obligationer

Obligationer, the Danish term for bonds, are debt instruments used by governments, municipalities, and corporations to raise capital. The issuer borrows money from investors and promises to pay periodic interest, called coupons, and to repay the principal at a future date, the maturity. Typical features include nominal value, coupon rate, maturity, and a fixed payment schedule. Prices in the market move so that yields adjust; when prices rise, yields fall, and vice versa. Yields reflect credit risk, time to maturity, and prevailing interest rates.

There are several main categories of obligationer: government bonds (statlige obligationer), municipal bonds (kommunale obligationer), and corporate bonds (erhvervsobligationer). Within these, investors can encounter fixed-rate bonds, inflation-linked bonds, floating-rate notes, and zero-coupon bonds. Some bonds are secured or covered, and others may be callable or redeemable before maturity.

Key risks and considerations include credit risk (the issuer could default), interest rate risk (bond prices fall when rates rise), reinvestment risk, and liquidity risk. Credit ratings from agencies provide assessments of credit quality but are not guarantees. Valuation is based on the present value of expected cash flows—coupons and principal—discounted at a required yield, which depends on the risk and market conditions. The income from obligationer can provide regular cash flow and diversification, but price and yield are influenced by inflation and market sentiment.

Market structure involves primary markets for new issues and secondary markets for trading existing bonds. Regulation, tax treatment, and settlement conventions vary by jurisdiction, with common settlement cycles and standardized identifiers such as ISIN codes.