Dictionary_of_Banking_and_Finance

centralised to be efficient. 2. a group or institution which is arranged for efficient work

‘…working with a client base which includes many major commercial organizations and nationalized industries’ [Times]

organisational / ɔ əna -

ze ʃ(ə)n(ə)l/, organizational adjective referring to the way in which something is organised The paper gives a diagram of the company’s organisational structure.

organisational chart / ɔ əna -

ze ʃ(ə)n(ə)l tʃɑ t/ noun a chart showing the hierarchical relationships between employees in a company

organisation and methods

/ ɔ əna ze ʃ(ə)n ən meθədz/ noun a process of examining how an office works, and suggesting how it can be made more efficient. Abbreviation O &

M

organisation chart / ɔ əna -

ze ʃ(ə)n tʃɑ t/ noun same as organisational chart

Organisation for Economic

Co-operation and Development

/ ɔ əna ze ʃ(ə)n fər i kə nɒm k kəυ-ɒpəre ʃ(ə)n ən d veləpmənt/ noun

an organisation representing the industrialised countries, aimed at encouraging international trade, wealth and employment in member countries. Abbreviation

OECD

organise / ɔ əna z/, organize verb

1. to set up a system for doing something The company is organised into six profit centres. The group is organised by sales areas. 2. to arrange something so that it works

‘…we organize a rate with importers who have large orders and guarantee them space at a fixed rate so that they can plan their costs’ [Lloyd’s List]

organised labour / ɔ əna zdle bə/ noun employees who are members of trade unions

‘…governments are coming under increasing pressure from politicians, organized labour and business to stimulate economic growth’ [Duns Business Month]

Organization of Petroleum Ex-

porting Countries

/ ɔ əna ze ʃ(ə)n əv pə trəυliəm ek-spɔ t ŋ k ntriz/ noun a group of

major countries who are producers and exporters of oil. Abbreviation OPEC

originating fee /ə r d$ ne t ŋ fi /, origination fee /ə r d$ ne ʃ(ə)n fi /

noun US a front-end fee charged to cover the costs of dealing with an application for a loan

orphan stock / ɔ f(ə)n stɒk/ noun a neglected share, which is not often recommended by market analysts

OTC abbreviation over-the-counter

other people’s money / ðəpi p(ə)lz m ni/ noun money that

belongs to customers, clients or shareholders, i.e. not to the people who are using it or investing it. Abbreviation

OPM

ouguiya /u i jə/ noun a unit of currency used in Mauritania

ounce /aυns/ noun a measure of weight (= 28 grams) (NOTE: Usually

written oz after figures: 25oz. Note also that the ounce is now no longer officially used in the UK.)

out /aυt/ adverb 1. on strike The workers have been out on strike for four weeks. As soon as the management made the offer, the staff came out. The shop stewards called the workforce out.

2. to be out to be wrong in calculating something, or to be wrongly calculated

the balance is £10 out we are £20,000 out in our calculations we have £20,000 too much or too little 3. US away from work because of illness

(NOTE: The UK term for this sense is off.)

outbid /aυt b d/ verb to offer a better price than someone else We offered £100,000 for the warehouse, but another company outbid us. (NOTE: out-

bidding – outbid)

outflow / aυtfləυ/ noun outflow of capital from a country capital which is sent out of a country for investment abroad

outflows / aυtfləυz/ plural noun money withdrawn from a fund in which it was previously invested

outgoings / aυt əυ ŋz/ plural noun money which is paid out

outlay / aυtle / noun money spent, expenditure for a modest outlay for a small sum For a modest outlay he was able to take control of the business.

outlook / aυtlυk/ noun a view of what is going to happen in the future The

economic outlook is not good. The stock market outlook is worrying.

