Issue date
The day an issue passes from the issuer to its first holders and begins to exist as a tradable security.
How to read the number
Coupon periods are counted from this day, so it — not the registration date — sets the whole schedule of future payments.
When the metric lies
Time passes between placement and the start of secondary trading. In that gap the bond is already in the portfolio and there is nowhere to sell it.
Also known as: placement date, date of placement