Business terms starting with B

163 terms

"B" Loan or "B" Paper FICO scores from 620 - 659. Factors include two 30 day late mortgage payments and two to three 30 day late installment loan payments in the last 12 months.
"Bait-and-switch" schemes The lender may promise one type of loan or interest rate but, without good reason, gives you a different one.
"Blue Book" Price the price of a used car as measured by a quality index of many similar vehicles.
BA (Banker's Acceptance) A high-quality, short-term negotiable discount note, drawn on and accepted by banks that are obligated to pay the amount at maturity.
Baby bond Bonds whose par values are less than $1,000 are often described as baby bonds, or, in the case of municipal bonds, as mini-munis.
Baccalaureate bond Baccalaureate bonds are tax-free zero coupon bonds issued by certain states specifically to help families accumulate assets to meet college tuition costs.
Back End Ratio (debt ratio) A ratio that compares the total of all monthly debt payments (mortgage, real estate taxes and insurance, car loans, and other consumer loans) to gross…
Back to Back Escrow Arrangements that an owner makes to oversee the sale of one property and the purchase of another at the same time.
Back-end load A sales charge levied when mutual fund units are redeemed.
Back-up withholding Back-up withholding is triggered when a bank, brokerage firm, or other institution pays interest, dividends, or other income that must be reported on IRS…
Balance We put each charge on your account, including interest or fees, into a balance category.
Balance of payments Record of transactions between U.S. residents and foreign residents during a given time period.
Balance of trade The difference between the value of a country's imports and exports during a specific period of time is called the balance of trade.
Balance on current account Record of net receipts or payments on goods, services, income, and unilateral current transfers. Current transfers include U.S.
Balance on current account, national income and product accounts Current receipts from the rest of the world less current payments to the rest of the world, formerly called "net foreign investment.
Balance on goods Record of the difference between exports of goods and imports of goods. Related terms: Balance on current account, Balance on goods and services.
Balance on goods and services Record of the difference between exports of goods and services and imports of goods and services.
Balance Sheet A financial statement showing the nature and amount of a company's assets, liabilities and shareholders' equity.
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…
Balance-transfer fee A fee charged when you make a balance transfer. It may be a flat fee or a percentage of the transfer.
Balanced fund Balanced funds are mutual funds that invest in a portfolio of common stocks, preferred stocks, and bonds to meet their investment goal of seeking a strong…
balanced funds A mutual fund that holds a mix of securities - usually money market, bonds and equities.
Balloon Loan or Mortgage A mortgage that typically offers low rates for an initial period of time (usually 5, 7, or 10) years; after that time period elapses, the balance is due…
Balloon Mortgage With a balloon mortgage, you make monthly payments over the mortgage term, which is typically five, seven, or ten years, and a final installment, or…
Balloon note A loan calling for periodic payments which are insufficient to fully amortize the face amount of the note prior to maturity, so that a principal sum known…
Balloon Payment A mortgage with periodic installments of principal and interest that do not fully amortize the loan.
Baluster One of a series of short vertical posts, often ornamental, used to support a rail.
Balustrade A railing composed of balusters and a top rail running along the edge of a porch, balcony, roof, or stoop.
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…
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.
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…
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…
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…
Bank Reconciliation A formal comparison of the balance in the checking account as shown on the bank statement with the balance of the cash account in the general ledger, at a…
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…
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…
Banker’s Acceptance (BA) A high-quality, short-term negotiable discount note, drawn on and accepted by banks that are obligated to pay the amount at maturity.
Banking Day A business day during which an office of a bank is open to the public for substantially all of its banking functions.
Banking Interior The area of the designated interior historically used for banking operations and any associated interior spaces including, without limitation, entrance…
Bankrupt A bankrupt person, firm, or corporation has insufficient assets to cover their debts.
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.
Barbell strategy When you use a barbell strategy you invest equivalent amounts in short-term and long-term bonds, creating the shape that gives the strategy its name.
Bargaining representative Bargaining representative means an accredited, exclusive representative of a group of employees authorized by the National Labor Relations Act.
Base Flood The flood having a 1% chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year.
Base Flood Elevation (BFE) The elevation shown on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) for Zones AE, AH, A1-A30, AR, AR/A, AR/AE, AR/A1-A30, AR/AH, AR/AO, V1-V30, and VE that…
Base period The period from which the weights for a measurement series are derived. The national income and product accounts (NIPAs) currently use the year 2000 as…
Base Price Base Price is the cost of a car without options, but includes standard equipment and factory warranty. It is also known as sticker price.
Basement Any area of the building, including any sunken room or sunken portion of a room, having its floor below ground level (subgrade) on all sides.
Basis Basis is the total cost of buying an investment or other asset, including the price, commissions, and other charges.
Basis point Yields on bonds, notes, and other fixed-income investments fluctuate regularly, typically changing only a few hundredths of a percentage point.
Basis Point (bp) The smallest measure used in quoting yields or returns. One basis point is 0.01% of yield, 100 basis points equals 1%. A yield that changed from 8.
