Made easy

When dealing with your bank or other financial institutions, you've probably come across technical terms you're not too familiar with - or maybe you've only ever heard them mentioned in passing.

You might also have heard these words during news reports about the economy or financial markets, and found yourself unsure about what they really mean - especially when it comes to acronyms or bits of financial jargon. How many times have you thought: What on earth does that mean?

This section explains the meaning of some of those terms in clear, straightforward language.

Understanding them will help you make more sense of what's happening around you and how the world of finance and economics works.

If there's a word you don't find here, take a look at our glossary.