‘American demand has transformed the profit outlook for many European manufacturers’ [Duns Business Month]

out-of-date cheque / aυt əv de ttʃek/ noun a cheque which has not

been cleared because its date is too old, normally more than six months

out-of-favour adjective, adverb neglected, not liked (NOTE: The US

spelling is out-of-favor.)

out of pocket / aυt əv pɒk t/ adjective, adverb having paid out money personally The deal has left me out of pocket.

out-of-pocket expenses / aυt əvpɒk t k spens z/ plural noun an

amount of money paid back to an employee who has spent his or her personal money on company business

outperform / aυtpə fɔ m/ verb to do better than other companies

‘…on the fairly safe assumption that there is little to be gained in attempting to find the share or trust that outperforms everything else, there is every reason to buy an index-tracking fund’ [Money Observer]

outperformance / aυtpə fɔ məns/ noun the fact of doing better than other companies

output / aυtpυt/ noun the amount which a company, person or machine produces Output has increased by 10%. 25% of our output is exported.

‘…crude oil output plunged during the last month and is likely to remain near its present level for the near future’ [Wall Street Journal]

output per hour / aυtpυt pər aυə/ noun the amount of something produced in one hour

output tax / aυtpυt t ks/ noun VAT charged by a company on goods or services sold, and which the company pays to the government

outright / aυt ra t/ adverb, adjective completely

outsell /aυt sel/ verb to sell more than someone The company is easily outselling its competitors. (NOTE: outsell-

ing – outsold)

outside / aυtsa d/ adjective, adverb

1. not in a company’s office or building

to send work to be done outside to send work to be done in other offices 2.

outside office hours not during office hours, when the office is not open

outside dealer / aυtsa d di lə/ noun a person who is not a member of the Stock Exchange but is allowed to trade

outside director / aυtsa d da -

rektə/ noun a director who is not employed by the company, a non-executive director

outside line / aυtsa d la n/ noun a line from an internal office telephone system to the main telephone exchange

You dial 9 to get an outside line.

outside office hours / aυtsa dɒf s aυəz/ adverb when the office is

not open

outside shareholder / aυtsa dʃeəhəυldə/ same as minority

shareholder

outside worker / aυtsa d w% kə/ noun an employee who does not work in a company’s offices

outstanding /aυt st nd ŋ/ adjective not yet paid or completed outstanding debts debts which are waiting to be paid outstanding orders orders received but not yet supplied what is the amount outstanding? how much money is still owed? matters outstanding from the previous meeting questions which were not settled at the previous meeting

COMMENT: Note the difference between ‘outstanding’ and ‘overdue’. If a debtor has 30 days credit, then his debts are outstanding until the end of the 30 days, and they only become overdue on the 31st day.

outstanding cheque /aυt st nd ŋ

tʃek/ noun a cheque which has been written and therefore has been entered in the company’s ledgers, but which has not been presented for payment and so has not been debited from the company’s bank account

outturn / aυtt% n/ noun an amount produced by a country or company

outvote /aυt vəυt/ verb to defeat someone in a vote the chairman was outvoted the majority voted against the chairman

overall / əυvər ɔ l/ adjective covering or including everything the company reported an overall fall in profits the

company reported a general fall in profits overall plan a plan which covers everything

overall balance of payments

/ əυvərɔ l b ləns əv pe mənts/ noun the total of current and long-term balance of payments

overbook / əυvə bυk/ verb to book more people than there are seats or rooms available The hotel or The flight was overbooked.

overbooking / əυvə bυk ŋ/ noun the act of taking more bookings than there are seats or rooms available

overborrowed / əυvə bɒrəυd/ adjective referring to a company which has very high borrowings compared to its assets, and has difficulty in meeting its interest payments

overbought / əυvə bɔ t/ adjective having bought too much the market is overbought prices on the stock market are too high, because there have been too many people wanting to buy

‘…they said the market was overbought when the index was between 860 and 870 points’ [Australian Financial Review]

overcapacity / əυvəkə p s ti/ noun an unused capacity for producing something

‘…with the present overcapacity situation in the airline industry the discounting of tickets is widespread’ [Business Traveller]

overcapitalised / əυvə-

k p təla zd/, overcapitalized adjective referring to a company with more capital than it needs

overcharge noun / əυvətʃɑ d$/ a charge which is higher than it should be

to pay back an overcharge verb

/ əυvə tʃɑ d$/ to ask someone for too much money They overcharged us for our meals. We asked for a refund because we’d been overcharged.

