Banking

Banking terms

1. 30 Days Delinquent The percentage of loans underlying a Security that are 30 to 59 days behind on their scheduled payments.
2. 60 Days Delinquent The percentage of loans underlying a Security that are 60 to 89 days behind on their scheduled payments.
3. Abusive tax avoidance transaction (ATAT) (ATAT) Is defined as: Tax shelter as defined under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 6662(d)(2)(C), Reportable transaction as defined under IRC Section…
4. Abusive tax schemes Transactions promoted for the promise of tax benefits with no meaningful change in the taxpayer's control over or benefit from the taxpayer's income or…
5. Account Agreement The contract governing your open-end credit account, it provides information on changes that may occur to the account.
6. Account History The payment history of an account over a specific period of time, including the number of times the account was past due or over limit.
7. Account Holder Any and all persons designated and authorized to transact business on behalf of an account.
8. Accrued Interest Interest that has been earned but not yet paid.
9. Acquiring Bank In a merger, the bank that absorbs the bank acquired.
10. Adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMS) Also known as variable-rate mortgages. The initial interest rate is usually below that of conventional fixed-rate loans.
11. Adjustable-Rate Mortgages (ARMS,ARM) (ARMS,ARM) Also known as variable-rate mortgages. The initial interest rate is usually below that of conventional fixed-rate loans.
12. Adverse Action Under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, a creditor's refusal to grant credit on the terms requested, termination of an existing account, or an unfavorable…
13. Adverse Action Notice The notice required by the Equal Credit Opportunity Act advising a credit applicant or existing debtor of the denial of their request for credit or…
14. Affidavit A sworn statement in writing before a proper official, such as a notary public.
15. Agency Mortgage-Backed Security (MBS) (MBS) A type of Mortgage-Backed Security backed by government guaranteed mortgage loans.
16. agency, bank An agency bank is a form of organization commonly used by foreign banks to enter the United States' market.
17. Agent Agent means any individual, other than a broker-dealer, who represents a broker-dealer or issuer in effecting or attempting to effect purchases or sales…
18. agent of issuer An agent of issuer is an individual who represents the issuer in effecting (or attempting o effect) purchases or sales of an issuer's securities.
19. Alteration Any change involving an erasure or rewriting in the date, amount, or payee of a check or other negotiable instrument.
20. Amortization The process of reducing debt through regular installment payments of principal and interest that will result in the payoff of a loan at its maturity.
21. Annual Percentage Rate (APR) (APR) The cost of credit on a yearly basis, expressed as a percentage.
22. Annual Percentage Yield (APY) (APY) A percentage rate reflecting the total amount of interest paid on a deposit account based on the interest rate and the frequency of compounding for a…
23. Annuity A life insurance contract sold by insurance companies, brokers, and other financial institutions. It is usually sold as a retirement investment.
24. Application Under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), an oral or written request for an extension of credit that is made in accordance with the procedures…
25. Appraisal The act of evaluating and setting the value of a specific piece of personal or real property.
26. Authorization The issuance of approval, by a credit card issuer, merchant, or other affiliate, to complete a credit card transaction.
27. Automated Clearing House (ACH) (ACH) A computerized facility used by member depository institutions to electronically combine, sort, and distribute inter-bank credits and debits.
28. Automated Teller Machine (ATM) (ATM) A machine, activated by a magnetically encoded card or other medium, that can process a variety of banking transactions.
29. Automatic Bill Payment A checkless system for paying recurring bills with one authorization statement to a financial institution.
30. Automatically Protected As of May 1, 2011, up to two months of Federal benefits such as Social Security benefits, Supplemental Security Income benefits, Veteran’s benefits…
31. Availability Date The date on which checks payable at local or non-local banks are considered to be collected and available for customers' withdrawal.
32. Availability Policy Bank's policy as to when funds deposited into an account will be available for withdrawal.
33. Available Balance The balance of an account less any hold, uncollected funds, and restrictions against the account.
34. Available Credit The difference between the credit limit assigned to a cardholder account and the present balance of the account.
