Promissory note - wikipedia Promissory note A 1926 Promissory Note from the Imperial Bank of India, Rangoon, Burma for 20,000 rupees plus interest A promissory note, sometimes referred to as a note payable, is a legal instrument ( more particularly, a financial instrument and a debt instrument ), in which one party ( the maker or issuer ) promises in writing to pay a determinate sum of money to the other ( the payee ), either at a fixed or determinable future time or on demand of the payee, under specific terms. Contents 1 Overview 1.1 Terminology 1.1. 1 Loan contracts 1.1. 2 Difference from IOU 1.2 Negotiability 1.3 Use as financial instruments 1.4 Use as private money 2 History 2.1 International law 3 Worldwide 3.1 England and Wales 3.2 United States 4 See also 5 References Overview The terms of a note usually include the principal amount, the interest rate if any, the parties, the date, the terms of repayment ( which could include interest ) and the maturity date. Sometimes, provisions are included concerning the payee 's rights in the event of a default, which may include foreclosure of the maker 's assets. For loans between individuals, writing and signing a promissory note are often instrumental for tax and record keeping. A promissory note alone is typically unsecured. Terminology The term note payable is commonly used in accounting ( as distinguished from accounts payable ) or commonly as just a `` note '', it is internationally defined by the Convention providing a uniform law for bills of exchange and promissory notes, but regional variations exist. A banknote is frequently referred to as a promissory note, as it is made by a bank and payable to bearer on demand. Mortgage notes are another prominent example. If the promissory note is unconditional and readily saleable, it is called a negotiable instrument. Demand promissory notes are notes that do not carry a specific maturity date, but are due on demand of the lender. Usually the lender will only give the borrower a few days ' notice before the payment is due. Promissory notes may be used in combination with security agreements. For example, a promissory note may be used in combination with a mortgage, in which case it is called a mortgage note. Loan contracts In common speech, other terms, such as `` loan '', `` loan agreement '', and `` loan contract '' may be used interchangeably with `` promissory note ''. The term `` loan contract '' is often used to describe a contract that is lengthy and detailed. A promissory note is very similar to a loan. Each is a legally binding contract to unconditionally repay a specified amount within a defined time frame. However, a promissory note is generally less detailed and less rigid than a loan contract. For one thing, loan agreements often require repayment in installments, while promissory notes typically do not. Furthermore, a loan agreement usually includes the terms for recourse in the case of default, such as establishing the right to foreclose, while a promissory note does not. Difference from IOU Promissory notes differ from IOUs in that they contain a specific promise to pay along with the steps and timeline for repayment as well as consequences if repayment fails. IOUs only acknowledge that a debt exists. Negotiability Negotiable instruments are unconditional and impose few to no duties on the issuer or payee other than payment. In the United States, whether a promissory note is a negotiable instrument can have significant legal impacts, as only negotiable instruments are subject to Article 3 of the Uniform Commercial Code and the application of the holder in due course rule. The negotiability of mortgage notes has been debated, particularly due to the obligations and `` baggage '' associated with mortgages ; however, in mortgages notes are often determined to be negotiable instruments. In the United States, the Non-Negotiable Long Form Promissory Note is not required. Use as financial instruments Promissory notes are a common financial instrument in many jurisdictions, employed principally for short time financing of companies. Often, the seller or provider of a service is not paid upfront by the buyer ( usually, another company ), but within a period of time, the length of which has been agreed upon by both the seller and the buyer. The reasons for this may vary ; historically, many companies used to balance their books and execute payments and debts at the end of each week or tax month ; any product bought before that time would be paid only then. Depending on the jurisdiction, this deferred payment period can be regulated by law ; in countries like France, Italy or Spain, it usually ranges between 30 and 90 days after the purchase. When a company engages in many of such transactions, for instance by having provided services to many customers all of whom then deferred their payment, it is possible that the company may be owed enough money that its own liquidity position ( i.e., the amount of cash it holds ) is hampered, and finds itself unable to honour their own debts, despite the fact that by the books, the company remains solvent. In those cases, the company has the option of asking the bank for a short - term loan, or using any other such short - term financial arrangements to avoid insolvency. However, in jurisdictions where promissory notes are commonplace, the company ( called the payee or lender ) can ask one of its debtors ( called the maker, borrower or payor ) to accept a promissory note, whereby the maker signs a legally binding agreement to honour the amount established in the promissory note ( usually, part or all its debt ) within the agreed period of