margin call

American

noun

Stock Exchange.

a demand from a brokerage house to a customer that more money or securities be deposited in their margin account when the amount in it falls below that stipulated as necessary to cover the stock purchased.

Etymology

Origin of margin call

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

A $10 billion bet in total was at stake, until the margin calls forced selling.

From The Wall Street Journal

“The earlier decline coincided with broader market jitters and was likely amplified by margin calls, algorithmic trading, and profit-taking.”

From The Wall Street Journal

The forced sales happened after the price of bitcoin plunged by 27% since mid-January, triggering margin calls on the loans.

From The Wall Street Journal

“Hence, if assets bought on margin drop, it takes very little before investors have to raise additional cash to cover the margin calls,” he said.

From MarketWatch

The speed of the decline “suggests that some forced selling occurred as prices dropped quickly and traders faced margin calls,” Gene Goldman, chief investment officer at Cetera Investment Management, wrote Friday.

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023