Unrealized Gain
Also called: paper gain, unrealised gain, unrealized loss
An unrealized gain is profit that exists on screen but not in your pocket, because you still hold the asset. It becomes real — and in most systems taxable — only when you sell. This gap is the foundation of tax-efficient investing: an untaxed unrealized gain keeps compounding on money you would otherwise have paid to the government, which is why buy-and-hold beats equally skilled frequent trading even before fees.