overdraft / əυvədrɑ ft/ noun 1. an amount of money which a company or person can withdraw from a bank account, with the bank’s permission, despite the fact that the account is empty

The bank has allowed me an overdraft of £5,000. (NOTE: The US term is overdraft protection.) we have exceeded our overdraft facilities we have taken out more than the overdraft allowed by the bank 2. US a negative amount of money in an account, i.e. a situation

where a cheque is more than the money in the account on which it is drawn

overdraft facilities / əυvədrɑ ft fə-

s l tiz/ plural noun an arrangement with a bank to have an overdraft

overdraft limit / əυvədrɑ ft l m t/ noun a total which is agreed between the bank and a customer as the maximum amount the customer’s account may be overdrawn

overdraft protection / əυvədrɑ ft prə tekʃ(ə)n/ noun a system which pro-

tects a customer from overdrawing his account, either by switching money automatically from another account, or by offering a line of credit

overdraw / əυvə drɔ / verb to take out more money from a bank account than there is in it

overdue / əυvə dju / adjective which has not been paid on time interest payments are three weeks overdue interest payments which should have been made three weeks ago See note at

outstanding

overestimate / əυvər est me t/ verb to think something is larger or worse than it really is He overestimated the amount of time needed to fit out the factory. They overestimated the costs of moving the offices to central London.

overexposure / əυvər ks pəυ$ə/ noun the fact of being too exposed to risky loans

overextend / əυvər k stend/ verb the company overextended itself the company borrowed more money than its assets would allow

overfunding / əυvə f nd ŋ/ noun a situation where the government borrows more money than it needs for expenditure, by selling too much government stock

overgeared / əυvə ərd/ adjective referring to a company which has high borrowings in comparison to its assets

overhang noun a large quantity of shares or of a commodity or of unsold stock available for sale, which has the effect of depressing the market price verb to overhang the market to be available for sale, and so depress the share price

overhead budget / əυvəhedb d$ t/ noun a plan of probable overhead costs

overhead costs / əυvəhed kɒsts/, overhead expenses / əυvəhed k-

spens z/ plural noun same as overheads

overheads / əυvəhedz/ plural noun the indirect costs of the day-to-day running of a business, i.e. not money spent of producing goods, but money spent on such things as renting or maintaining buildings and machinery The sales revenue covers the manufacturing costs but not the overheads. (NOTE: The usual

US term is overhead.)

overheating / əυvə hi t ŋ/ noun a rise in industrial activity in an economy, leading to a rise in inflation (the economy is then said to be ‘overheated’)

overnight / əυvə na t/ adverb from the evening of one day to the morning of the next

overnight money / əυvəna t m ni/ noun money deposited for less than 24 hours

overnight repo / əυvəna t ri pəυ/ noun a repurchase agreement, where banks sell securities for cash and repurchase them the next day at a higher price (used by central banks as a means of regulating the money markets)

overpaid / əυvə pe d/ adjective paid too much Our staff are overpaid and underworked.

overpay / əυvə pe / verb 1. to pay too much to someone or for something

We overpaid the invoice by $245. 2. to pay an extra amount to reduce the total capital borrowed on a mortgage

overpayment / əυvə pe mənt/ noun

1. an act of paying too much 2. the payment of a lump sum to reduce the capital borrowed on a mortgage

overrated / əυvə re t d/ adjective valued more highly than it should be

The effect of the dollar on European business cannot be overrated. Their ‘first-class service’ is very overrated.

overrider / əυvəra də/, overriding commission / əυvəra d ŋ kə-

m ʃ(ə)n/ noun a special extra commission which is above all other commissions

overseas adjective / əυvəsi z/, adverb / əυvə si z/ across the sea, or to or

in foreign countries Management trainees knew that they would be sent overseas to learn about the export markets. Some workers are going over-

seas to find new jobs. noun

/ əυvə si z/ foreign countries The profits from overseas are far higher than those of the home division.

