Data Boundary

Definition:

A limit or perspective applied to a data element.

Commentary:

A single data element may have more than one limit or perspective.

The data boundaries on a data element can be used as criteria to define a data set.

Common boundary types include, but are not limited to:
– Asset class
– Time
– Geography
– Allowable values

For example: price may have a data boundary for product where only a certain list of products have price (e.g., equity, fixed income) and others do not (e.g., annuities, cash). Furthermore, price can have a data boundary for time (e.g., real-time, end-of-day, end of month) that has a different implication depending on the context.