Paper Dealer
Categories: Banking
No, not the guy who can get you a great deal on bulk toilet paper. And not that dude in college you used to buy your term papers from. This paper dealer has to do with commercial paper.
Commercial paper is a kind of short-term loan. Companies use it to smooth out cash flow. In the same way you might use a home equity loan, companies utilize commercial paper. It's a debt instrument, like a bond or note, but very short-term, and the debt is unsecured.
A paper dealer is like a wholesaler for commercial paper. A company looking to sell an issuance of these securities will sell them in bulk to a dealer. These entities (usually big banks or other financial institutions) will then sell them to individual investors.
![](https://media1.shmoop.com/images/finance-glossary/paper%20ream.png)