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65-430: ( Alabama to Missouri , Montana to Wyoming ) State auditors (also known as state comptrollers , state controllers , or state examiners , among others) are fiscal officers lodged in the executive or legislative branches of U.S. state governments who serve as external auditors , program evaluators , financial controllers , bookkeepers , or inspectors general of public funds. The office of state auditor may be

130-437: A broker-dealer who trades with other broker-dealers, rather than with the retail investor. This distinction carries over to banking ; compare Retail banking and Wholesale banking . The traditional economic function of the purchase of securities is investment, with the view to receiving income or achieving capital gain . Debt securities generally offer a higher rate of interest than bank deposits, and equities may offer

195-680: A certificate or, more typically, they may be "non-certificated", that is in electronic ( dematerialized ) or " book entry only" form. Certificates may be bearer , meaning they entitle the holder to rights under the security merely by holding the security, or registered , meaning they entitle the holder to rights only if they appear on a security register maintained by the issuer or an intermediary. They include shares of corporate capital stock or mutual funds , bonds issued by corporations or governmental agencies, stock options or other options, limited partnership units, and various other formal investment instruments that are negotiable and fungible . In

260-420: A combination of the two is used. The distinction between the two is important to securities regulation and company law . Privately placed securities are not publicly tradable and may only be bought and sold by sophisticated qualified investors. As a result, the secondary market is not nearly as liquid as it is for public (registered) securities. Another category, sovereign bonds , is generally sold by auction to

325-521: A creature of the state constitution or one created by statutory law . The mode of selecting the state auditor varies among the many states and territories. In 24 states, the state auditor is a constitutional officer elected by the voters or the state legislature for specified terms of office. For example, state auditors in California , Idaho , Illinois , Minnesota , Nebraska , Nevada , Pennsylvania , Texas , Utah , and Washington are elected by

390-491: A debt security is typically entitled to the payment of principal and interest, together with other contractual rights under the terms of the issue, such as the right to receive certain information. Debt securities are generally issued for a fixed term and redeemable by the issuer at the end of that term. Debt securities may be protected by collateral or may be unsecured, and, if they are unsecured, may be contractually "senior" to other unsecured debt meaning their holders would have

455-542: A lower rate of interest than corporate bonds, and serve as a source of finance for governments. U.S. federal government bonds are called treasuries. Because of their liquidity and perceived low risk, treasuries are used to manage the money supply in the open market operations of non-US central banks. Sub-sovereign government bonds , known in the U.S. as municipal bonds , represent the debt of state, provincial, territorial, municipal or other governmental units other than sovereign governments. Supranational bonds represent

520-707: A priority in a bankruptcy of the issuer. Debt that is not senior is "subordinated". Corporate bonds represent the debt of commercial or industrial entities. Debentures have a long maturity, typically at least ten years, whereas notes have a shorter maturity. Commercial paper is a simple form of debt security that essentially represents a post-dated cheque with a maturity of not more than 270 days. Money market instruments are short term debt instruments that may have characteristics of deposit accounts, such as certificates of deposit , Accelerated Return Notes (ARN) , and certain bills of exchange . They are highly liquid and are sometimes referred to as "near cash". Commercial paper

585-411: A register in which details of the holder of the securities are entered and updated as appropriate. A transfer of registered securities is effected by amending the register. Modern practice has developed to eliminate both the need for certificates and maintenance of a complete security register by the issuer. There are two general ways this has been accomplished. In some jurisdictions, such as France, it

650-399: A round-table of market data industry firms, referring to them as Consumers, Exchanges, and Vendors. In India the equivalent organisation is the securities exchange board of India (SEBI). In the primary markets, securities may be offered to the public in a public offering . Alternatively, they may be offered privately to a limited number of qualified persons in a private placement . Sometimes

715-454: A separate state agency under the direction of the governor maintains the state accounting system, develops and maintains internal controls, and preparing financial reports, in addition to preparing and administering the state budget. Montana's state auditor does not even audit public funds or maintain fiscal control over the state treasury in the traditional sense. Rather, the auditorregulates Montana's securities and insurance industries. For

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780-456: A shelf registration. These later new issues are also sold in the primary market, but they are not considered to be an IPO but are often called a "secondary offering". Issuers usually retain investment banks to assist them in administering the IPO, obtaining SEC (or other regulatory body) approval of the offering filing, and selling the new issue. When the investment bank buys the entire new issue from

