Equity-linked notes are a type of structured product and are often marketed to unsophisticated retail investors.
The underlying stock, exercise price and maturity date determine the principal and interest of the product.
Usually, the final payout is the amount invested, plus the gain in the underlying stock or index times a note-specific participation rate, which can be more or less than 100%.
Generally, the participation rate is better in longer maturity notes, since the total amount of interest given up by the investor is higher.
These investments are sometimes marketed as providing higher yields than bonds, but lower risk than stocks.