Conclusion and Resources

We hope this tutorial has given you an idea of the securities in the money market. It's not exactly a sexy topic, but definitely worth knowing about, as there are times when even the most ambitious investor puts cash on the sidelines.

• The money market specializes in debt securities that mature in less than one year.
• Money market securities are very liquid, and considered very safe. As a result, they offer a lower return than other securities.
• The easiest way for individuals to gain access to the money market is through a broker or a money market mutual fund.
• T-bills are short-term government securities that mature in one year or less from their issue date.
• T-bills are considered to be one of the safest investments, and so don't give a high return.
• A certificate of deposit (CD) is a time deposit with a bank.
• APY takes into account compound interest, APR does not.
• CDs are safe, but the returns aren't great, and your money is tied up for the length of the CD.
• Commercial paper is an unsecured, short-term loan issued by a corporation. Returns are higher than T-bills because of the higher default risk.
• Bankers' acceptances (BAs) are negotiable time draft for financing transactions in goods. They are like commercial paper with a bank guarantee.
• BAs are used frequently in international trade and generally only available to small investors through money market funds.
• Eurodollars are U.S. dollar-denominated deposit at banks outside of the United States.
• The average Eurodollar deposit is very large. The only way for small investors to invest in this market is indirectly through a money market fund.
• Repurchase agreements (repos) are a form of overnight borrowing backed by government securities.