FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS: ECONOMIC ESSENCE AND CONCEPTUAL TRANSFORMATION

Abstract

For the development of the national financial system and its integration into the global economy, it is necessary to create a high-quality financial market in Ukraine, define an effective model of its functioning, and conduct fundamental and applied research in this area. Currently, a large number of scientific studies are being conducted in the field of finance. The main ones are devoted to the consideration and establishment of the essence of fundamental financial categories and the study of the interrelationships between the processes taking place in the financial market. There is no single approach to the definition of such financial categories as finance, financial system, financial instruments, etc. among scientists who study and research the financial market. The purpose of this study is to clarify the economic essence of the category "financial instruments" that corresponds to the economic realities of today. This category, from the moment of its inception to the present day, has not lost its relevance in the financial markets, and has also acquired various forms given the dynamic development of financial markets. The relevance of this article is due to the fact that in interpreting the essence of the economic category "financial instruments" in foreign and domestic economic science there is no single methodological approach, the concepts of "intangible assets", "securities", "financial assets", "financial products", "contracts", "rights and obligations" and others are mixed. This fact, in turn, gives rise to an incomplete and sometimes erroneous interpretation of the above category, which does not correspond to modern realities. In the course of preparation of this article, the following scientific research methods were used: the analytical method was used in the course of processing scientific information sources; the method of comparative analysis was used to determine the common and distinctive characteristics of the category "financial instruments" proposed by different authors; the method of generalisation was used to formulate the results of research on the economic essence of the category "financial instruments". The article offers the author's own definition of the category of financial instruments, which characterises them as an economic category and is considered as a formalised means of distribution of financial resources in the financial market with the use of contractual relations that regulate financial relations between the parties and ensure rights and obligations related to transfer of financial resources.