overseas division / əυvəsi z d -

v $(ə)n/ noun the section of a company dealing with trade with other countries

overseas funds / əυvə si z f ndz/ plural noun investment funds based in other countries

overseas markets / əυvə si zmɑ k ts/ plural noun markets in foreign countries

overseas money order / əυvəsi zm ni ɔ də/ noun a money order in a

foreign currency which is payable to someone living in a foreign country

overseas trade / əυvəsi z tre d/ noun same as foreign trade

oversell / əυvə sel/ verb to sell more than you can produce he is oversold he has agreed to sell more product than he can produce the market is oversold stock-market prices are too low, because there have been too many sellers

overspend / əυvə spend/ verb to spend too much to overspend your budget to spend more money than is allowed in your budget

overspending / əυvə spend ŋ/ noun the act of spending more than is allowed The board decided to limit the overspending by the production departments.

overstock / əυvə stɒk/ verb to have a bigger stock of something than is needed to be overstocked with spare parts to have too many spare parts in stock

‘Cash paid for your stock: any quantity, any products, overstocked lines, factory seconds’ [Australian Financial Review]

overstocks / əυvəstɒks/ plural noun US more stock than is needed to supply orders We will have to sell off the overstocks to make room in the warehouse.

oversubscribe / əυvəsəb skra b/ verb the share offer was oversub-

scribed six times people applied for six times as many new shares as were available

oversubscription / əυvəsəb-

skr pʃ(ə)n/ noun a situation where people have subscribed for more shares in a new issue than are being issued

over-the-counter / əυvə ðəkaυntə/ adjective involving shares which are not listed on the main Stock Exchange. Abbreviation OTC

over-the-counter market / əυvə ðə kaυntə mɑ k t/ noun a secondary

market in shares which are not listed on the main Stock Exchange

over-the-counter sales / əυvə ðəkaυntə se lz/ plural noun the legal

selling of shares which are not listed in the official Stock Exchange list, usually carried out by telephone

overtime / əυvəta m/ noun hours worked in addition to your normal working hours to work six hours’ overtime The overtime rate is one and a half times normal pay. adverb to work overtime to work longer hours than stated in the contract of employment

overtime ban / əυvəta m b n/ noun an order by a trade union which forbids overtime work by its members

overtime pay / əυvəta m pe / noun pay for extra time worked

overtrading / əυvə tre d ŋ/ noun a situation where a company increases sales and production too much and too quickly, so that it runs short of cash

overvalue / əυvə v lju / verb to give a higher value to something or someone than is right these shares

are overvalued at £1.25 the shares are worth less than the £1.25 for which they are selling the pound is overvalued against the dollar the exchange rate gives too many dollars to the pound, considering the strength of the two countries’ economies

‘…the fact that sterling has been overvalued for the past three years shows that currencies can remain above their fair value for very long periods’ [Investors Chronicle]

owe /əυ/ verb to have to pay money

He owes the bank £250,000. they still owe the company for the stock they purchased last year they have still not paid for the stock

owing / əυ ŋ/ adjective which is owed

money owing to the directors How much is still owing to the company by its debtors?

own /əυn/ verb to have or to possess

He owns 50% of the shares.

owner / əυnə/ noun a person who owns something The owners of a company are its shareholders. goods sent at owner’s risk a situation where the owner has to insure the goods while they are being transported

owner-occupier / əυnər ɒkjυpa ə/ noun a person who owns the property in which he or she lives

owners’ equity / əυnəz ekw ti/ noun a value of the shares in a company owned by the owners of the company

ownership / əυnəʃ p/ noun the fact of owning something the ownership of the company has passed to the banks the banks have become owners of the company

oz abbreviation ounce(s)

P* symbol US a measure of M2 shown as a ratio of the velocity of money, used as an indication of inflation

