Jargon flashcards
Don’t know your ETFs from your OEICs? You’re not alone. The investment industry is mired in jargon and it’s easy to get confused. To help you on your way we have compiled a handy deck of jargon flashcards for some of the most common terms and acronyms. We have organised them by levels so that you can build up your knowledge from the basics to the more niche stuff.
Just click on a flashcard and a simple translation will appear. Can’t find the term you need? Let us know.
Level 1: Beginner
Active fund
Active fund
One or more fund managers use their experience to pick which investments to hold in the fund. An active fund is judged against a benchmark and aims to deliver a higher return than that benchmark.
AMC
AMC
Annual Management Charge. A charge by the fund manager for managing the fund. Investors should be aware that the AMC is not the only charge the investor has to pay. The OCF is a better indication of the total charge.
Asset allocation
Asset allocation
The mix and proportion of different asset classes that an investor holds in their portfolio. This will vary depending on their risk tolerance and time horizon. You can make your own asset allocation decisions or a professional fund manager or IFA can make the decisions for you.
Asset class
Asset class
There are many different types of asset classes available to invest in. The most common ones are equities, bonds, commodities and cash. A single stock, bond, commodity etc is referred to as investment security or security.
Asset manager
Asset manager
The company that manages one or more funds for institutional and/or retail investors. The name of a fund typically includes the name of the asset manager.
Bear market
Bear market
Defined by a 20% fall in stock market prices. Bear markets tend to come when investors worry about the prospects for their investments and/or the economy. Just like a Bull market, it can last for a few weeks or for many years. A pessimistic investor can be referred to as “bearish”.
Benchmark
Benchmark
The term is often used interchangeably with index and refers to the chosen index or other metric (like cash or inflation) selected to judge the returns from a particular fund in terms of performance, risk etc. Most benchmarks are indices, but not all indices are benchmarks.
Bond
Bond
A fixed income type of asset. A bond is like a loan between a borrower (a company, government etc) and a lender (the investor). Just like a loan, the bond typically pays the investor interest, which is called a coupon. Bonds are also categorised as investment grade or high yield bonds depending on how likely the borrower is to repay the debt in full.
Broker
Broker
The middleman between the investor and an exchange (think of it like a market). A broker can be a person or a company, but the main purpose is to help an investor to buy or sell investments.
Bull market
Bull market
Defined by a 20% rise in stock market prices. Bull markets tend to come when investors are optimistic about the prospects of their investments and/or the economy. Just like a bear market, it can last for a few weeks or over many years. An optimistic investor can be referred to as “bullish”.
Capital Gains Tax (CGT)
Capital Gains Tax (CGT)
You have to pay this tax on any gains you make on your investments. However, if you invest through an ISA or a SIPP up to the annual limit, this tax does not apply. This is why you should make full use of your ISA and pension allowances.
Compounding
Compounding
The process where you earn interest on your interest over time. If you invest £1,000, after one year say it has grown by 10% to £1,100. You keep the money invested and one year later it has grown by another 10% to 1,210. Your investment has now grown by an another £100 (10% of the original investment) + £10, which is 10% on the £100 you earned in the year before. Over time this process has a significant impact on your total returns, even without adding more money. This is why it is important to start saving and investing early.
Diversification
Diversification
The process of spreading your risk, ie not putting all your eggs in one basket. Common ways of achieving diversification is to mix your investments across asset classes, countries, sectors and currencies.
Dividend
Dividend
A payment, much like interest, made by a company to its shareholders based on its profits. It can be paid annually or more frequently. A dividend yield is a percentage that is calculated by dividing the annual dividend amount by the company’s share price. It is important for income investing.
Equity
Equity
Can also be referred to as stocks and is an investment security that represents ownership in a company. The term “share” is also commonly used when talking about other assets such as ETFs, investment trusts and REITs because the investor buys a share of those assets. Equities tend to be higher risk and with the potential for higher returns than assets such as bonds. They are generally considered appropriate for long-term investing.
ESG
ESG
Environmental, social and governance. ESG is a measure used to evaluate a company’s impact on the environment (E), its social relationships including employees and suppliers (S) and its level of governance and respect for shareholder rights (G). It has become a popular investment style by investors who take a more holistic view on investing, beyond just making money. There are many types of ESG investing including responsible, ethical, sustainable, green and impact investing.
ETF
ETF
Exchange Traded Fund. An ETF is like a fund but trades on an exchange, just like equities. ETFs are passive investments which automatically track an index or a pre-set group of assets. The aim of an ETF is to perform in line with the market. ETFs can be a low-cost way of accessing the market and diversify risk.
FCA
FCA
Financial Conduct Authority. The FCA regulates the conduct and behaviour of financial firms in the UK to make sure that consumers are treated fairly.
