Banking Glossaries-O

Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI)

Created by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions Act, OSFI regulates banks and other federally authorized financial institutions in Canada.

On-Us Item

Payment that is deposited at the same financial institution on which it was drawn or written, e.g., a cheque that was written by one customer of a bank and deposited by the recipient at another branch of the same bank, or a withdrawal that is made by a customer at his or her own financial institution. These items are not cleared between institutions and therefore are generally not represented in statistics of payments exchanged between financial institutions in the clearings.

Operating Loan

A loan intended for short-term financing, supplying cash flow support or to cover day-to-day operating expenses.

Option

A formal contract which grants the holder of the option the right to buy or sell a certian quantity of an underlying interest or asset at a stipulated price within a specific period of time.