Finance

Cash Ratio
A key financial metric reflecting an entity's liquidity by comparing cash and cash equivalents to total liabilities.
Central Bank - Definition and Meaning
A comprehensive explanation of what constitutes a central bank, its role, and its importance in monetary policy.
Chancellor of the Exchequer
The UK's chief finance minister responsible for fiscal policy, budget presentation, and economic oversight.
Checking Account
A comprehensive analysis of the checking account, its definition, historical context, and relevance in economics.
Collateralized Debt Obligation (CDO)
A form of structured financial security backed by a portfolio of bonds or loans, segmented by varying levels of risk known as tranches.
Commercial Bill
An extensive look at commercial bills, their definition, historical context, analytical frameworks, comparisons, and suggested readings.
Commercial Paper
An in-depth understanding of commercial paper as a short-term debt financing instrument used by major banks and corporations.
Compound Interest
The interest on a deposit or loan that itself earns interest in later periods.
Computerized Trading
Use of a computer programme to track market information and execute trades
Consortium
A group of companies or banks combining to run a project, often too large or risky for a single firm. Example: The Channel Tunnel.
Consumer Borrowing
Understanding the concept and dynamics of consumer borrowing in economics.
Consumer Debt
In-depth analysis and understanding of consumer debt as an economic term
Contingent Fee
A fee payable only if an activity is successful, commonly used in legal and real estate sectors.
Continuous Compounding
Exploring the concept of continuous compounding, where interest or future receipts are computed continuously.
Convertible Debenture
A comprehensive examination of convertible debenture, its characteristics, historical background, and analytical frameworks.
Corporate Equity
The net assets of a company after paying all creditors, which is the amount available for ordinary shareholders.
Cost of Capital
The rate of return an enterprise must offer to induce investors to provide capital, including debt and equity components.
Counter-Party Credit Risk
The risk associated with the possibility that a counter-party in a financial transaction may default on their obligations.
Covered Interest Parity
Exploration of the concept of Covered Interest Parity and its relevance in Economics and Finance.
Covered Interest Parity
An economic concept that ensures the equality of returns on investments in different currencies when adjusted for forward exchange rates, preventing arbitrage opportunities.
Creative Accounting
A practice of using alternative, usually permitted, methods to manipulate accounting figures to present desired financial outcomes.
Credit Rating
An assessment of the probability that an individual, firm, or country will be able and willing to pay its debts.
Credit Restriction
An overview of credit restriction, also known as credit control, its meaning, and implications in economics.
Credit Union
A financial institution run as a cooperative, owned and controlled by its members.
Credit-Rating Agency
A firm that assesses and provides ratings on the creditworthiness of individuals or companies.
Creditors
The balance-sheet item showing debts owing to others, divided between payments due in under a year and other debts.
Cum Dividend
Sale of shares including the right for the purchaser to receive a dividend already declared but not yet paid.
Cumulative Preference Share
A type of preference share where dividends, including any arrears, must be paid to the shareholder before any dividends can be paid to ordinary shareholders.
Current Assets
Definition and analysis of current assets, frequently turned over in business operations and distinguished from fixed assets.
Day-to-Day Money
A loan made for one business day, the shortest term loan that earns interest. Also known as overnight money.
Debenture
A secured loan instrument raised by a company, typically with fixed interest and sometimes with a fixed redemption date; it defines the rights of debenture holders in different scenarios.
Debt Management
The management of the debt of a company or government to minimize costs and ensure liquidity.
Debt Service
The payments due under a debt contract, including interest and redemption payments.
Debt Service Ratio
The ratio of a country’s debt service payments to its total export earnings, typically expressed as a percentage.
Debt-Collection Agency
A firm specializing in the collection of debts on behalf of other firms.
Decreasing Balance Depreciation
Accounting method for the depreciation of assets with a fixed annual percentage reduction
Demutualization
The conversion of member-owned institutions into shareholder-owned companies.
Deposit
Definition and meaning of deposit in economic terms
Deposit Account
Definition and meaning of a deposit account, a financial term linked to fixed-term deposits with notice requirements, primarily used in the UK.
Dilution
An economical process affecting share value and ownership percentages through the issue of additional common stock by a company.
Direct Investment Abroad
An overview and analysis of direct investment abroad, referring to foreign direct investment.
Discount
A detailed exploration of the term 'discount' and its various economic applications.
Discount Rate
The interest rate at which future receipts or payments are discounted to find their present value.
Dividend Cover
The ratio of total earnings for equity in a company to dividends paid out, often indicating financial health and sustainability of dividend payments.
Double Entry Bookkeeping
The system of keeping accounts in which every payment appears twice in different accounts to ensure accuracy and consistency, once as a credit and once as a debit.