time. The lender can then take the promissory note to a financial institution ( usually a bank, albeit this could also be a private person, or another company ), that will exchange the promissory note for cash ; usually, the promissory note is cashed in for the amount established in the promissory note, less a small discount. Once the promissory note reaches its maturity date, its current holder ( the bank ) can execute it over the emitter of the note ( the debtor ), who would have to pay the bank the amount promised in the note. If the maker fails to pay, however, the bank retains the right to go to the company that cashed the promissory note in, and demand payment. In the case of unsecured promissory notes, the lender accepts the promissory note based solely on the maker 's ability to repay ; if the maker fails to pay, the lender must honour the debt to the bank. In the case of a secured promissory note, the lender accepts the promissory note based on the maker 's ability to repay, but the note is secured by a thing of value ; if the maker fails to pay and the bank reclaims payment, the lender has the right to execute the security. Use as private money Thus, promissory notes can work as a form of private money. In the past, particularly during the 19th century, their widespread and unregulated use was a source of great risk for banks and private financiers, who would often face the insolvency of both debtors, or simply be scammed by both. History 500 piastre promissory note issued and hand - signed by Gen. Gordon during the Siege of Khartoum ( 1884 ) payable six months from the date of issue. Roman promissory notes maybe the first ones as 2,000 - year - old Roman promissory notes have been found in London. Historically, promissory notes have acted as a form of privately issued currency. Flying cash or feiqian was a promissory note used during the Tang dynasty ( 618 -- 907 ). Flying cash was regularly used by Chinese tea merchants, and could be exchanged for hard currency at provincial capitals. The Chinese concept of promissory notes was introduced by Marco Polo to Europe. According to tradition, in 1325 a promissory note was signed in Milan. However, according to a travelogue of a visit to Prague in 960 by Ibrahim ibn Yaqub, small pieces of cloth were used as a means of trade, with these cloths having a set exchange rate versus silver. Around 1150 the Knights Templar issued promissory notes to pilgrims, pilgrims deposited their valuables with a local Templar preceptory before embarking, received a document indicating the value of their deposit, then used that document upon arrival in the Holy Land to retrieve their funds in an amount of treasure of equal value. There is evidence of promissory notes being issued in 1384 between Genoa and Barcelona, although the letters themselves are lost. The same happens for the ones issued in Valencia in 1371 by Bernat de Codinachs for Manuel d'Entença, a merchant from Huesca ( then part of the Crown of Aragon ), amounting a total of 100 florins. In all these cases, the promissory notes were used as a rudimentary system of paper money, for the amounts issued could not be easily transported in metal coins between the cities involved. Ginaldo Giovanni Battista Strozzi issued an early form of promissory note in Medina del Campo ( Spain ), against the city of Besançon in 1553. However, there exists notice of promissory notes being in used in Mediterranean commerce well before that date. International law In 1930, under the League of Nations, a Convention providing a uniform law for bills of exchange and promissory notes was drafted and ratified by eighteen nations. Article 75 of the treaty stated that a promissory note shall contain : the term `` promissory note '' inserted in the body of the instrument and expressed in the language employed in drawing up the instrument an unconditional promise to pay a determinate sum of money ; a statement of the time of payment ; a statement of the place where payment is to be made ; the name of the person to whom or to whose order payment is to be made ; a statement of the date and of the place where the promissory note is issued ; the signature of the person who issues the instrument ( maker ). Worldwide England and wales `` § 83. BILLS OF EXCHANGE ACT 1882. Part IV.... Promissory note defined ( 1 ) A promissory note is an unconditional promise in writing made by one person to another signed by the maker, engaging to pay, on demand or at a fixed or determinable future time, a sum certain in money, to, or to the order of, a specified person or to bearer. ( 2 ) An instrument in the form of a note payable to maker 's order is not a note within the meaning of this section unless and until it is indorsed by the maker. ( 3 ) A note is not invalid by reason only that it contains also a pledge of collateral security with authority to sell or dispose thereof. ( 4 ) A note which is, or on the face of it purports to be, both made and payable within the British Islands is an inland note. Any other note is a foreign note. '' United States A promissory note issued by the Second Bank of the United States, December 15, 1840, for the amount of $1,000 In the United States, a promissory note that meets certain conditions is a negotiable instrument regulated by article 3 of the Uniform Commercial Code. Negotiable promissory notes called mortgage notes are used extensively in combination with mortgages in the financing of real estate transactions. One prominent example is the Fannie Mae model standard form contract Multistate Fixed - Rate Note 3200, which is publicly available. Promissory notes, or commercial papers, are also issued