FTSE
FTSE
Financial Times Stock Exchange Group. Pronounced “footsie”, FTSE creates indices for global financial markets. The most well-known FTSE index is the FTSE 100 which consists of 100 companies with the largest market cap listed on the London Stock Exchange. The FTSE 100 and other FTSE indices are sometimes used as benchmarks. Their movement (up or down) can give an indication of the health of the UK’s economy.
Fund
Fund
A pool of money set aside for a specific purpose. It can be professionally managed by a fund manager or passively track an index and it can be invested in a wide variety of assets, geographies and styles.
Fund manager
Fund manager
Also referred to as investment manager (IM), portfolio manager (PM) or just FM for short. It is the person who manages the fund and makes decisions for what to buy and sell.
Index
Index
A collection of securities (stocks, bonds etc) with common characteristics. The FTSE 100, for example, comprises the 100 largest UK companies measured by their market cap. An investor cannot buy the actual index, but there are passive funds and ETFs which try to replicate indices.
Investing
Investing
In the most basic sense, it means to allocate money to something with the expectation that the value will grow and/or generate income over time. An investor can invest in real estate, start-ups or in securities in the public markets. With all types of investing, the value of the investment can rise or fall.
ISA
ISA
Individual Savings Account. A tax-efficient savings or investment account. The investor does not have to pay CGT on any gains made. There are different kinds of ISAs: Cash ISA, Stocks & Shares ISA, Help to Buy ISA, Innovate Finance ISA, and Lifetime ISA. There is also a Junior ISA (JISA). Each comes with a different set of rules, but all have caps, called an ISA allowance, on how much money you can put into them.
OCF
OCF
Ongoing Charges Figure. This was previously called the total expense ratio (TER) and is used to show the cost of investing in a fund. It is expressed as a percentage and includes the AMC, administration, regulatory and custody charges. It does not include other costs such as trading or performance fees, which can be large additional costs.
Passive fund
Passive fund
A fund which tries to replicate an index or otherwise predefined group of assets. There are different types of passive funds including index funds (or tracker funds) and ETFs, each with their own pros and cons. Passive funds are usually cheaper than active funds because research and decision-making is not required.
Pension
Pension
A pension is a pot of money which is invested to give a person an income in retirement. There are three main types of pensions: workplace/defined contribution pensions, personal/private pensions and state pensions. For the first two, the size of the pension depends on how much money has been contributed over time and how the investments have performed.
Robo-advisor
Robo-advisor
An online platform using an algorithm to provide automated investment services to retail investors usually with low, or no human supervision. The investor’s money is usually invested in passive investment securities like ETFs.
SIPP
SIPP
Self-Invested Personal Pension. A type of pension plan which gives the holder control over their pension and what it invests in. In short, a DIY pension.
Volatility
Volatility
A measure of how much the price of a security has swung up or down in the past. There is usually a trade-off between volatility and return so investors who seek a higher return tend to have to also accept higher volatility.
Yield
Yield
A calculation of how much income an asset or investment has generated in the form of interest or dividends in relation to the price paid. It is shown as a percentage. Yield is therefore a common term in income investing.
Level 2: Intermediate
Alpha
Alpha
The additional return of an investment/fund over and above its chosen benchmark return.
Behavioural finance
Behavioural finance
A subset of Behavioural Economics that studies how human psychology and subconscious bias can influence fund managers’ and investors’ decisions and behaviour. The core argument is that investors do not always make rational decisions.
Credit rating agency
Credit rating agency
They analyse the creditworthiness of companies and governments and given them a credit rating. This rating then tells if their bonds will be defined as high yield or investment grade. The best-known credit rating agencies are Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch.
Custodian
Custodian
A financial institution responsible for protecting investors’ assets from theft or loss. Custodians tend to be large and reputable financial institutions and are strictly regulated.
Developed market
Developed market
A country that has a stable, highly industrialised economy and relatively high GDP per capita. It also has advanced and regulated capital markets (or stock markets) with good liquidity. Examples include North America, Japan, UK, Australia and Germany.
Emerging market
Emerging market
A country that is similar to a developed market but is less advanced. Usually regulation and market liquidity tend to be worse than in developed markets. But, as emerging markets tend to grow faster than developed markets, they have the potential to deliver higher returns (and risk) for investors. Examples include China, Peru, Israel, South Korea, Indonesia, Turkey, India and Russia.
Execution-only
Execution-only
A trading service (like a broker) which simply executes (buys or sells) the investor’s chosen trades without offering any personal advice.
Gearing
Gearing
Can also be described as leverage, debt or borrowings. It is calculated based on a company’s debt relative to its equity and other liquid assets like cash. If the company has a high proportion of debt relative to its equity, it is considered highly geared. Companies and investment trusts may use gearing.
Gilts
Gilts
A type of bond issued by the UK government. The US equivalent is called Treasury Bills/Bonds (based on time horizon). Government bonds are considered one of the safest investments in the market with low risk and low return characteristics. However, depending on the country that has issued the bond, the risk (and return) may be a lot higher. High-risk government bonds tend to be issued by emerging market countries and are called emerging market debt.