P45 / pi fɔ ti fa v/ noun a form given to an employee who leaves a company, showing how much tax has been deducted from his or her salary

p.a. abbreviation per annum

pa’anga / pɑ ŋ ə/ noun a unit of currency used in Tonga

Pacific Rim /pə s f k r m/ noun the countries on the edge of the Pacific Ocean: especially Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Taiwan

package / p k d$/ noun a group of different items joined together in one deal

‘…airlines offer special stopover rates and hotel packages to attract customers to certain routes’ [Business Traveller]

‘…the remuneration package will include an attractive salary, profit sharing and a company car’ [Times]

‘…airlines will book not only tickets but also hotels and car hire to provide a complete package’ [Business Traveller]

package deal / p k d$ di l/ noun an agreement which deals with several different items at the same time They agreed a package deal which involves the construction of the factory, training of staff and purchase of the product.

Pac-man / p k m n/ noun a method of defence against a takeover bid, where the target company threatens to take over the company which is trying to take it over

paid /pe d/ adjective 1. for which money has been given The invoice is marked ‘paid’. 2. paid holidays holidays where the worker’s wages are still paid even though he or she is not working 3. referring to an amount which has been settled The order was sent car-

riage paid. paid bills bills which have been settled

paid assistant /pe d ə s st(ə)nt/ noun an assistant who receives a salary

paid-in capital / pe d n k p t(ə)l/ noun capital in a business which has been provided by its shareholders (usually in the form of payments for shares above their par value)

paid-up capital / pe d p

k p t(ə)l/, paid-up share capital

/ pe d p ʃeə k p t(ə)l/ noun an amount of money paid for the issued capital shares (it does not include called-up capital which has not yet been paid for)

paid-up shares / pe d p ʃeəz/ noun shares which have been completely paid for by the shareholders

palmtop / pɑ mtɒp/ noun a very small computer which can be held in your hand and which usually has a character recognition screen instead of a keyboard

PAN abbreviation primary account number

P&L abbreviation profit and loss

panel / p n(ə)l/ noun 1. a flat surface standing upright 2. a group of people who give advice on a problem a panel of experts

panic / p n k/ noun a state of being very frightened panic selling of sterling a rush to sell sterling at any price because of possible devaluation

panic buying / p n k ba ŋ/ noun a rush to buy something at any price because stocks may run out

paper / pe pə/ noun 1. on paper in theory On paper the system is ideal, but we have to see it working before we will sign the contract. 2. a document which can represent money (e.g. a bill

of exchange or a promissory note) 3. shares in the form of share certificates

paperchase / pe pə tʃe s/ noun a takeover bid where the purchasing company issues large numbers of new shares to offer in exchange for the shares in the company being bought

paper gain / pe pə e n/ noun same as paper profit

‘…the profits were tax-free and the interest on the loans they incurred qualified for income tax relief; the paper gains were rarely changed into spending money’ [Investors Chronicle]

paper loss / pe pə lɒs/ noun a loss made when an asset has fallen in value but has not been sold

paper millionaire / pe pə m ljə-

neə/ noun a person who owns shares which, if sold, would be worth one million pounds or dollars

paper money / pe pə m ni/ noun banknotes

paper offer / pe pə ɒfə/ noun a takeover bid, where the purchasing company offers its shares in exchange for shares in the company being taken over (as opposed to a cash offer)

paper profit / pe pə prɒf t/ noun a profit on an asset which has increased in price but has not been sold He is showing a paper profit of £25,000 on his investment. Also called paper gain,

unrealised profit

paperwork / pe pəw% k/ noun office work, especially writing memos and filling in forms Exporting to Russia involves a large amount of paperwork.

par /pɑ / adjective equal, at the same price shares at par shares whose market price is the same as their face value

parallel markets / p rəlelmɑ k ts/ plural noun money markets, where institutions such as banks, or organisations such as local authorities, can lend or borrow money without having to go through the main money markets

parameter /pə r m tə/ noun a fixed limit The budget parameters are fixed by the finance director. Spending by each department has to fall within certain parameters.

