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Fixed Income Products

What are fixed income investments?

Fixed income1 investments generally provide an established return on a fixed schedule. One of the most popular types of fixed income products are bonds, through which you lend money to a government, municipality, corporation, federal agency or other entity known as an issuer. In return for that money, the issuer provides you with a bond in which it promises to pay a specified rate of interest during the life of the bond and to repay the face value of the bond (the principal) when it matures, or comes due. Many of these investments can offer tax-free returns on the municipal, state and federal levels. Individual bonds can be useful in a strategy that seeks to preserve capital and generate a predicable return when they are held to maturity, subject to issuer credit risk2. Please consider this information for educational purposes only. Please schedule a review with a financial professional3 to receive recommendations that may be suitable for you or in your best interest based on various personalized factors.

An array of fixed income products

HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. offers access to a wide variety of fixed income products including:

  • Municipal bonds: Debts issued by states, municipalities or counties that are free from federal taxes and usually free of state and local taxes4. Municipal Securities may be subject to the federal Alternative Minimum Tax.
  • Treasury notes and bonds: U.S. Government debt that carries a fixed interest rate, usually with a maturity of 1-10 years. Interest income is exempt from state and local income taxes, but subject to federal income taxes.5
  • Government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) / Agency: Bonds issued by financing entities created by Congress to fund loans to certain groups of borrowers such as homeowners, farmers and students. i.e. Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) are privately owned corporations, while the Federal Home Loan Banks and the Federal Farm Credit Banks are systems comprising regional banks. All GSE debt is not guaranteed by the federal government, whereas government agencies such as Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae) are divisions of the government whose securities are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States.
  • Sovereign bonds: Issued by a national government and denominated in a foreign currency6
  • Domestic corporate bonds
  • Bond Funds7
  • Brokered CDs8

Investors should consider the investment objectives, risks and charges and expenses associated with municipal fund securities along with your specific best interest considerations before investing. Further information about municipal fund securities is available in the issuer’s official statement. The official statement should be read carefully before investing. There is always the potential of losing money when you invest in securities.

When investing in fixed income products you should seek tax advice from your independent tax advisor.

Help from a Financial Professional

As a client of HSBC Securities (USA) Inc., you can rest assured knowing that an experienced financial professional can help you determine if fixed income investments align to your personal objectives and risk tolerance, and are in your best interest, and can help you evaluate which specific products may fit within your diversification strategy.

For more information about fixed income products, or to schedule a financial review:

Call 800.662.3343. If you’re calling outside the U.S. or Canada, call 847.876.1574.

Mon - Fri (8am - 6pm ET)

Call 800.662.3343. If you’re calling outside the U.S. or Canada, call 847.876.1574.

Mon - Fri (8am - 6pm ET)

Investment, annuities, and variable life insurance products are offered by HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. (HSI), member NYSE/FINRA/SIPC. In California, HSI conducts insurance business as HSBC Securities Insurance Services. License #: OE67746. HSI is an affiliate of HSBC Bank USA, N.A. Whole life, universal life, term life, and other types of insurance are offered by HSBC Insurance Agency (USA) Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of HSBC Bank USA, N.A. Products and services may vary by state and are not available in all states. California license #: OD36843.

Investments, Annuity and Insurance Products:

ARE NOT A DEPOSIT OR OTHER OBLIGATION OF THE BANK OR ANY OF ITS AFFILIATES
ARE NOT FDIC INSURED
ARE NOT INSURED BY ANY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AGENCY
ARE NOT GUARANTEED BY THE BANK OR ANY OF ITS AFFILIATES
MAY LOSE VALUE

All decisions regarding the tax implications of your investment(s) should be made in consultation with your independent tax advisor.

