maturity

Intermediate 💰 Finance / Accounting

Definition

In finance, the magical date when a debt instrument finally dies and you get your principal back, assuming the borrower hasn't conveniently declared bankruptcy. It's the finish line of your bond investment journey, when all those coupon payments finally culminate in getting your original money returned, possibly worth less due to inflation. The financial equivalent of your kid moving out—you've been waiting forever, and when it finally happens, you're not sure if you should celebrate or panic about what comes next.

Example Usage

The bond's maturity date was 30 years away, which meant the investor would be collecting payments well into retirement, assuming they lived that long.

Source: Financial terminology via Free Dictionary API

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