845-404: A specialized class of dealers. Securities are often listed in a stock exchange , an organized and officially recognized market on which securities can be bought and sold. Issuers may seek listings for their securities to attract investors, by ensuring there is a liquid and regulated market that investors can buy and sell securities in. Growth in informal electronic trading systems has challenged

910-426: Is also a form of capital stock. The holder of an equity is a shareholder, owning a share, or fractional part of the issuer. Unlike debt securities, which typically require regular payments (interest) to the holder, equity securities are not entitled to any payment. In bankruptcy, they share only in the residual interest of the issuer after all obligations have been paid out to creditors. However, equity generally entitles

975-541: Is also often highly liquid. Euro debt securities are securities issued internationally outside their domestic market in a denomination different from that of the issuer's domicile. They include eurobonds and euronotes. Eurobonds are characteristically underwritten, and not secured, and interest is paid gross. A euronote may take the form of euro-commercial paper (ECP) or euro-certificates of deposit. Government bonds are medium or long term debt securities issued by sovereign governments or their agencies. Typically they carry

1040-464: Is appointed by and reports exclusively to the legislature. Government auditing arrangements in Minnesota, Utah, and Washington reflect this model. Under such circumstances, the respective jurisdictions of the aforementioned officials is such so that their responsibilities complement one another. In the case of Washington for instance, the state auditor conducts independent audits and investigations of

1105-560: Is growing slowly. Securities that are represented in paper (physical) form are called certificated securities. They may be bearer or registered . Securities may also be held in the Direct Registration System (DRS), which is a method of recording shares of stock in book-entry form. Book-entry means the company's transfer agent maintains the shares on the owner's behalf without the need for physical share certificates. Shares held in un-certificated book-entry form have

1170-603: Is possible for issuers of that jurisdiction to maintain a legal record of their securities electronically. In the United States , the current "official" version of Article 8 of the Uniform Commercial Code permits non-certificated securities. However, the "official" UCC is a mere draft that must be enacted individually by each U.S. state . Though all 50 states (as well as the District of Columbia and

1235-432: Is provided by investors who purchase the securities upon their initial issuance. In a similar way, a government may issue securities when it chooses to increase government debt . Securities are traditionally divided into debt securities and equities. Debt securities may be called debentures , bonds , deposits , notes or commercial paper depending on their maturity, collateral and other characteristics. The holder of

1300-747: Is the centre of the eurosecurities markets. There was a huge rise in the eurosecurities market in London in the early 1980s. Settlement of trades in eurosecurities is currently effected through two European computerized clearing/depositories called Euroclear (in Belgium) and Clearstream (formerly Cedelbank) in Luxembourg. The main market for Eurobonds is the EuroMTS, owned by Borsa Italiana and Euronext. There are ramp up market in Emergent countries, but it

1365-549: Is the only state auditor in the United States to broadly supervise and audit the fiscal concerns of local governments. In fact, nearly 5,000 local governments which altogether spend some $ 40 billion annually come under the state auditor's purview. With that said, the state auditor's authority over state agencies extends only to the statewide single audit of federal funds spent by state agencies and their subrecipients. A separate legislative auditor appointed by and reporting to

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1430-427: Is the province of two different types of accountants – bookkeepers and financial controllers. Once the norm in the United States, bookkeepers are now few in number. Bookkeepers are independently elected constitutional officers whose principal duty is to scrutinize, control, and record the disbursement of public funds paid out of the state treasury. All bookkeepers preaudit claims by and against the state, issue warrants on

1495-647: The Luxembourg Stock Exchange or admitted to listing in London . The reasons for listing eurobonds include regulatory and tax considerations, as well as the investment restrictions. Securities Services refers to the products and services that are offered to institutional clients that issue, trade, and hold securities. The bank engaged in securities services are usually called a custodian bank. Market players include BNY Mellon , J.P. Morgan , HSBC , Citi , BNP Paribas , Société Générale etc. London

1560-629: The comptroller general of the United States , the head of the U.S. Government Accountability Office . Otherwise known as the "Yellow Book", GAGAS prescribes best practice for auditing state agencies and local governments in the United States. In the case of inspectors general, they are also subject to Quality Standards for Inspections and Evaluations prescribed by the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency, an independent committee created by an Act of Congress consisting of

1625-855: The principal trade organization for securities dealers is the International Capital Market Association. In the U.S., the principal trade organization for securities dealers is the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, which is the result of the merger of the Securities Industry Association and the Bond Market Association. The Financial Information Services Division of the Software and Information Industry Association (FISD/SIIA) represents

