Zions Direct
Encyclopedia
Zions Direct is an online
broker-dealer
subsidiary
of Salt Lake City, Utah
, USA based Zions Bank, a subsidiary of Zions Bancorporation
that specializes in offering securities for the self-directed and fixed income
investors. Zions Direct allows clients to invest in stock
s, bonds
, mutual fund
s, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
-insured certificates of deposit
, and exchange-traded fund
s. Clients invest online
, through a financial representative, or by bidding on an auction
platform. Zions Direct and Zions affiliates work closely together to meet their customers investment and banking needs by providing money market
, checking
, and other banking products. Zions Direct is regulated by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority
(FINRA).
and the employee stock option valuation instrument, ESOARS. As of April 15, 2008, Zions Direct had sold more than $500 million in securities through their auction platform.
Investing online
Investing online, or self-directed investing, has become the norm for individual investors and traders over the past decade with many, if not all brokers now offering online services with unique trading platforms.-Overview:...
broker-dealer
Broker-dealer
A broker-dealer is a term used in United States financial services regulations. It is a natural person, a company or other organization that trades securities for its own account or on behalf of its customers....
subsidiary
Subsidiary
A subsidiary company, subsidiary, or daughter company is a company that is completely or partly owned and wholly controlled by another company that owns more than half of the subsidiary's stock. The subsidiary can be a company, corporation, or limited liability company. In some cases it is a...
of Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
, USA based Zions Bank, a subsidiary of Zions Bancorporation
Zions Bancorporation
Zions Bancorporation is a member of the S&P 500, a bank holding company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. Among its subsidiaries are Amegy Bank of Texas, California Bank & Trust, National Bank of Arizona, Nevada State Bank, the Commerce Bank of Oregon, the Commerce Bank of Washington,...
that specializes in offering securities for the self-directed and fixed income
Fixed income
Fixed income refers to any type of investment that is not equity, which obligates the borrower/issuer to make payments on a fixed schedule, even if the number of the payments may be variable....
investors. Zions Direct allows clients to invest in stock
Stock
The capital stock of a business entity represents the original capital paid into or invested in the business by its founders. It serves as a security for the creditors of a business since it cannot be withdrawn to the detriment of the creditors...
s, bonds
Bond (finance)
In finance, a bond is a debt security, in which the authorized issuer owes the holders a debt and, depending on the terms of the bond, is obliged to pay interest to use and/or to repay the principal at a later date, termed maturity...
, mutual fund
Mutual fund
A mutual fund is a professionally managed type of collective investment scheme that pools money from many investors to buy stocks, bonds, short-term money market instruments, and/or other securities.- Overview :...
s, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is a United States government corporation created by the Glass–Steagall Act of 1933. It provides deposit insurance, which guarantees the safety of deposits in member banks, currently up to $250,000 per depositor per bank. , the FDIC insures deposits at...
-insured certificates of deposit
Certificate of deposit
A certificate of Deposit is a time deposit, a financial product commonly offered to consumers in the United States by banks, thrift institutions, and credit unions....
, and exchange-traded fund
Exchange-traded fund
An exchange-traded fund is an investment fund traded on stock exchanges, much like stocks. An ETF holds assets such as stocks, commodities, or bonds, and trades close to its net asset value over the course of the trading day. Most ETFs track an index, such as the S&P 500 or MSCI EAFE...
s. Clients invest online
Electronic trading
Electronic trading, sometimes called etrading, is a method of trading securities , foreign exchange or financial derivatives electronically...
, through a financial representative, or by bidding on an auction
Auction
An auction is a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bid, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder...
platform. Zions Direct and Zions affiliates work closely together to meet their customers investment and banking needs by providing money market
Money market
The money market is a component of the financial markets for assets involved in short-term borrowing and lending with original maturities of one year or shorter time frames. Trading in the money markets involves Treasury bills, commercial paper, bankers' acceptances, certificates of deposit,...
, checking
Cheque
A cheque is a document/instrument See the negotiable cow—itself a fictional story—for discussions of cheques written on unusual surfaces. that orders a payment of money from a bank account...
, and other banking products. Zions Direct is regulated by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority
In the United States, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc., or FINRA, is a private corporation that acts as a self-regulatory organization . FINRA is the successor to the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. ...
(FINRA).
Zions Direct Auctions
On March 27, 2007, Zions Direct announced it would begin using an auction platform to offer FDIC-insured CDs. The process allows investors to bid on securities' price or yield, similar to the process used by the U.S. Treasury. In addition to auctioning CDs, Zions Direct has also used the platform to offer medium term notesMedium Term Note
A medium-term note is a debt note that usually matures in 5–10 years, but the term may be less than one year or as long as 50 years. They can be issued on a fixed or floating coupon basis...
and the employee stock option valuation instrument, ESOARS. As of April 15, 2008, Zions Direct had sold more than $500 million in securities through their auction platform.