A party is said to have underwritten a risk if they make a guarantee against the risk. For example, an insurer underwrites a risk (e.g. that you crash your car) and you will pay them a premium in return.
Investment banks are said to underwrite floatations (IPOs) on the stock exchange by making a guarantee that if the shares of the company floating are not purchased by the open market, the bank will purchase them instead. The bank charges a very substantial premium for this underwriting service.
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