Commercial Paper (CP) is a short-term, fixed maturity, unsecured promissory note issued in the open markets as an obligation of the issuing entity. Commercial Paper is usually issued with maturities of less than 365 days, with the most common having maturities of 90 days.

Commercial Paper is sold either directly by the issuer or through a securities broker. For entities with a sufficient credit rating, Commercial Paper is generally backed by bank lines of credit or letters of credit. Banks are active in the Commercial Paper market as issuers, investors, dealers, and lenders on lines of credit used to back Commercial Paper issuance.