greenmail

[ green-meyl ]
/ ˈgrinˌmeɪl /

noun Stock Exchange.

the practice of buying a large block of a company's stock in order to force a rise in stock prices or an offer by the company to repurchase that block of stock at an inflated price to thwart a possible takeover bid.

Origin of greenmail

green (in sense “money”) + (black)mail

OTHER WORDS FROM greenmail

green·mail·er, noun

British Dictionary definitions for greenmail

greenmail
/ (ˈɡriːnˌmeɪl) /

noun

(esp in the US) the practice of a company buying sufficient shares in another company to threaten takeover and making a quick profit as a result of the threatened company buying back its shares at a higher price

Word Origin for greenmail

C20: a blend of green (sense 8) or greenback (sense 2) + blackmail