Audit  An official examination of a company's accounts.

           Auditors  Accountants who carry out the official examination of a company's accounts.

           Ballance Sheet  An accounting statement of a company's asset and liabilities, provided for the benefit of shareholders and regulators.

           Clearing House  A clearing house is the administrative centre of the market through which all transactions are cleared.

           Divident  The part of a company's after-tax earnings that is distributed to the shareholders.

           Disinflation  A fall or slowing in the rate of inflation.

           DJIA  Dow Jones Industrial avarage.

           Dollarization  Adoption of the US dollars as the main currency.

           Due Dilligence  An internal audit of a target firm by an acquiring firm

           Investment Bank  A US term used to describe banks that specialize in financial market activities.

           Investment Fund  An investment fund is any that manages portfolios of money.

           Investment Trusts  Companies which issue shares and then use those funds to invest in other companies.

           Invisible Supply  Stocks, notable commodities, which are outside commercial channels.

           IPO  Initial Public Offering.

           IRS  Inland Revenue Service  The US federal agency responsible for the collection of taxes.

           Money   Money is a financial asset, a store of wealth and a recognizaed medium of exchange.    

           Monopoly  When a single person or organization controls the market for a given product or service. 

          Ordinary Capital  The capital invested  by shareholders who are then entitled to the remaning profits and assets after creditors and holders of the company's senior debts have been repaid.

          Registrar  The body responsible for keeping a record of the company's shareholders.

          Refinancing   The issuing of new debt to replace old.

          Reinsurance  The spreading of risks in the insurance market.

         Venture Capital  Funds used to invest in small companies that are considered to be in their firs phase of growth. Funding is provided by privare and institutional investors. 

         Write Down  Book-keeping action that reduces the value of an asset on a balance sheet. 

         Write Off   Book-keeping action that at one stroke depreciates an asset out of the balance sheet.