parcel of shares / pɑ s(ə)l əv ʃeəz/ noun a group of shares (such as 50 or 100) which are sold as a group The shares are on offer in parcels of 50.

parcel rate / pɑ s(ə)l re t/ noun the postage (calculated by weight) for sending a parcel

parent company / peərəntk mp(ə)ni/ noun a company which owns more than 50% of the shares of another company

Pareto’s Law /pə ri təυz lɔ /, Pareto Effect /pə ri təυ fekt/ noun

the theory that incomes are distributed in the same way in all countries, whatever tax regime is in force, and that a small percentage of a total is responsible for a large proportion of value or resources. Also called eighty/twenty law

COMMENT: Also called the 80/20 law, because 80/20 is the normal ratio between majority and minority figures: so 20% of accounts produce 80% of turnover; 80% of GDP enriches 20% of the population, etc.

pari passu / p ri p su / adverb a Latin phrase meaning ‘equally’ The new shares will rank pari passu with the existing ones.

Paris Club / p r s kl b/ noun the Group of Ten, the major world economic powers working within the framework of the IMF (there are in fact eleven: Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom and the United States. It is called the ‘Paris Club’ because its first meeting was in Paris)

parity / p r ti/ noun the fact of being at an equal level or price with something else

‘…the draft report on changes in the international monetary system casts doubt about any return to fixed exchange-rate parities’ [Wall Street Journal]

Parkinson’s law / pɑ k nsənz lɔ / noun a law, based on wide experience, that in business the amount of work increases to fill the time available for it

part /pɑ t/ noun in part not completely to contribute in part to the costs or to pay the costs in part

part delivery /pɑ t d l v(ə)ri/ noun a delivery that contains only some of the items in an order

part exchange / pɑ t ks tʃe nd$/ noun the act of giving an old product as part of the payment for a new one to take a car in part exchange

partial / pɑ ʃ(ə)l/ adjective not complete partial loss a situation where only part of the insured property has been damaged or lost he got partial compensation for the damage to his house he was compensated for part of the damage

participate /pɑ t s pe t/ verb to take part in an activity or enterprise The staff are encouraged to participate actively in the company’s decision-making processes.

participating preference shares

/pɑ t s pe t ŋ pref(ə)rəns ʃeəz/,

participating preferred stock /pɑ -

t s pe t ŋ pr f% d stɒk/ plural noun preference shares which get an extra bonus dividend if company profits reach a certain level

participation /pɑ t s pe ʃ(ə)n/ noun the act of taking part The workers are demanding more participation in the company’s affairs. Participation helps to make an employee feel part of the organisation.

participation fee /pɑ t s pe ʃ(ə)n fi / noun a fee paid to a bank for taking part in underwriting a loan

participator /pɑ t s pe tə/ noun a person who has an interest in a company (e.g. an ordinary or preference shareholder, a creditor or the owner of rights to shares)

particular average /pə t kjυləv(ə)r d$/ noun a situation where part of a shipment is lost or damaged and the insurance costs are borne by the owner of the lost goods and not shared among all the owners of the shipment

partly / pɑ tli/ adverb not completely

partly-secured creditors creditors whose debts are not fully covered by the value of the security

partly-paid capital / pɑ t(ə)li pe dk p t(ə)l/ noun a capital which represents partly-paid shares

partly-paid up shares / pɑ t(ə)li pe d p ʃeəz/, partly-paid shares

/ pɑ t(ə)li pe d ʃeəz/ plural noun shares where the shareholders have not paid the full face value

partner / pɑ tnə/ noun a person who works in a business and has an equal share in it with other partners I became a partner in a firm of solicitors.

partnership / pɑ tnəʃ p/ noun an unregistered business where two or more people (but not more than twenty) share the risks and profits according to a partnership agreement to go into partnership with someone to join with someone to form a partnership to offer someone a partnership, to take someone into partnership with you to have a working business and bring someone in to share it with you to dissolve a partnership to bring a partnership to an end to go into partnership with someone to join with someone to form a partnership

partnership agreement

/ pɑ tnəʃ p ə ri mənt/ noun a document setting up a partnership, giving the details of the business and the amount each partner is contributing to it.