Greenwashing
Greenwashing
When a company or fund makes exaggerated claims and/or mislead consumers about how environmentally friendly their product is.
Growth investing
Growth investing
In simple terms, an investment style focusing on buying stocks of companies which have the potential to grow their sales or profits much faster than their competitors or the overall market.
High yield bond
High yield bond
Bonds issued by a company with a high yield rating set by a credit rating agency. This rating suggests that there is some risk of the company not being able to pay back the bond. Companies with a high yield rating tend to be smaller, younger, more capital-intensive or companies with a lot of debt. To compensate the investor for this extra risk, these bonds tend to have a higher yield than investment grade bonds.
Institutional investor
Institutional investor
Organisations or companies which invest money on behalf of other people. This type of investor is considered more knowledgeable than a retail investor. Examples include pension funds, insurance companies and endowment funds (charities, universities etc).
Investment grade bond
Investment grade bond
Bonds issued by a company with an investment grade rating set by a credit rating agency. This rating suggests that there is a low risk of the company not being able to pay back the bond. Companies with an investment grade rating tend to be large, blue-chip companies with strong balance sheets. Because of this relatively low risk, these bonds tend to offer a lower yield than high yield bonds.
Investment trust
Investment trust
Also referred to as a closed-ended fund. It is an investment company listed on a stock exchange and is traded like a stock. It can invest in different assets, private or public, and can take on debt, which is expressed as gearing. The value of the underlying investments minus the debt is called the net asset value (NAV) and the share price you pay can either trade at a premium or discount to the value of the NAV.
Liquidity
Liquidity
A measure showing the ease of trading a particular investment security without changing the market price. Cash is considered to be the most liquid asset whereas stocks of small companies (small caps), private assets etc are at the other end of the spectrum. These types of assets can be referred to as illiquid.
Market cap
Market cap
Market capitalisation. The total value of a company’s outstanding shares. It is calculated by multiplying the share price with the total number of shares outstanding. It can be used to define a company as a small cap, mid cap or large cap. It can also determine which index the stock should be listed in.
Multi-asset fund
Multi-asset fund
Most funds are dedicated to investing in one type of asset class. Equity funds invest in equities/stocks/shares, bond funds invest in bonds and so on. A multi-asset fund invests in more than one asset class. This combination of various asset classes can increase diversification and reduce volatility because different asset classes tend to perform differently.
OEIC
OEIC
Open Ended Investment Company. This is a common structure for funds based in the UK and it allows investors to pool their money in one fund in order to invest in a particular country, sector or style. The price an investor pays is the price of the underlying investments (the NAV) at a specific time of the day. These funds usually have a fund manager in charge so the cost of investing in an OEIC is the OCF.
Value investing
Value investing
An investment style focused on buying stocks whose share price appears to be below the intrinsic value of the company, as calculated from its assets and liabilities.
Level 3: Advanced
Bid-offer spread
Bid-offer spread
The difference between the price which you pay to buy a security and the price you pay to sell it. Frequently traded assets are considered to have high liquidity which results in a small price difference between the buy and sell price. If the bid-offer spread is big, you may end up paying more than the fair value.
Frontier market
Frontier market
A country which is less developed than an emerging market and sometimes called a pre-emerging market. It tends to be smaller, less liquid and less accessible for investors and normally riskier than an emerging market. Growth and development in these countries tend to be volatile so if you are thinking about investing in these countries you should take a very long-term view (sometimes several decades) in order to have time to ride out any volatility. Examples include Vietnam, Nigeria, Lebanon, Estonia, Bangladesh and Kazakhstan.
ISIN
ISIN
International Securities Identification Number. It is a unique code which identifies an investment security or fund. It can sometimes be confused with the “ticker”, which is a short ID used to identify a security on an exchange. The difference is that an ISIN is unique and always the same regardless of which exchange the security is trading on. In contrast, the ticker can be different on different exchanges.
P/E ratio
P/E ratio
Price-to-earnings ratio. This is one of the most common ways professional investors assess whether the share price of a particular company is cheap or expensive compared to the actual money it makes. It is also referred to as a price multiple or earnings multiple, and it is calculated by dividing the share price with the earnings (profits) per share (EPS). It can also be used to get a sense of the overall value of a particular stock market as the market P/E is a kind of average of all the P/Es of the securities in that market index.
Smart beta
Smart beta
An investment process combining active and passive management. The aim is to outperform a benchmark, instead of tracking it like a traditional passive fund or ETF, but with lower fees than an active fund. This is usually done by investing in a modified index based on a specific set of rules.
Tracking error
Tracking error
This is a measure that assesses the volatility of returns for a fund or ETF compared to its benchmark or in the case of the ETF, the index it is aiming to track. Passive funds and ETFs should have a tracking error as close to 0% as possible. Tracking error is often confused with active share.