A rider attached to a life or health insurance policy. AD&D covers death by accidental means (rather than natural causes) and dismemberment, which includes loss of the use of certain body parts (including limbs or eyesight.) These riders are usually written in such a way that the insurer must pay double the amount payable otherwise, or a specific amount of continous income payments, and are sometimes called double indemnity riders. AD&D insurance is often offered by employers as an extra option on group health plans. |||It is important to carefully check the terms of AD&D policies. For example, if you are injured in an accident that later turns out to be fatal, the death must occur within a certain amount of time. To qualify for 100% of the dismemberment insurance, the injury may have to involve the loss of two limbs or both eyes. There is a schedule that lays out what percentage of the total will be paid for so-called partial dismemberment, such as the loss of one limb or the sight in one eye. Overall, AD&D is a limited policy that will be useful to a small percentage of people, so be sure to read the fine print in advance so that you understand exactly what is covered, and under what time frames.
A system of depreciation introduced by the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981. ACRS depreciation is based on recovery periods instead of useful life. These periods were predetermined by the IRS. |||The modified accelerated cost recovery system (MACRS) replaced ACRS for property placed into service after 1986.
A indicator used by traders to gauge a security's long-term trend by comparing bars which contain its opening, closing, high and low prices throughout a specific period of time. When the ASI is positive, it suggests that the long-term trend will be higher, and when the ASI is negative, it suggests that the long-term trend will be lower. The ASI is often cited as being developed by Welles Wilder. |||While the ASI is most often used for futures trading, it can be used for analyzing the price trends of other assets as well. The ASI may be used in conjunction with price charts in order to confirm trendline breakouts, because the same trendline would be penetrated in both situations.
A financial institution comprising 53 African and 24 non-African countries which promotes economic and social progress in Africa through loans, equity investments and technical assistance. Structurally, the ADB Group includes the African Development Bank, the African Development Fund and the Nigeria Trust Fund. Established in 1964 and headquartered in Tunisia, the Bank has provided a cumulative $55 billion in loans and grants in the region. |||The ADB has been praised for its role in the fight against HIV/AIDS on the African continent, but its operations have also been criticized for being less than transparent. Some observers complain that the ADB emphasizes large infrastructure projects at the expense of smaller, cheaper options that may produce more energy with greater benefit to the continent’s poor.
A technical indicator that plots changes in the value of the advance-decline index over a certain time period. Each point on the chart is calculated by taking the difference between the number of advancing/declining issues and adding the result to the previous period's value, as shown by the following formula:A/D Line = (# of Advancing Stocks - # of Declining Stocks) + Previous Period's A/D Line Value |||This indicator is used by many traders to confirm the strength of a current trend and its likelihood of reversing. If the markets are up but the A/D line is sloping downwards, it's usually a sign that the markets are losing their breadth and may be setting up to head in the other direction. If the slope of the A/D line is up and the market is trending upward then the market is said to be healthy.
An organization that oversees the creation and dissemination of norms and standards in almost every U.S. business sector. ANSI is also actively involved in the accreditation programs that oversee those standards, including ISO 9000 (quality) and ISO 14000 (environmental) management systems. It was founded in 1918 by five engineering societies and three government agencies; it is now a nonprofit organization. |||Under ANSI's supervision, Accredited Standards Committee X9 (ASC X9) oversees the global financial services industry and is responsible for all financial-services standards in the U.S. In that capacity, ASC X9 plays a key role in the introduction of new banking technologies. Examples include standards for paper and electronic checks, credit card magnetic stripes and ATM cards. The American Bankers Association provides administrative support for ASC X9 standards.
Founded in 1907, the American Institute of Banking (AIB) is a provider of education and training to the banking industry. More than 150,000 bankers participate in its programs each year. |||The AIB is under the auspices of the American Bankers Association (ABA), and all AIB programs are offered through local ABA providers. Its programs include core courses in banking and business fundamentals as well as specific topics like retail banking; commercial, consumer, and mortgage lending; marketing and compliance.
The American Bankers Association (ABA) is the largest banking trade association in the United States. Founded in 1875, the ABA represents banks of all sizes. The ABA offers a wide range of products and services to its members, in fields such as staff training, insurance, capital management, asset management, risk/compliance and consulting. The nine-digit routing numbers seen on every check originate in a system of bank transit numbers developed by the ABA in 1910. |||The ABA is very active in lobbying Congress on behalf of banking interests. The focus of its lobbying effort in recent years has been the elimination of the tax-exempt status of credit unions. Traditionally, the credit union served a small, highly targeted membership, such as the employees of a company. In recent years, however, credit unions have been able to greatly expand their fields of membership and potential customer pools. Many credit unions now have over $1 billion in assets and rival the size of large banks. The ABA argues that credit unions have become so much like banks that their tax-exempt status is no longer justified.