Also called articles of partnership

part order /pɑ t ɔ də/ noun same as part delivery

part-owner /pɑ t əυnə/ noun a person who owns something jointly with one or more other people I am part-owner of the restaurant.

part-ownership /pɑ t əυnəʃ p/ noun a situation where two or more persons own the same property

part payment /pɑ t pe mənt/ noun the paying of part of a whole payment

I gave him £250 as part payment for the car.

part shipment /pɑ t ʃ pmənt/ noun same as part delivery

part-time / pɑ t ta m/ adjective, adverb not working for the whole working week a part-time worker It is a part-time job that We are looking for part-time staff to work our computers. She only works part-time as she has small children to look after.

part-time work / pɑ t ta m w% k/,

part-time employment / pɑ t ta m

m plɔ mənt/ noun work for part of a working week (officially, between 8 and 16 hours per week) He is trying to find part-time work when the children are in school.

party / pɑ ti/ noun a person or organisation involved in a legal dispute or legal agreement How many parties are there to the contract? The company is not a party to the agreement.

par value /pɑ v lju / noun same as face value

pass /pɑ s/ verb 1. to pass a dividend to pay no dividend in a certain year 2. to approve something The finance director has to pass an invoice before it is sent out. The loan has been passed by the board. to pass a resolution to vote to agree to a resolution

The meeting passed a proposal that salaries should be frozen. 3. to be successful in an examination or test He passed his typing test. She has passed all her exams and now is a qualified accountant.

passbook / pɑ sbυk/ noun a book given by a bank or building society which shows money which you deposit or withdraw from your savings account or building society account

‘…instead of customers having transactions recorded in their passbooks, they will present plastic cards and have the transactions printed out on a receipt’ [Australian Financial Review]

passbook account / pɑ sbυk ə-

kaυnt/ noun an account which carries a passbook

passive / p s v/ adjective not taking any action

passive investor / p s v n vestə/ noun same as sleeping partner

passive stake / p s v ste k/ noun a shareholding where the shareholder takes no active part in running the company

pass off / pɑ s ɒf/ verb to pass something off as something else to pretend that something is another thing in order to cheat a customer She tried to pass off the wine as French, when in fact it came from outside the EU.

password / pɑ sw% d/ noun a special word which a user has to give when carrying out operations on an account by phone

pataca /pə tɑ kə/ noun a unit of currency used in Macao

patent / pe tənt, p tənt/ noun an official document showing that a person has the exclusive right to make and sell an invention to take out a patent for a new type of light bulb to apply for a patent for a new invention ‘patent applied for’, ‘patent pending’ words on a product showing that the inventor has applied for a patent for it to forfeit a

patent to lose a patent because payments have not been made to infringe a patent to make and sell a product which works in the same way as a patented product and not pay a royalty for it to file a patent application to apply for a patent verb to patent an invention to register an invention with the patent office to prevent other people from copying it

patent agent / pe tənt e d$ənt/ noun a person who advises on patents and applies for patents on behalf of clients

patented / pe tənt d, p tənt d/ adjective which is protected by a patent

patent office / pe tənt ɒf s/ noun a government office which grants patents and supervises them

patent rights / pe tənt ra ts/ plural noun the rights which an inventor holds because of a patent

pathfinder prospectus

/ pɑ θfa ndə prə spektəs/ noun a preliminary prospectus about a company which is going to be launched on the Stock Exchange, sent to potential major investors before the issue date, giving details of the company’s background, but not giving the price at which shares will be sold

pattern / p t(ə)n/ noun the general way in which something usually happens The pattern of sales or The sales pattern is quite different this year.

