I want to study the two things, and want to be able to differentiate and relate them. I downloaded a book on microeconomics, but I couldn't find any of the two terms. Under what topics can I find these two topics?
Sat Aug 03, 2013 4:09 pm
coaster Senior Advisor
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Try "securities" and "banking"
~Tim~
Sat Aug 03, 2013 4:23 pm
hitty New Poster
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I downloaded a sample of 'Financial Institutions, Markets, and Money' and it doesn't mention investment vehicles.
Is there a difference between the terms 'financial instruments' and 'investment vehicles'? for example, stocks I think are FI and IV, is every financial instrument and investment vehicle?
Sat Aug 03, 2013 5:21 pm
clydewolf Senior Member
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Re: 'financial instruments' and 'investment vehicles'
quote:Originally posted by hitty I want to study the two things, and want to be able to differentiate and relate them. I downloaded a book on microeconomics, but I couldn't find any of the two terms. Under what topics can I find these two topics?
It is not clear why you want to differentiate, but you can learn a lot here:
http://investor.gov/
Sat Aug 03, 2013 7:47 pm
smk Preferred Member
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you might think about futures and options contracts as financial instruments, but perhaps not investment vehicles.
I am not sure why you are so focused on those terms though. to operate in the financial markets, you basically need to know how each instrument works...whether it is called a financial instrument or investment vehicle does not have much meaning for practical purposes...
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quote:Originally posted by hitty Is there a difference between the terms 'financial instruments' and 'investment vehicles'?
I'd put 'investment vehicles' as a subset of 'financial instruments'.
The term 'financial instrument' is really pretty broad; in it's broadest sense it means any document that has a legal definition of how it is valued, and to whom the value is due. That $20 bill in your pocket is a financial instrument, for example. It is valued right now at $20 US Dollars, and you own that value until you exchange it for something else. If you had a $20 IOU in your pocket, that's also a financial instrument; you own its value but when you have access to that value depends on the terms of the IOU.
'Invesment vehicle' can be pretty broad, too, and mean different things to different people. To me, it means ownership of some asset; owned in the expectation its value will increase over time and/or will produce income.