Research backgrounds of brokers and firms for free by visiting FINRA's BrokerCheck website 

Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) Customer Disclosure

At this time in the United States, there is no standard definition of, or measurement criteria for, environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) factors or impact.  ESG-related measurement criteria is highly subjective and may vary significantly across and within different sectors.  There is no guarantee that: (a) the nature of the ESG investment, or the ESG impact or measurement criteria of an investment, will be aligned with any particular investor’s ESG goals; (b) the stated or targeted ESG level will be achieved; or (c) an investment approach that considers ESG factors will produce returns similar to those that don’t, or that they won’t diverge from traditional market benchmarks.

HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. and HSBC Insurance Agency (USA) Inc. (collectively “HSBC”) may rely on metrics or measurement criteria devised and/or reported by third party providers or issuers.  HSBC does not always conduct its own specific due diligence in relation to ESG metrics or measurement criteria.

ESG investing is an evolving area and new regulations may come into effect which may affect how an investment is categorized or labeled. An investment that is considered to fulfil ESG criteria today may not meet those criteria at some point in the future. 

Please consider the investment’s specific ESG impact measurement criteria in the prospectus or other offering documents prior to investing.

United States persons (including U.S. citizens and residents) are subject to U.S. taxation on their worldwide income and may be subject to tax and other filing obligations with respect to their U.S. and non-U.S. accounts - including, for example, Form TD F 90-22.1 (Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts ("FBAR")). U.S. persons should consult a tax adviser for more information.

1 Fixed income products are subject generally to interest rate, credit, liquidity and market risks, to varying degrees.

2 Investments subject to the credit risk of the issuer are generally the obligations of the issuer and are not, either directly or indirectly, an obligation of any third party. Any payment to be made on the investments with credit risk, including any return of principal or coupon payable at maturity, if applicable, depends on the ability of the issuer to satisfy its obligations as they come due. As a result, the actual and perceived creditworthiness of an issuer may affect the market value of an investment with such credit risk and, in the event an issuer were to default on its obligations, you may not receive the amounts owed to you under the terms of the investment.

3 Financial professional refers to Financial Consultants (FCs), Investment Counselors (ICs), and High Net Worth Relationship Managers (HNWRMs). All offer bank products through HSBC Bank (USA) N.A, investments, annuities, and variable life insurance products through HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. and traditional insurance products through HSBC Insurance Agency (USA) Inc.

4 Municipal bonds: Investors should consider the investment objectives, risks and charges and expenses associated with municipal securities before investing. Further information about municipal securities is available in the issuer's official statement. The official statement should be read carefully before investing.

5 U.S. Treasuries are guaranteed as to the payment of principal and interest by the U.S. Government

6 Foreign securities can be subject to greater risks than U.S. investments, including currency fluctuations, less liquid trading markets, greater price volatility, political and economic instability, less publicly available information, and changes in tax or currency laws or monetary policy. These risks are likely to be greater for emerging markets than in developed markets. Prices of securities in emerging markets can fluctuate more significantly than the prices of companies in more developed countries. Securities of emerging market issuers generally have more risk than securities issued by issuers in more developed markets. The less developed the country, the greater affect the risks may have in an investment, and as a result, an investment may exhibit a higher degree of volatility than either the general domestic securities market or the securities markets of developed foreign countries.

7 Investors should be aware that the fund's yield and the value of its portfolio fluctuate and can be affected by changes in interest rates, general market conditions and other political, social and economic developments. However, investors in any bond fund should anticipate fluctuations in price, especially for longer-term issues and in environments of rising interest rates. Investments in bond funds are subject to possible loss due to the financial failure of the underlying securities and their inability to meet their current obligations. These risks may increase the funds share price volatility.

8 All CDs are FDIC insured together with all other deposits you may have with the issuing bank, up to the current maximum amount of $250,000 per depositor. For further guidance on FDIC insurance coverage, please visit www.FDIC.gov.

An investment in a bond fund should be preceded or accompanied by an effective prospectus and investors should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the investment company carefully before investing. The prospectus of a fund contains this and other important information about the investment company. Investors should read the prospectus carefully before investing in a fund.

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