pattern of trade / p t(ə)n əv tre d/ noun a general way in which trade is carried on The company’s trading pattern shows high export sales in the first quarter and high home sales in the third quarter.

pawn /pɔ n/ noun to put something in pawn to leave a valuable object with someone in exchange for a loan which has to be repaid if you want to take back the object to take something out of pawn to repay the loan and so get back the object which has been pawned verb to pawn a watch to leave a watch with a pawnbroker who gives a loan against it

pawnbroker / pɔ nbrəυkə/ noun a person who lends money against the security of valuable objects

pawnshop / pɔ nʃɒp/ noun a pawnbroker’s shop

pawn ticket /pɔ n t k t/ noun a receipt given by the pawnbroker for an object left in pawn

pay /pe / noun a salary or wages, money given to someone for regular work holiday with pay a holiday which an employee can take by contract and for which he or she is paid verb 1. to give money to buy an item or a service to pay £1,000 for a car How much did you pay to have the office cleaned? ‘pay cash’ words written on a crossed cheque to show that it can be paid in cash if necessary to pay in advance to pay before you receive the item bought or before the service has been completed We had to pay in advance to have the new telephone system installed. to pay in instalments to pay for an item by giving small amounts regularly We are buying the van by paying instalments of £500 a month. to pay cash to pay the complete sum in cash to pay by cheque to pay by giving a cheque, not by using cash or credit card to pay by credit card to pay using a credit card, not a cheque or cash 2. to produce or distribute money to pay a dividend to give shareholders a part of the profits of a company These shares pay a dividend of 1.5p. to pay interest to give money as interest on money borrowed or invested Some building societies pay interest of 5%. 3. to give an employee money for work done The workforce has not been paid for three weeks. We pay good wages for skilled workers. How much do they pay you per hour? to be paid by the hour to get money for each hour worked to be paid at piecework rates to get money for each piece of work finished 4. to give money which is owed or which has to be paid He was late paying the bill. We phoned to ask when they were going to pay the invoice.

You will have to pay duty on these imports. She pays tax at the highest rate.

to pay on demand to pay money

when it is asked for, not after a period of credit please pay the sum of £10 please give £10 in cash or by cheque 5.

to pay a cheque into an account to

deposit money in the form of a cheque

(NOTE: [all verb senses] paying – paid)

‘…recession encourages communication not because it makes redundancies easier, but

because it makes low or zero pay increases easier to accept’ [Economist]

‘…the yield figure means that if you buy the shares at their current price you will be getting 5% before tax on your money if the company pays the same dividend as in its last financial year’ [Investors Chronicle]

payable / pe əb(ə)l/ adjective which is due to be paid payable in advance which has to be paid before the goods are delivered payable on delivery which has to be paid when the goods are delivered payable on demand which must be paid when payment is asked for

payable at sixty days which has to be paid by sixty days after the date on the invoice cheque made payable to bearer a cheque which will be paid to the person who has it, not to any particular name written on it shares payable on application shares which must be paid for when you apply to buy them electricity charges are payable by the tenant the tenant (and not the landlord) must pay for the electricity

pay as you earn / pe əz ju % n/ noun a tax system, where income tax is deducted from the salary before it is paid to the worker. Abbreviation

PAYE (NOTE: The US term is pay-as-you-go.)

pay-as-you-go / pe əz ju əυ/ noun 1. US same as pay as you earn 2. a payment system where the purchaser pays in small instalments as he or she uses the service

pay back / pe b k/ verb to give money back to someone Banks are warning students not to take out loans which they cannot pay back. I lent him £50 and he promised to pay me back in a month. He has never paid me back the money he borrowed.

payback / pe b k/ noun the act of paying back money which has been borrowed

payback clause / pe b k klɔ z/ noun a clause in a contract which states the terms for repaying a loan

payback period / pe b k p əriəd/ noun 1. a period of time over which a loan is to be repaid or an investment is to pay for itself 2. the length of time it will take to earn back the money invested in a project

pay-cheque / pe tʃek/ noun a monthly cheque by which an employee