Stock Borrow Rate¶
OVERVIEW¶
A stock borrow rate is the annualized percentage fee a short seller pays to a brokerage or clearing firm to borrow shares required to execute a short sale. Tapeboard surfaces live and historical borrow rates directly in the market terminal, allowing traders to evaluate cost of carry before entering or holding a short position.
Note
Borrow rates fluctuate daily — and intraday — based on the supply of lendable shares and aggregate short seller demand. Tapeboard refreshes borrow rate data continuously throughout the trading session.
FEATURES¶
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Live Borrow Rate Feed | Real-time annualized borrow rate per ticker, updated throughout the session |
| GC / HTB Classification | Automatic flag distinguishing General Collateral from Hard-to-Borrow stocks |
| Daily Fee Calculator | Inline cost estimator based on notional position size and current borrow rate |
| Borrow Rate History | Time-series chart of rate changes to identify tightening supply trends |
| Short Squeeze Signal | Alert triggered when borrow rate spikes above a user-defined threshold |
| Position Cost Tracker | Running total of accrued borrow fees across open short positions |
HOW TO USE¶
Understanding Rate Types¶
Tapeboard classifies every shortable security into one of two rate tiers:
| Rate Type | Typical Range | Condition |
|---|---|---|
| General Collateral (GC) | 0.25% – 5% annualized | Highly liquid stocks with ample share supply |
| Hard-to-Borrow (HTB) | 10% – 100%+ annualized | Restricted supply, high short interest, or liquidity squeeze |
Calculating Your Daily Borrow Cost¶
Tapeboard applies the following formulas to estimate position carry cost:
Notional Value = Current Share Price × Number of Shorted Shares
Daily Borrow Fee = (Notional Value × Annualized Borrow Rate) / 360
Example — GME short position:
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Share price | $20.00 |
| Shares shorted | 10,000 |
| Notional value | $200,000 |
| Annualized borrow rate | 50% (HTB) |
| Daily borrow fee | $277.78 |
Tip
A 30-day hold at this rate costs more than $8,300 in borrow fees alone. Tapeboard's position cost tracker surfaces this figure in real time so you can reassess the trade at any point.
Interpreting Borrow Rate Signals¶
- High and rising HTB rate — Share supply is tightening. Monitor for forced broker buy-ins and potential short squeeze conditions.
- Sudden intraday rate spike — The clearing firm may have failed to locate additional shares. Review your margin exposure immediately.
- Rate collapse on high-short-interest stock — Indicates new share supply entering the borrow market, often from secondary offerings or dilution. Squeeze probability decreases.
Note
A high borrow rate alone does not confirm a short squeeze. If the issuer continuously dilutes share count, borrow supply can expand rapidly, collapsing the rate and trapping traders positioned for scarcity.
KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS¶
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
B |
Toggle borrow rate column in the watchlist |
Shift + B |
Open the borrow rate detail panel for the selected ticker |
Alt + F |
Open the daily fee calculator |
Shift + H |
View borrow rate history chart |
Shift + A |
Configure HTB spike alert threshold |