Chrysler and General Motors. In order for quick-rinse bankruptcies to be...
Quarterly Income Debt Securities (QUIDS)
What is 'Quarterly Income Debt Securities - QUIDS' A debt instrument offering guaranteed quarterly payments directly to the shareholder by the parent company. Quarterly Income Debt Securities (QUIDS) were formed by Goldman Sachs & Co. and are sold in small denominations, generally $25. They usually are callable by the issuer in 5 years and with maturities of...
Questioned Document Investigation
What is 'Questioned Document Investigation' An in-depth look into a document which is being questioned in the case of fraud, forgery, etc. The investigation is usually instigated in the event that large sums of money, heirlooms, or other assets are being called into question by a third party. Explaining 'Questioned Document Investigation' A...
Quasi-Public Corporation
What is a 'Quasi-Public Corporation' A type of corporation in the private sector that is backed by a branch of government that has a public mandate to provide a given service. Most quasi-public corporations began as government agencies, but have since become separate entities. It is not uncommon to see the shares of this type of corporation...
Qualifying Transaction
What is 'Qualifying Transaction' A type of transaction that occurs when a company issues public stock in Canada. A qualifying transaction occurs when a qualified Capital Pool Company (CPC) purchases all of the outstanding shares of a privately-owned company from the current shareholders. The private company then becomes a fully-owned subsidiary of the CPC. Explaining...
Quality Of Earnings
What is 'Quality Of Earnings' The quality of earnings refers to the amount of earnings attributable to higher sales or lower costs rather than artificial profits created by accounting anomalies such as inflation of inventory. Quality of earnings is considered poor during times of high inflation. Also, earnings that are calculated conservatively are considered to have higher quality than those...
Qualified Savings Bond
What are Qualified Savings Bonds Qualified savings bonds are a type of investment that can offer certain tax advantages for taxpayers who meet the eligibility requirements. Unlike other types of investments, qualified savings bonds are exempt from federal income tax, and in some cases, state and local taxes as well. In order to qualify for these tax breaks, taxpayers must...