Basis price When you sell a security, such as a stock or bond, or real estate, the price you use to calculate your capital gains is known as your basis price.
Bay A regularly repeating division of a façade, marked by fenestration.
Bay Window A projecting form containing windows that rises from the ground or from some other support, such as a porch roof; see also oriel.
Bear market A market in which prices are generally falling.
Bear spread A bear spread is an options strategy that you use when you anticipate a decline in the price of the underlying instrument, such as a stock or an index.
Bearer bond A bearer bond is a certificate that states the security's par value, the rate at which interest will be paid, and the name of the bond's owner.
Bearer form When securities are issued as paper certificates and the issuing corporation has no record of the owner, the securities are in bearer form.
Bearer Shares Many offshore financial secrecy jurisdictions permit the issuance of bearer shares by corporations chartered in their jurisdiction.
Before-Tax Income Income before taxes are deducted. Also known as "gross income."
Behavioral finance Behavioral finance combines psychology and economics to explain why and how investors act and to analyze how that behavior affects the market.
Beige Book Beige book is the colloquial name for the Federal report that is formally titled Summary of Commentary on Current Economic Conditions by Federal Reserve…
Bellwether A market bellwether is a security whose changing price is considered a signal that the market is changing direction.
Benching Benching refers to workers who are in nonproductive status due to a decision by the employer, such as lack of work or a permit.
Benchmark A standard unit used as the basis of comparison; a universal unit that is identified with sufficient detail so that other similar classifications can be…
Benchmark I-O accounts See Benchmark input-output (I-O) accounts
Benchmark input-output (I-O) accounts Statistical description-presented in a make table, use table, direct requirements table, and total requirements tables-of the production of goods and…
Benchmark input-output accounts See Benchmark input-output (I-O) accounts
Benchmark rate(s) The rates set annually by the Commissioner of Insurance that rate-regulated insurance companies use to reference their rates.
Beneficial owner When your stocks are registered in street name, the brokerage firm has title to the stocks but you are the beneficial owner, or the person who actually…
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.
Beneficiary A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract.
Beneficiary or Beneficiary Payee A person who is designated to receive, or is receiving, a retirement annuity or other benefit provided by the South Carolina Retirement Systems.
benefits received A concept of tax fairness that states that people should pay taxes in proportion to the benefits they receive from government goods and services.
Beta Beta is a measure of an investment's relative volatility. The higher the beta, the more sharply the value of the investment can be expected to fluctuate…
Betterment A condition relating to original equipment, or older parts, on your automobile, when having been damaged in an accident may only be replaced with new…
BID The bid is the price a market maker or broker is willing to pay for a security, such as a stock or bond, at a particular time.
Bid and ask The bid price is the highest price anyone is willing to pay to buy a stock; while the ask is the lowest anyone will accept to sell a stock.
Big Board The Big Board is the nickname of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the oldest stock exchange in the United States and the one with the largest trading…
Bill Your bill is the statement of your account. Your bill will tell you the total amount that you owe us as of the end of the last billing period.
Billing Cycle The time interval between the dates on which regular periodic statements are issued.
Billing Date The month, date, and year when a periodic or monthly statement is generated. Calculations have been performed for appropriate finance charges, minimum…
Billing Error A charge that appears on a periodic statement associated with an extension of credit (e.g.
Billing period The billing period is the fixed period of time covered by the bill we send you.
Binder A temporary or preliminary agreement, in effect for less than 60 days, that provides coverage until a policy can be written or delivered.
biweekly mortgage A loan requiring payments of principal and interest at two-week intervals. This type of loan amortizes much faster than monthly payment loans.
Biweekly Payment Mortgage A mortgage with payments due every two weeks (instead of monthly).
Blanket mortgage A single mortgage covering more than one parcel of real estate, such as a mortgage covering all the lots of a builder in a subdivision.
Blind pool If the general partner of a limited partnership does not say which investments the partnership will make, the investment is known as a blind pool.
Blind trust A blind trust is created when a third party, such as an investment adviser or other trustee, assumes complete control of the assets held in a trust.
Block Plan A drawing of a building’s foot print within an entire block in simplified, non-detailed form
Block trade When at least 10,000 shares of stock or bonds valued at $200,000 or more are bought or sold in a single transaction, it is called a block trade.
Blue chip stock Blue chip stock is the common stock of a large, well-regarded US company. The companies in that informal category are collectively known as blue chips…
Blue sky laws Blue sky laws require companies that sell stock, mutual funds, and other financial products to register new issues with the appropriate public agency.
Bodily injury (BI) Physical injury to a person.
Bodily Injury Liability If you injure someone in a car accident, this coverage pays his/her medical and rehabilitation expenses and any damages for which you are found liable.
Bodily Injury Liability Coverage Pays for another person's bodily injury or death in an accident that you may be found legally liable to pay.
Boiler room A boiler room is a location used by con artists to contact potential victims out-of-the-blue - an approach known as cold calling - in an attempt to sell…
Bona fide In good faith, without fraud.
Bond A long-term debt instrument with the promise to pay a specified amount of interest and to return the principal amount on a specified maturity date.