CERTIFIED TRADE FINANCE PROFESSIONAL
CTFP EXAM 2026 FULL PREPARATION AND
STUDY COMPENDIUM
◉ the financial effect of making student loan payments for 20 years
after graduating from college can be easily seen. Answer: the
financial effect of making student loan payments for 20 years after
graduating from college can be easily seen.
For example, a college graduate who owes $60,000 in student loans
at 3% interest will have to pay $332.76 per month for 20 years to get
that paid off. If that amount was instead diverted into a Roth IRA
that grows at 6% for that same time period (with no further
contributions after 20 years), then the student would have almost
$600,000 of tax-free money by age 65. No poll or study is necessary
to see the enormous impact that student loan debt can have on a
borrower's retirement preparedness. (For more, see: Student Loans:
What to Do When You Can't Repay Them.)
◉ Certificate of Deposit (CD). Answer: 1. a time deposit at a
commercial bank and insured by the FDIC that restricts holders
from withdrawing funds on demand.
2. bears a maturity date ranging from one month to five years at a
fixed interest rate and can be issued in any denomination.
,◉ Negotiable Certificates of Deposit (NCD)
(Jumbo CD). Answer: 1. a large certificate of deposit that is typically
purchased by institutional/company investors.
2. Unlike a regular CD, NCDs pay periodic interest, usually twice a
year and cannot be cashed in before reaching maturity, but can be
easily sold in the open market before that time.
3. minimum face value of $100,000, but typically are $1 million or
more.
◉ Treasury Bills (T-bills). Answer: 1. short-term securities that
mature in 3-months, 6-months or 1-year.
2. exempt from state and local taxes.
3. purchased at less than par.
4. issued in denominations at $1,000, $5,000, $10,000, $25,000,
$50,000, $100,000 and $1 million.
5. all Treasuries are considered to be risk-free (safest investments in
the world).
◉ Treasury Notes (T-notes). Answer: 1. a maturity between 1 and 10
years.
2. exempt from state and local taxes.
3. purchased at face value and pay out interest payments semi-
annually.
4. bought through a bank or directly from US gov't.
,5. can be sold in a large secondary market (liquidity).
◉ Treasury Bond (T-Bond). Answer: 1. a maturity of more than 10
years.
2. exempt from state and local taxes.
3. purchased at face value and pay out interest payments semi-
annually.
4. issued with a minimum denomination of $1,000 and maximum of
$5 million.
5. After auction, bonds can be sold in the secondary market.
6. bonds can be bought directly from the government through
TreasuryDirect at http://www.treasurydirect.gov, thereby bypassing
a broker.
◉ U.S. Savings Bonds. Answer: 1. offer a fixed rate of interest over a
fixed period of time.
2. not subject to state or local income taxes.
3. cannot be cashed until at least six months after purchase but
maturity varies somewhere between 15 to 30 years.
4. come in 8 values: $50, $75, $100, $200, $500, $1,000, $5,000, and
$10,000.
5. purchased directly from the Dept of the Treasury but can be
cashed out at most banks.
6. must be an American citizen.
, ◉ Municipal Bonds. Answer: 1. are exempt from federal taxes and
from most state and local taxes.
2. issued by a state, municipality or county to finance its capital
expenditures (such as the construction of highways, bridges or
schools).
◉ Zero-Coupon Bonds. Answer: a type of bond that makes no
coupon payments but instead is issued at a considerable discount to
par value.
◉ Brady Bonds. Answer: 1. are U.S. dollar denominated bonds that
were issued by mainly Latin American countries, with U.S.
Government 30 year zero coupon bonds serving
as collateral to ensure payment of the principal.
2. were created in March of 1989 and named for the then U.S.
Treasury Secretary, Nicolas Brady.
◉ Yankee Bonds. Answer: a bond denominated in U.S. dollars that is
publicly issued in the U.S. by foreign banks and corporations. These
bonds must be registered under the Securities Act of
1933 with the SEC before they can be sold.