35. Balance transfer The process of moving an outstanding balance from one credit card to another. This is usually done to obtain a lower interest rate on the outstanding…
36. Bank America has a "dual banking system" which means that both states and the federal government issue bank charters for the need and convenience of their…
37. bank and trust company Also known as commercial banks, bank and trust companies historically concentrated on short-term business loans that were funded with demand deposits.
38. Bank Custodian A bank custodian is responsible for maintaining the safety of clients' assets held at one of the custodian's premises, a sub-custodian facility or an…
39. Bank Examination Examination of a bank's assets, income, and expenses-as well as operations by representatives of Federal and State bank supervisory authority-to ensure…
40. bank holding company A bank holding company controls, directly or indirectly, at least twenty-five percent of any class of voting securities of a bank and meets various other…
41. Bank Statement Periodically the bank provides a statement of a customer's deposit account. It shows all deposits made, all checks paid, and other debits posted during…
42. bankers' bank An institution owned exclusively by any combination of banks or credit unions and that is organized to do business solely with other banks or credit…
43. Banking Day A business day during which an office of a bank is open to the public for substantially all of its banking functions.
44. Bankrupt A bankrupt person, firm, or corporation has insufficient assets to cover their debts.
45. Bankruptcy The legal proceedings by which the affairs of a bankrupt person are turned over to a trustee or receiver for administration under the bankruptcy laws.
46. Bearer Shares Many offshore financial secrecy jurisdictions permit the issuance of bearer shares by corporations chartered in their jurisdiction.
47. Beneficial Ownership This term refers to the true owner of an entity, asset, or transaction as opposed to any stated ownership provided in documents or oral representations.
48. Beneficiary A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract.
49. Billing Cycle The time interval between the dates on which regular periodic statements are issued.
50. Billing Date The month, date, and year when a periodic or monthly statement is generated. Calculations have been performed for appropriate finance charges, minimum…
51. Billing Error A charge that appears on a periodic statement associated with an extension of credit (e.g.
52. Bond, U.S. Savings Savings bonds are issued in face value denominations by the U.S. Government in denominations ranging from $50 to $10,000.
53. branch office, securities A location other than the main office at which a broker-dealer or investment adviser conducts a securities or investment advisory business.
54. branch, bank Branch means any office at a fixed location of a bank, other than the main office, at which deposits are received, checks paid, and money lent, and that…
55. branch, credit union Branch means any office established by a credit union at a fixed location, at which shares or deposits are received, share drafts or checks are paid, or…
56. branch, foreign bank see also Foreign Bank Branches and agencies are the most common structures of foreign banking organizations in the United States.
57. Broker-dealer A person that buys and sells securities for others or for h the broker-dealer's own account (e.g. proprietary trading).
58. business and industrial development corporation A business and industrial development corporation is one form of organization for lenders participating in the loan guarantee programs of the federal…
59. Business Day Any day on which offices of a bank are open to the public for carrying on substantially all of the bank's business.
60. business opportunity The sale or lease of products, equipment, supplies or services to enable a person to start his or her own business.
61. Canceled Check A check that a bank has paid, charged to the account holder's account, and then endorsed. Once canceled, a check is no longer negotiable.
62. Cashier's Check A check drawn on the funds of the bank, not against the funds in a depositor's account.
63. Cease and Desist Letter A letter requesting that a company stops the activity mentioned in the letter.
64. Certificate of Deposit A negotiable instrument issued by a bank in exchange for funds, usually bearing interest, deposited with the bank.
65. Certificate of Release A certificate signed by a lender indicating that a mortgage has been fully paid and all debts satisfied.
66. Certified Check A personal check drawn by an individual that is certified (guaranteed) to be good.
67. Charge-off The balance on a credit obligation that a lender no longer expects to be repaid and writes off as a bad debt.
