The Over The Counter Bulletin Board (OTC BB or OTC:BB) is a regulated venue for trading small cap stocks and securities in the United States. Owned by the Nasdaq Exchange, the OTC BB typically trades securities that are not listed on one of the major US Exchanges (NASDAQ, New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), American Stock Exchange (AMEX) and more...).
The OTC BB is a regulated quotation service, which means that real-time quotes, last-sale prices and volume information is all related electronically. To be listed on the OTC BB, typically a security does not meet the market capitalization (market cap), ownership requirements, or some other requirement that the other exchanges require. Because of this, most investors know the OTC BB as being a risky place to invest their money - which is no longer necessarily true.
New regulations created on the OTC BB have made trading much safer. For example, the OTC BB now only allows fully reporting securities to be traded. Other securities are relegated to smaller exchanges (such as the Pink Sheets). Also, in recent years, some investors are referring to the OTC BB as the "Minor Leagues" - securities that are bounced from the NASDAQ often appear on the OTC BB.
Want some more information on the OTC BB? Check out these links: