Freeriding

Free-Riding

1. The practice of buying a security and then selling it without having enough cash or cash-equivalent to pay for the original purchase. In the United States, transactions do not settle for three days; that is, a buyer does not pay for a security until three days after he/she buys it. If the buyer does not have the cash to pay for the purchase, he/she may theoretically sell the security on the same day and use that money to pay for the purchase. Free-riding is illegal under SEC rules and is prohibited by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

2. An illegal practice in which an underwriter does not place a new issue of a security and then later sells it for a higher price.

---

freeriding

1. An action taken by a syndicate member to withhold a portion of a new security issue from sale because of a belief that a later reselling of the withheld security will yield a higher price. Freeriding is prohibited by the SEC.

2. The purchase and sale of a security in a short period of time without putting up any money. Freeriding by investors is prohibited by Federal Reserve Board's Regulation T. Compare frozen account.