68. Check A written order instructing a financial institution to pay immediately on demand a specified amount of money from the check writer's account to the person…
69. Check 21 Act Check 21 is a Federal law that is designed to enable banks to handle more checks electronically, which is intended to make check processing faster and…
70. check cashing service (1) "General facility" means a facility at a fixed location where a licensee may engage in the business of cashing checks, drafts or money orders and…
71. Check truncation The conversion of data on a check into an electronic image after a check enters the processing system.
72. Checking account A demand deposit account subject to withdrawal of funds by check.
73. ChexSystems The ChexSystems, Inc. network is comprised of member financial institutions that regularly contribute information on mishandled checking and savings…
74. Closed-End Credit Generally, any credit sale agreement in which the amount advanced, plus any finance charges, is expected to be repaid in full by a specified date.
75. Closed-End Loan Generally, any loan in which the amount advanced, plus any finance charges, is expected to be repaid in full by a specified date.
76. Closing a Mortgage Loan The consummation of a contractual real estate transaction in which all appropriate documents are signed and the proceeds of the mortgage loan are then…
77. Closing Costs The expenses incurred by sellers and buyers in transferring ownership in real property.
78. Co-Maker A person who signs a note to guarantee a loan made to another person and is jointly liable with the maker for repayment of the loan.
79. Co-Signer An individual who signs the note of another person as support for the credit of the primary signer and who becomes responsible for the obligation.
80. Collateral Assets that are offered to secure a loan or other credit. For example, if you get a real estate mortgage, the bank's collateral is typically your house.
81. Collected Funds Cash deposits or checks that have been presented for payment and for which payment has been received.
82. Collection Agency A company hired by a creditor to collect a debt that is owed. Creditors typically hire a collection agency only after they have made efforts to collect…
83. Collection Items Items-such as drafts, notes, and acceptances-received for collection and credited to a depositor's account after payment has been received.
84. Collective Investment Funds (CIFs,CIF) (CIFs,CIF) A Collective Investment Fund (CIF) is a trust created and administered by a bank or trust company that commingles assets from multiple clients.
85. Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities (CMBS) (CMBS) A type of Mortgage-Backed Security backed by commercial mortgage loans.
86. community bank Section 36a-70(r)(2) allows the formation of a community bank with $3 million in capital.
87. community development bank A community development bank is organized to serve the banking needs of a well-defined neighborhood, community, or other geographic area and, typically…
88. Community Reinvestment Act The Act is intended to encourage depository institutions to help meet the credit needs of the communities in which they operate, including low- and…
89. community reinvestment act (cra) Enacted by Congress in 1977, the CRA encourages banks to help meet the credit needs of their communities for housing and other purposes, particularly in…
90. Conforming Loans Mortgage loans that satisfy agency (i.e. Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae) underwriting criteria, in terms of maximum loan balance, loan-to-value…
91. connecticut bank A state-chartered bank.
92. connecticut credit union A state-chartered credit union.
93. consumer collection agency Consumer collection agency means any person engaged in the business of collecting or receiving for payment for others of any account, bill or other…
94. Consumer Credit Counseling Service A service which specializes in working with consumers who are overextended with debts and need to make arrangements with creditors.
95. Consumer Reporting Agency An agency that regularly collects or evaluates individual consumer credit information or other information about consumers and sells consumer reports for…
96. Conventional Fixed Rate Mortgage A fixed-rate mortgage offers you a set interest rate and payments that do not change throughout the life, or "term," of the loan.
97. Coupon Rate ​The scheduled interest earned on a security, expressed as a percentage of the outstanding balance.
98. Credit Application A form to be completed by an applicant for a credit account, giving sufficient details (residence, employment, income, and existing debt) to allow the…
99. Credit Bureau An agency that collects individual credit information and sells it for a fee to creditors so they can make a decision on granting loans.
100. Credit Card Account Agreement A written agreement that explains the terms and conditions of the account, credit usage and payment by the cardholder, and duties and responsibilities of…