Glosario

Hedging relationship effectiveness is a concept introduced by the hedge accounting standards, referring to the extent to which changes in the fair value of a hedged item are offset by opposite changes in the fair value of the financial derivative instrument intended to hedge it. An effective hedging relationship is one of the main requirements of the different standards for hedge accounting. Under hedge accounting, an effective hedging relationships need to meet three conditions: Economic relationship. There must be an inverse relationship between the change in the value of the hedged item and the change in the value of the hedging instrument. Credit risk. Changes in the credit risk of the hedging instrument or hedged item should not be large enough as to dominate the value changes associated with the economic relationship. Hedge ratio. The appropriate hedge ratio should be maintained throughout the life of the hedge.

Enterprise currency management is a software category that comprises a wide range of solutions designed to automate different aspects of a firm’s currency management. Included in this automation process is the ‘FX Workflow’ framework, i.e. the procedures involved in the pre-trade, trade and post-trade phases of FX hedging. The vast majority of Enterprise currency management solutions are provided by the Fintech industry. The common denominator of all these solutions is that they leverage technology to make currency management simpler and more efficient.

As a result of the sharp reduction in bank lending to companies after the Global Financial Crisis, equity crowdfunding has been the solution for many budding start-ups, providing much needed capital in exchange for equity. Equitynet and FundedByMe are but two examples.

An exchange rate is the price of one country’s currency in terms of another currency, often known as the reference currency. For example, EUR-USD = 1.25 expresses the number of U.S. dollars that one euro will buy. In this example, EUR is the base currency. The same exchange rate, however, can be expressed as USD-EUR = 0.80, showing the number of euros that one dollar will buy. In this case, USD is the base currency. Exchange rates can be for spot or forward delivery. A spot rate is the price at which a currency is traded for delivery in 48 hours, while the forward rate is the price at which FX is quoted for delivery at a specified future date. Exchange rates are determined by the interplay of demand and supply forces in the foreign exchange market, an electronically linked network of banks and FX dealers whose function is to bring together buyers and sellers of foreign exchange.

Exchange rate forecasts are quarterly estimations of the future levels of exchange rates over the next four quarters. They are undertaken by economists and currency analysts working for portfolio management firms and investment banks. Exchange rate forecasts are for the most part based on expectations regarding macroeconomic variables, interest rate differentials, sentiment, and even political events. Once these individual forecasts are out, their average —for each currency pair— is presented in a variety of surveys. Some companies incorporate such average forecast exchange rates as ‘budget rates’ for a period. However, given the unpredictable nature of currency moves, the reliability of exchange rate forecasts remains an open question.

Exchange rate risk or foreign currency risk is the possibility that currency fluctuations can affect a firm’s expected future operating cash flows, i.e., its future revenues and costs. For companies desiring to take advantage of the growth opportunities derived from buying and selling in multiple currencies, effectively managing currency risk is an essential task. Exchange rate risk can be decomposed into: Pricing risk Accounting risk Transaction risk Operating risk Pricing risk refers to possible exchange rate fluctuations between the moment a company prices a transaction and the moment it is formally agreed. Accounting risk reflects changes in income statement and balance sheet items caused by currency fluctuations. Transaction risk refers to future FX-denominated cash flows that result from existing, contractually binding firm commitments (sales or purchase orders), whether or not the corresponding receivables/payables have been created. Operating risk measures the extent to which currency fluctuations alter the firm’s future operating cash flows, that is, its future revenues and costs. Finally, economic exposure comprises the two cash flow exposures: transaction exposure and operating exposure.

Exotic options are variations of simple call and put options. Traded in Over-the-Counter (OTC) markets, exotic options allow traders to manage risks in ways that ordinary options cannot achieve. A call option to buy a put option, also known as a Caput option, is a simple example of an exotic option. Other examples include chooser options, allowing a trader to decide whether the contract is a call or a put at some point over the contract’s life. Also, Asian options have no set strike price and are calculated as the average of some price listed in the contract and the market value of the underlying assets. Due to their complex nature, exotic options are not the most suitable products for corporate treasurers wishing to protect their profits from FX risk.