1690-478: The "upside" of the business and to control the business. Hybrid securities combine some of the characteristics of both debt and equity securities. Preference shares form an intermediate class of security between equities and debt. If the issuer is liquidated, preference shareholders have the right to receive interest or a return of capital prior to ordinary shareholders. However, from a legal perspective, preference shares are capital stocks and therefore may entitle

1755-433: The 50 state legislatures in the United States, the following superlatives emerge: There are a total of 5,411 state representatives nationwide, with the average state house having 110 members. The 49 lower houses of state legislatures in the United States – Nebraska lacks a lower house – have various names: Non-Voting Tribal Representatives Security (finance) Securities may be represented by

1820-503: The Association of Inspectors General. List of U.S. state representatives (Alabama to Missouri) ( Alabama to Missouri , Montana to Wyoming ) This is a list of U.S. state representatives . This list contains the names of U.S. state representatives in the 25 states, listed alphabetically, from Alabama to Missouri. For the remaining 25 states, please see List of U.S. state representatives (Montana to Wyoming) . From

1885-537: The Official List. In the United States, a "security" is a tradable financial asset of any kind. Securities can be broadly categorized into: The company or other entity issuing the security is called the issuer . A country's regulatory structure determines what qualifies as a security. For example, private investment pools may have some features of securities, but they may not be registered or regulated as such if they meet various restrictions. Securities are

1950-565: The U.S. government's many inspectors general. State external auditors and financial controllers in the United States - whether elected or appointed - are organized nationally as the National State Auditors' Association and the National Association of State Comptrollers. Both secretariats are housed within the National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers and Treasurers. State inspectors general belong to

2015-635: The United Kingdom, the Financial Conduct Authority functions as the national competent authority for the regulation of financial markets; the definition in its Handbook of the term "security" applies only to equities, debentures , alternative debentures, government and public securities, warrants, certificates representing certain securities, units, stakeholder pension schemes, personal pension schemes, rights to or interests in investments, and anything that may be admitted to

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2080-465: The case of the Illinois comptroller and West Virginia state auditor, these elected state auditors also serve as financial controllers of state agencies. To the contrary, New Jersey's state comptroller functions as an inspector general for the executive branch of state government and is a member of the governor's cabinet. Minnesota is particularly unique. In that state, the state auditor , who is elected,

2145-481: The company will call the bond by giving the holder the call price, which may be less than the value of the converted stock. This is referred to as a forced conversion. Equity warrants are options issued by the company that allow the holder of the warrant to purchase a specific number of shares at a specified price within a specified time. They are often issued together with bonds or existing equities, and are, sometimes, detachable from them and separately tradeable. When

2210-425: The compulsory deposit and immobilization of bearer shares and units with a depositary allowing identification of the holders thereof. In the case of registered securities, certificates bearing the name of the holder are issued, but these merely represent the securities. A person does not automatically acquire legal ownership by having possession of the certificate. Instead, the issuer (or its appointed agent) maintains

2275-459: The consumer level, loans against securities have grown into three distinct groups over the last decade: Of the three, transfer-of-title loans have fallen into the very high-risk category as the number of providers has dwindled as regulators have launched an industry-wide crackdown on transfer-of-title structures where the private lender may sell or sell short the securities to fund the loan. Institutionally managed consumer securities-based loans on

2340-725: The debt of international organizations such as the World Bank , the International Monetary Fund , regional multilateral development banks like the African Development Bank and the Asian Development Bank , and others. An equity security is a share of equity interest in an entity such as the capital stock of a company, trust or partnership. The most common form of equity interest is common stock, although preferred equity

2405-444: The duly elected governor or individual state agencies, with a remit specifically tailored to investigating corruption within public office and recommending more efficient business practices in the delivery of public services. For the purpose of brevity, this article focuses only on those inspectors general with a mandate encompassing the whole of state government as opposed to individual state agencies. Meanwhile, governmental accounting

2470-472: The efficiency and effectiveness of public administration are the primary business of America's state auditors. However, distinctions exist in their functions. Generally speaking, external auditors examine public accounts in order to detect and prevent waste, fraud, and abuse of public funds and resources. These audits may be concerned with rendering an opinion on the basic financial statements of governmental entities, verifying regulatory compliance , assessing

2535-598: The evasion of regulatory restrictions and tax. In the United Kingdom , for example, the issue of bearer securities was heavily restricted firstly by the Exchange Control Act 1947 until 1953. Bearer securities are very rare in the United States because of the negative tax implications they may have to the issuer and holder. In Luxembourg, the law of 28 July 2014 concerning the compulsory deposit and immobilization of shares and units in bearer form adopts