to provide capital to businesses. However, Promissory Notes act as a source of Finance to the company 's creditors. The various State law enactments of the Uniform Commercial Code define what is and what is not a promissory note, in section 3 - 104 ( d ) : `` § 3 - 104. NEGOTIABLE INSTRUMENT.... ( d ) A promise or order other than a check is not an instrument if, at the time it is issued or first comes into possession of a holder, it contains a conspicuous statement, however expressed, to the effect that the promise or order is not negotiable or is not an instrument governed by this Article. '' Thus, a writing containing such a disclaimer removes such a writing from the definition of negotiable instrument, instead simply memorializing a contract. See also Look up promissory note in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Wikimedia Commons has media related to Promissory notes. Bond ( finance ) Credit card Government bond Letter of credit Notes receivable Student loan Warrant ( of Payment ) References ^ Jump up to : Larson, Aaron. `` How to Use a Promissory Note ''. ExpertLaw. Retrieved 11 May 2018. ^ Jump up to : Whaley DJ. ( 2012 ). Mortgage Foreclosures, Promissory Notes, and the Uniform Commercial Code. Western State University Law Review. LexisNexis entry Jump up ^ Staff, Investopedia ( 25 November 2003 ). `` Promissory Note ''. investopedia.com. Retrieved 30 March 2018. Jump up ^ Beattie, Andrew. `` Promissory Notes : Not Your Average IOU ''. Investopedia. Retrieved 27 May 2014. Jump up ^ `` Promissory Note Comparison Guide '' ( PDF ). LegalZoom. 2009. Retrieved 11 May 2018. Jump up ^ `` IOU ''. Investopedia. Investopedia, LLC. Retrieved 23 May 2017. Jump up ^ `` Non-Negotiable Long Form Promissory Note ''. Retrieved 27 May 2014. Jump up ^ FBF, Les clés de la banque -. `` La lettre de change et la LCR ''. Les clés de la banque Entrepreneurs. Retrieved 30 March 2018. Jump up ^ Hinkel, Daniel F. ( 2012 ). Essentials of Practical Real Estate Law. Cengage Learning. pp. 174 -- 175. ISBN 1133421490. Retrieved 11 May 2018. Jump up ^ `` SEC.gov - Broken Promises : Promissory Note Fraud ''. www.sec.gov. Retrieved 30 March 2018. Jump up ^ Cuhaj, George S., ed. ( 2009 ). Standard Catalog of World Paper Money Specialized Issues ( 11 ed. ). Krause. pp. 1069 -- 70. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4402 - 0450 - 0. Jump up ^ `` Ancient Roman IOUs Found Beneath Bloomberg 's New London HQ ''. 2016 - 06 - 01. Retrieved 2018 - 06 - 09. Jump up ^ `` Ancient letters reveal daily life, trade and debts in Roman London ''. Mail Online. Retrieved 2018 - 06 - 09. Jump up ^ William N. Goetzmann ; K. Geert Rouwenhorst ( 2005 ). The Origins of Value : The Financial Innovations that Created Modern Capital Markets. Oxford University Press. p. 68. ISBN 978 - 0 - 19 - 517571 - 4. Jump up ^ Marco Polo ( 1818 ). The Travels of Marco Polo, a Venetian, in the Thirteenth Century : Being a Description, by that Early Traveller, of Remarkable Places and Things, in the Eastern Parts of the World. pp. 353 -- 355. Retrieved 19 September 2012. Jump up ^ Jankowiak, Marek. Dirhams for slaves. Medieval Seminar, All Souls, 2012, p. 8 Jump up ^ `` Templar Order ''. Religion Past and Present. Jump up ^ 1966 -, Martin, Sean, ( 2004 ). The Knights Templar : the history and myths of the legendary military order ( 1st Thunder 's Mouth Press ed ed. ). New York : Thunder 's Mouth Press. ISBN 1560256451. OCLC 57175151. CS1 maint : Extra text ( link ) Jump up ^ As noted by Manuel Sanchis Guarner in La Ciutat de València. Ajuntament de València, València. Cinquena Edició 1989, plana 172. Quote in Catalan Onorables senyors, nosaltres havem pres ací en Monsó, C florins de cambi de mossén Manuel d'Entença..., vos plàcia complir e donar aquí en València, per ell al honrat En Bernat de Codinachs, vista la present. Per la lletra que us enviam, vos fem saber aquells havíem ops. Plàtia - us, senyors, aquest cambi aja bon compliment. Jump up ^ `` La primera Letra de Cambio ''. Retrieved 27 May 2014. Jump up ^ `` Convention Providing a Uniform Law for Bills of Exchange and Promissory Notes ''. UiO. Retrieved 27 May 2014. Jump up ^ `` Convention providing a Uniform Law for Bills of Exchange and Promissory Notes ''. United Nations Treaty Collection. United Nations. 7 June 1930. Retrieved 11 May 2018. Jump up ^ ( 1 ) ( 2 ) Jump up ^ `` Notes ''. FannieMae. Retrieved 27 May 2014. GND : 4189324 - 4 NARA : 10641754 NDL : 00988900 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Promissory_note&oldid=846529695 '' Categories : Personal finance Real estate Legal documents Negotiable instrument law Securities ( finance ) Interest - bearing instruments Hidden categories : CS1 maint : Extra text Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with NARA identifiers Wikipedia articles with NDL identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Asturianu Azərbaycanca Беларуская Беларуская ( тарашкевіца ) ‎ Български Bosanski Català Čeština Deutsch Eesti Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Français Հայերեն Hrvatski Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית ಕನ್ನಡ ქართული Қазақша Кыргызча Latina Latviešu Lëtzebuergesch Lietuvių Magyar मराठी Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Norsk nynorsk Polski Português Qaraqalpaqsha Română Русский Slovenčina Slovenščina Suomi Svenska Татарча / tatarça ไทย Тоҷикӣ Тыва дыл Українська اردو 中文 42 more Edit links This page was last edited on 19 June 2018, at 09 : 39 ( UTC ). Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: promissory notes that are freely transferable from one party to another are called
Answer: negotiable instrument