Down Payment
A part of the price of goods sold on hire purchase or instalment credit that has to be paid immediately.
Dual Currency Bond
A fixed income security that makes coupon payments in one currency and pays the principal in another currency.
Efficient Markets Hypothesis
The theory that where assets are traded in organized markets, prices take account of all available information, making it impossible to predict future price movements.
eligible paper - Definition and Meaning
Eligible paper refers to securities considered suitable for rediscounting by a central bank, such as Treasury bills and short-dated gilts.
Equities
The ordinary shares (UK) or common stock (US) of companies, embodying ownership and claims to the residual profits.
Equity Capital
Definition and meaning of equity capital in finance: Company finance raised in exchange for a share of ownership.
Eurobond
A bond issued in a eurocurrency, which is a European currency held outside its country of origin, featuring various maturities and interest rates without withholding taxes.
Eurocurrency
A comprehensive definition and analysis of eurocurrency, its historical context, major analytical frameworks, and case studies.
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)
An international bank established to aid the transition of Central and Eastern Europe and former Soviet states to market economies.
European Monetary Institute
A European organization established to study the problems of organizing a European Central Bank
Ex Dividend
The concept of ex dividend in stock trading, where the vendor retains rights to declared but unpaid dividends.
Financial Economics
The field of economics that analyses the individual allocation of resources between consumption and financial assets, and the equilibrium consequences of individual choices.
Financial Sector
The part of the economy concerned with lending and borrowing, including banks, non-bank financial intermediaries, and financial service providers.
Financial Security
Definition and detailed exploration of the term financial security in the context of Economics
Financial Soundness Indicators
Financial Soundness Indicators: Statistical measures for assessing financial system stability
Financial Times Actuaries Share Indexes
An overview of Financial Times Actuaries Share Indexes, their background, historical context, and usage in financial analysis.
Financial Times Share Indexes
An overview of Financial Times Share Indexes including popular indices such as the FTSE 100.
Flotation
The process of making shares in a company available for sale to the investing public.
Foreign Exchange Markets - Definition and Meaning
Comprehensive overview of foreign exchange markets, encapsulating key concepts, historical context, major analytical frameworks, comparative analysis, and suggested readings.
Foreign Exchange Reserves
Liquid assets held by a country's government or central bank for the purpose of intervening in the foreign exchange market.
Forward and Futures Contracts
Contracts for the future delivery of a commodity, financial asset, or financial index.
Front-End Charge
A fee charged at the onset of an investment, typically as a percentage of the initial investment amount.
Geysha Bond
A term used in reference to Shogun bonds, which are foreign bonds issued in Japan.
Gilt-edged security
An in-depth look at gilt-edged securities, which are fixed-interest securities issued by the UK government.
Ginnie Mae
Informative dictionary entry for understanding Ginnie Mae, also known as the Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA)
Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA)
An overview of the Government National Mortgage Association, commonly known as 'Ginnie Mae', its operations, and relevance in U.S. housing finance.
Granny Bond
A security with state guarantees suited for savers with small total wealth and limited financial sophistication.
Gross Profit
Understanding the concept of gross profit in economics and its significance in financial analysis
Hard Loan
An in-depth look at the term 'hard loan' in economics, detailing its characteristics, frameworks, historical context, and comparisons with soft loans.
Holding Company
A company that holds shares in other companies to form a corporate group and does not produce goods or services.
Hong Kong Stock Exchange
An overview of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, established in 1891, with a market capitalization of US$2.7 trillion as of February 2016.
Illiquidity
The property of an asset that is not easily converted into cash without a significant price discount.
Implied Volatility
A term used in the options market to denote the volatility of the underlying security suggested by the market price of an option contract.
Income - Definition and Meaning
A comprehensive definition and exploration of the term 'income,' its various types, and implications for individuals with and without financial assets.
Indexation
A system for making the performance of an investment or unit trust mimic that of a share index.
Indirect Investment
An exploration of the concept of indirect investment, its mechanisms, and implications in financial markets.
Instalment
Definition and detailed explanation of the term Instalment in economics.
Insurance Company
A company whose main activity is providing various types of insurance policies and managing premium-generated assets.
Intangible Assets - Definition and Meaning
Exploration of intangible assets in economics, including their definitions, characteristics, and role in financial markets.
Interest
Payment for a loan additional to repayment of the amount borrowed.
Interest Payments
Understanding the concept and implications of interest payments in economics.
Interest Rate - Definition and Meaning
An in-depth exploration of interest rates, their significance, and various implications across different economic schools of thought.
Interest-Rate Swaps
An examination of how financial institutions exchange different flows of interest payments.
Interim Dividend
A dividend payment based on interim profit figures for part of a company’s financial year.