2600-488: The fiscal condition of local governments and state agencies alike, while the legislative auditor evaluates state agency financial management and performance in support of the legislature's oversight functions. This division of government auditing responsibility is in keeping with two core principles of state and local government auditing in the United States: Supervising public finances and improving

2665-464: The functions of America's state auditors based on their official titles. In fact, the elected financial controllers in Arkansas, Indiana, South Dakota, and Wyoming are designated as "state auditor. Meanwhile, New Jersey's inspector general is named the "state comptroller" and Tennessee's external auditor is constitutionally the "comptroller of the treasury". This etymological discrepancy is the result of

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2730-400: The government accounting profession evolving over the course of American history and provides, in part, for many variations on the conceptual models. Some state auditors perform functions altogether unrelated to public-sector accounting or auditing. Of note, New York combines the normally disparate functions of government accounting and government auditing into its elected state comptroller, with

2795-524: The holder of the warrant exercises it, he pays the money directly to the company, and the company issues new shares to the holder. Warrants, like other convertible securities, increases the number of shares outstanding, and are always accounted for in financial reports as fully diluted earnings per share, which assumes that all warrants and convertibles will be exercised. Securities may be classified according to many categories or classification systems: Investors in securities may be retail , i.e., members of

2860-481: The holder to a pro rata portion of control of the company, meaning that a holder of a majority of the equity is usually entitled to control the issuer. Equity also enjoys the right to profits and capital gain , whereas holders of debt securities receive only interest and repayment of principal regardless of how well the issuer performs financially. Furthermore, debt securities do not have voting rights outside of bankruptcy. In other words, equity holders are entitled to

2925-424: The holders to some degree of control depending on whether they carry voting rights. Convertibles are bonds or preferred stocks that can be converted, at the election of the holder of the convertibles, into the ordinary shares of the issuing company. The convertibility, however, may be forced if the convertible is a callable bond , and the issuer calls the bond. The bondholder has about one month to convert it, or

2990-482: The incumbent also managing public pensions and investing state funds. No other state or territory consolidates so much financial power into a single state auditor. On the other hand, some states constrain the authority of their auditors to specific functions. For example, the bulk of the Alabama state auditor's responsibilities entail inventorying state personal property, with only a limited role for financial audits of

3055-446: The investment security—where holders of securities can sell them to other investors for cash. Otherwise, few people would purchase primary issues, and, thus, companies and governments would be restricted in raising equity capital (money) for their operations. Organized exchanges constitute the main secondary markets. Many smaller issues and most debt securities trade in the decentralized, dealer-based over-the-counter markets. In Europe,

3120-416: The issuer at a discount to resell it at a markup, it is called a firm commitment underwriting . However, if the investment bank considers the risk too great for an underwriting, it may only assent to a best effort agreement , where the investment bank will simply do its best to sell the new issue. For the primary market to thrive, there must be a secondary market , or aftermarket that provides liquidity for

3185-448: The majority of states where the state auditor audits public accounts, their scope of authority encompasses all state agencies. In a plurality of these same states, the auditor's jurisdiction also extends to local governments. Government auditing arrangements are unique in Illinois, Minnesota, New Jersey, and West Virginia however with respect to the fact that their respective state auditors primarily or exclusively audit local governments. In

3250-457: The other hand, draw loan funds from the financial resources of the lending institution, not from the sale of the securities. Collateral and sources of collateral are changing, in 2012 gold became a more acceptable form of collateral. By 2015, recently Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) previously seen by many as unpromising had started to become more readily available and acceptable. Public securities markets are either primary or secondary markets. In

3315-536: The primary market, the money for the securities is received by the issuer of the securities from investors, typically in an initial public offering (IPO). In the secondary market, the securities are simply assets held by one investor selling them to another investor, with the money going from one investor to the other. An initial public offering is when a company issues public stock newly to investors, called an "IPO" for short. A company can later issue more new shares, or issue shares that have been previously registered in

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3380-455: The prospect of capital growth. Equity investment may also offer control of the business of the issuer. Debt holdings may also offer some measure of control to the investor if the company is a fledgling start-up or an old giant undergoing restructuring . In these cases, if interest payments are missed, the creditors may take control of the company and liquidate it to recover some of their investment. The last decade has seen an enormous growth in

3445-416: The public investing personally, other than by way of business. In distinction, the greatest part of investment in terms of volume, is wholesale , i.e., by financial institutions acting on their own account, or on behalf of clients. Important institutional investors include investment banks , insurance companies, pension funds and other managed funds. The "wholesaler" is typically an underwriter or