◉ Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA), Traditional
CTFP EXAM 2026 FULL PREPARATION AND
STUDY COMPENDIUM
◉ the financial effect of making student loan payments for 20 years
after graduating from college can be easily seen. Answer: the
financial effect of making student loan payments for 20 years after
graduating from college can be easily seen.
For example, a college graduate who owes $60,000 in student loans
at 3% interest will have to pay $332.76 per month for 20 years to get
that paid off. If that amount was instead diverted into a Roth IRA
that grows at 6% for that same time period (with no further
contributions after 20 years), then the student would have almost
$600,000 of tax-free money by age 65. No poll or study is necessary
to see the enormous impact that student loan debt can have on a
borrower's retirement preparedness. (For more, see: Student Loans:
What to Do When You Can't Repay Them.)
◉ Certificate of Deposit (CD). Answer: 1. a time deposit at a
commercial bank and insured by the FDIC that restricts holders
from withdrawing funds on demand.
2. bears a maturity date ranging from one month to five years at a
fixed interest rate and can be issued in any denomination.
,◉ Negotiable Certificates of Deposit (NCD)
(Jumbo CD). Answer: 1. a large certificate of deposit that is typically
purchased by institutional/company investors.
2. Unlike a regular CD, NCDs pay periodic interest, usually twice a
year and cannot be cashed in before reaching maturity, but can be
easily sold in the open market before that time.
3. minimum face value of $100,000, but typically are $1 million or
more.
◉ Treasury Bills (T-bills). Answer: 1. short-term securities that
mature in 3-months, 6-months or 1-year.
2. exempt from state and local taxes.
3. purchased at less than par.
4. issued in denominations at $1,000, $5,000, $10,000, $25,000,
$50,000, $100,000 and $1 million.
5. all Treasuries are considered to be risk-free (safest investments in
the world).
◉ Treasury Notes (T-notes). Answer: 1. a maturity between 1 and 10
years.
2. exempt from state and local taxes.
3. purchased at face value and pay out interest payments semi-
annually.
4. bought through a bank or directly from US gov't.
,5. can be sold in a large secondary market (liquidity).
◉ Treasury Bond (T-Bond). Answer: 1. a maturity of more than 10
years.
2. exempt from state and local taxes.
3. purchased at face value and pay out interest payments semi-
annually.
4. issued with a minimum denomination of $1,000 and maximum of
$5 million.
5. After auction, bonds can be sold in the secondary market.
6. bonds can be bought directly from the government through
TreasuryDirect at http://www.treasurydirect.gov, thereby bypassing
a broker.
◉ U.S. Savings Bonds. Answer: 1. offer a fixed rate of interest over a
fixed period of time.
2. not subject to state or local income taxes.
3. cannot be cashed until at least six months after purchase but
maturity varies somewhere between 15 to 30 years.
4. come in 8 values: $50, $75, $100, $200, $500, $1,000, $5,000, and
$10,000.
5. purchased directly from the Dept of the Treasury but can be
cashed out at most banks.
6. must be an American citizen.
, ◉ Municipal Bonds. Answer: 1. are exempt from federal taxes and
from most state and local taxes.
2. issued by a state, municipality or county to finance its capital
expenditures (such as the construction of highways, bridges or
schools).
◉ Zero-Coupon Bonds. Answer: a type of bond that makes no
coupon payments but instead is issued at a considerable discount to
par value.
◉ Brady Bonds. Answer: 1. are U.S. dollar denominated bonds that
were issued by mainly Latin American countries, with U.S.
Government 30 year zero coupon bonds serving
as collateral to ensure payment of the principal.
2. were created in March of 1989 and named for the then U.S.
Treasury Secretary, Nicolas Brady.
◉ Yankee Bonds. Answer: a bond denominated in U.S. dollars that is
publicly issued in the U.S. by foreign banks and corporations. These
bonds must be registered under the Securities Act of
1933 with the SEC before they can be sold.
◉ Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA), Traditional
