salary | a form of pay given to employees at regular intervals for the work they have done | |
savings account | an account with a bank that pays interest | |
seasoned equity | shares that have traded long enough to have good value | |
secondary market | a market that trades in existing shares rather than new share issues | |
share certificate | a document that certifies ownership of a share in a company | |
shareholder | a person or entity that owns shares in a company | |
share issue | the offering for sale of shares in a business | |
shell company | a company that has ceased to trade but is still registered | |
sleeping partner | a person/entity that invests money in a company but takes no part in the management of the business | |
slump | a severe downturn in the business cycle | |
slush fund | a fund used by a company for illegal purposes such as bribing officials | |
solvent | referring to assets being worth more than liabilities | |
standing order | instruction given by account holder to bank to make regular payments to the same peyee | |
stealth wealth | advantage that the owner of a company does not realise he has | |
stock exchange | a registered market in securities | |
takeover | an acquisition by a company of a controlling interest of another company | |
tangible assets | assets that are physical, such as buildings, cash and stock | |
tariff | a government duty imposed on imports | |
tax dodge | an illegal method of paying less tax than an individual or company is legally obliged to pay | |
tax evasion | the illegal practice of paying less money in taxes than is due | |
tax exile | a person or business that leaves a country to avoid paying taxes | |
tax haven | a country that has very low taxes | |
tiger | any of the key markets in the Pacific region, except Japan: Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore,Taiwan | |
tight money | a situation where it is expensive to borrow money | |
trade barrier | a condition imposed by a government to limit free exchange of goods internationally | |
trade war | a competition between two or more countries for a share of international or domestic trade | |
Treasury | government department responsible for the nation's financial policies, the management of its economy | |
turbulence | unpredicted and swift changes in a company's external or internal environment | |
turkey | a poorly performing business or investment | |
turnover | total sales revenue for an accounting period | |
tyre kicker | a potential customer who asks for information and requires attention but does not buy anything | |
unemployment | situation when some members of a country's labor force are willing to work but can't find employment | |
unlimited liability | full responsibility for the obligations of a general partnership | |
unlisted company | a company that has no securities listed on a stock exchange | |
variable interest rate | an interest rate that changes in relation to a standard index during the period of a loan | |
VAT | value-added tax | |
velocity of money | the rate at which money circulates in an economy | |
venture capital | money used to finance new companies with high earning potential and high risk | |
wages | a form of pay given to employees for the work they have done on a weekly basis | |
wallflower | investment that doesn't attract interest from potential investors because it's not profitable enough | |
wear and tear | the deterioration of a tangible fixed asset as a result of normal use | |
white knight | someone eg. company's management who buys the company when a hostile company is trying to buy it | |
whizz kid | a young, successful person who makes a lot of money in large financial transactions | |
wholesale price | a price charged to customers who buy large quantities of an item | |
white elephant | product or service that hasn't sold well despite large amounts of money pumped into its development | |
world economy | the global marketplace | |
write-off | a reduction in the recorded value of an asset, usually to zero | |
WTO | World Trade Organisation | |
yield | percentage of the amount invested that is the annual income from the investment | |
zillionaire | a very wealthy person | |
zombie | a business that continues to trade even though it is officially insolvent | |