What is the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA)? The Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) was adopted as a law by Congress in 1974 with an objective of providing homebuyers and sellers with pertinent and timely disclosures regarding the nature and costs of their real estate settlement or closing process. It also aimed to eliminate...

What is the American Petroleum Institute? The American Petroleum Institute (API) is a leading trade association for the oil and gas industry. It is the largest organization within the oil and gas industry. API has over 625 oil and gas corporations as its members. As a trade association, API represents the interest of its members and provides support...

What is a Standard & Poor's Rating? Standard & Poor's, known as S&P Global in the corporate world, facilitates credit ratings based on investments in bonds, and a lot more. Known for ascertaining over 1 million indices in share market, it offers personalized analysis with the help of the data and insights available. How Do the Standard a...

What is a Captive Fund? A captive fund is a type of investment created specifically for workers in a company. And this type of investment can also be created by companies as an investment to fund other investments or startup companies or small businesses that are believed to have growth potential. How Does a Captive Fund Work? Capital fund is create...

What is an insurable interest? For a party to seek insurance against a potential loss, the insured must have some form of interest in the insured property or be subject to a particular loss from an occurrence or event affecting the insured property or individual. This is known as having an insurable interest. An insurable interest may be any form or...

What is Freudian Motivation Theory? Freudian motivation theory was developed by Sigmund Freud. This theory studies how unconscious desires motivate and shape the behaviors of individuals. That is, it studies how psychological forces that are unconscious influence the behaviors of individuals.  Freudian motivation theory maintains that the desires an...

What is Absolute Percentage Growth? An Absolute percentage growth refers to the rate of increase in the value of an asset. It refers to the appreciation in value of an asset or stock displayed as a percentage. It is also called absolute return or absolute growth. This representation of increase in value is not in relation to another asset, it is jus...

What is an Obligation Bond? An obligation bond refers to a form of municipal bond that secures a mortgage on property or some other physical asset. The market value of an obligation bonds is more than the worth of its collateral. Back to:BANKING, LENDING, & CREDIT INDUSTRY How Obligation Bonds are Used? An obligation bond is a particular kind of...

What is a Sum-of-the-Parts Valuation? The sum-of-the-parts valuation (SOTP) refers to a method of valuing a firm by evaluating or assessing each of its divisions separately before their values are aggregated. This means that all the divisions or segments of the business are evaluated distinctly and then summed up to realize the value of the firm. SO...

What is an End User? The end-user refers to the ultimate person who consumes a product or service. This term offers a sense of distinction between the individual who buys and makes use of goods or services, and the ones who design, develop, or manufacture the product. For developing an excellent product or service, the individuals who design, formul...