Crossing: A method adopted by specialist institutional brokerage firms to handle large buy or sell orders, which would, in the normal course, distort the price movement of shares. In this kind of negotiated transaction, the brokerage firm matches the buyers with the sellers. Once the deal is closed, the prearranged orders are sent to the exchange floor for execution.
Glamour Issue: A public issue of shares, accompanied by much fanfare, often at a high premium, which the investing public take a fancy to. Usually floated by a very successful, high–profile company. An example was the Tata Steel 1989 issue: face value Rs. 100, premium Rs. 500, fund locked away for 7 – 9 years in the non – convertible portion of the debenture of Rs. 600.
Great Crash: On 2nd October, 1929 the New York Stock Exchange price index fell by 49 points, followed by a drop of 43 points the next day. Stock prices continued to drop, until on 8th July, 1932 the index stood at 4110.76 % of its peak level at 381 in September 1929, all the symptoms of DEPRESSION were seen in their most aggravated state. On one day alone, 29th October, 1929, 16,410,030 shares changed hands at throwaway prices, millions became unemployed, scores of factories shut down, over 5000 banks failed, and the US went through its worst ever economic disaster. As a result reformative acts to control the stock market started being legislated from 1933 onwards.
Creeping Acquisition: A process in which the promoters of a company who hold less than 50% of its shares, increase their stake by buying 2% of the company’s equity (the maximum permissible) each year, until they have acquired a majority stake, either by making an open offer to the share holders or buying from the open market.