3510-540: The same rights and privileges as shares held in certificated form. Bearer securities are completely negotiable and entitle the holder to the rights under the security (e.g., to payment if it is a debt security, and voting if it is an equity security). They are transferred by delivering the instrument from person to person. In some cases, transfer is by endorsement, or signing the back of the instrument, and delivery. Regulatory and fiscal authorities sometimes regard bearer securities negatively, as they may be used to facilitate

3575-629: The state auditor reports on the effectiveness of health exchanges and marijuana legalization . Meanwhile, California's state auditor is involved in the redistricting process . State financial controllers prepare financial statements and keep accounts in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles issued by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board . Meanwhile, state external auditors and inspectors general exercise their authority in accordance with Government Auditing Standards (GAGAS) promulgated by

3640-569: The state legislature is responsible for audits and evaluations of state agency financial management and performance. As independently chosen external auditors, financial controllers and inspectors general, America's state auditors exist to safeguard public finances from misappropriation and maladministration. In short, their work combats corruption and keeps government accountable for the efficient and effective use of tax dollars. Nevertheless, their accounting and auditing activities are frequently put to use for connected purposes. In Colorado for instance,

3705-498: The state treasurer's and state comptroller's accounts. South Dakota's state auditor is broadly responsible for preauditing state agency claims and vouchers, issuing warrants on the state treasurer to pay funds out of the treasury, and administering payroll. However, no other functional responsibilities within the government machinery applicable to financial controllership have been assigned to the South Dakota state auditor. Rather,

3770-486: The statewide accounting system, approving or processing financial transactions, prescribing and enforcing internal controls, and preparing financial reports, among other related responsibilities. The vast majority of state government accountants are financial controllers; in those states lacking bookkeepers, the responsibilities of that office are instead performed by the pertinent financial controller. Public organizational theory and state law do not always clearly distinguish

3835-443: The strength and design of internal controls , or evaluating program performance . External auditors operate outside of the statewide accounting and financial reporting framework and do not report to executive branch administrators, meaning they have the relevant independence to objectively verify the condition of public finances. This independence, required by Government Auditing Standards , is guaranteed by either direct election of

3900-544: The traditional business of stock exchanges. Large volumes of securities are also bought and sold "over the counter" (OTC). OTC dealing involves buyers and sellers dealing with each other by telephone or electronically on the basis of prices that are displayed electronically, usually by financial data vendors such as SuperDerivatives, Reuters , Investing.com and Bloomberg . There are also eurosecurities, which are securities that are issued outside their domestic market into more than one jurisdiction. They are generally listed on

3965-408: The traditional method used by commercial enterprises to raise new capital. They may offer an attractive alternative to bank loans - depending on their pricing and market demand for particular characteristics. A disadvantage of bank loans as a source of financing is that the bank may seek a measure of protection against default by the borrower via extensive financial covenants. Through securities, capital

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4030-462: The treasury in payment of claims approved, administer payroll to state employees, and keep a record of fund balances. Other duties may be assigned to bookkeepers by law, such as the administration of unclaimed property, securities and insurance regulation, or the auditing of local government finances. Meanwhile, financial controllers exist to account for a given state’s financial condition. In these respects, financial controllers are charged with operating

4095-1010: The use of securities as collateral . Purchasing securities with borrowed money secured by other securities or cash itself is called " buying on margin ". Where A is owed a debt or other obligation by B, A may require B to deliver property rights in securities to A, either at inception (transfer of title) or only in default (non-transfer-of-title institutional). For institutional loans, property rights are not transferred but nevertheless enable A to satisfy its claims in case B fails to make good on its obligations to A or otherwise becomes insolvent . Collateral arrangements are divided into two broad categories, namely security interests and outright collateral transfers. Commonly, commercial banks, investment banks, government agencies and other institutional investors such as mutual funds are significant collateral takers as well as providers. In addition, private parties may utilize stocks or other securities as collateral for portfolio loans in securities lending scenarios. On

4160-432: The voters or by manner of legislative appointment. While similar, inspectors general are not external auditors. Quite to the contrary, inspectors general operate within the entities that they serve. They cannot independently audit governmental financial statements since they report to the very public administrators that prepare them. Instead, inspectors general serve as an objective assurance and consulting activity to either

4225-488: The voters. Maine and Tennessee are the only states where the state auditor is elected by the legislature. In the remaining states, the state auditor is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the governor or the relevant state legislature. In those states where the state auditor is appointed by the governor, the appointment is always subject to either legislative nomination or confirmation . Several states have both an elected auditor serving alongside another auditor that

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