bondholder

noun bond·hold·er \ ˈbänd-ˌhōl-dər \

|Updated on: 12 Jul 2018

Definition of bondholder

: one that holds a government or corporation bond

Recent Examples of bondholder from the Web

On May 1st Hovnanian paid other bondholders but defaulted on those held by the subsidiary.

— The Economist, "A bondholder finds a sneaky way to trigger insurance against default," 3 May 2018
The moves are designed to putting the stake out of reach of bondholders who financed PetSmart's acquisition with $2 billion in debt, Bloomberg said.

— rob wile, miamiherald, "To shield it from investors' bite, PetSmart is spinning off part of Chewy.com," 7 June 2018
His advisers are negotiating repayment terms with bondholders, yet any settlement requires the board’s approval.

— andrew scurria, WSJ, "Puerto Rico’s Bankruptcy Advisers Could Get Closer Scrutiny," 9 May 2018
Argentina had been closed to international markets for more than a decade amid a long-running legal fight with bondholders that followed a default on its debt.

— New York Times, "Argentina Raises Key Rate to 40%, Bringing Economic Uncertainty," 4 May 2018
Still, the paper said, Chewy may be worth nearly double the $3 billion price PetSmart, one PetSmart bondholder told the paper.

— rob wile, miamiherald, "To shield it from investors' bite, PetSmart is spinning off part of Chewy.com," 7 June 2018
The New Balance affiliate and its private equity partner, Berkshire Partners, ended up quietly selling Rockport to bondholders last fall.

— jon chesto, BostonGlobe.com, "Rockport ends up in bankruptcy court with a buyer in the wings," 14 May 2018
Law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP and financial adviser PJT Partners are advising the bondholders backing the company’s restructuring.

— becky yerak, WSJ, "Guitar-Maker Gibson Brands Files for Bankruptcy," 1 May 2018
Two liquidation firms and a group of company bondholders won the bid to secure the company’s assets, which will be liquidated as the stores are closed.

— erin sauder, Elgin Courier-News, "Carson's closing a loss for Spring Hill Mall, but revitalization efforts will continue," 21 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bondholder.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of bondholder

1823

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

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Financial Definition of BONDHOLDER

bondholder

noun

What It Is

A bondholder is a person who owns a bond issued by a borrower, typically a company or a government.

How It Works

A bond represents a loan agreement between an issuer and an investor, and the terms of the bond obligate the issuer to repay the borrowed amount (the principal) by a specific date. The investor (the bondholder) usually earns a specific amount of interest on a semiannual basis.

Bondholders can buy and sell their bonds on the bond market.

Why It Matters

Being a bondholder is much different that being a shareholder. For one thing, bondholders are lenders; shareholders are owners. Also, bondholders cannot vote and they are not entitled to dividends. But perhaps most important is the fact that bondholders rank senior to shareholders. This means that the bondholders are among the first in line to be repaid in the event the issuer liquidates. Shareholders might receive some proceeds from the liquidation after this point, if there is anything left. This seniority provides an extra level of security for bondholders, and this is one reason corporate bonds are generally considered "safer" investments than stock.

Source: Investing Answers