Marketable Debt Securities

Marketable Debt Securities are short term bonds held by one company in another large corporation. These bonds should be held as short term investments; otherwise this asset belongs in the category of long term investments.  Marketable debt securities should be carried at cost, until a gain or loss is realized at sale.  These debt securities are held by companies as an alternative to cash, and there should be an active market to ensure liquidity of the investment.

Since marketable debt securities are short term assets of a company, they can be found in the current assets section of the balance sheet.