Business glossary

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Face Value - The value of a bond that appears on its face. Also referred to as par value or principal.

Factor - A variable investigated in a statistical study.

Factoring - Sale of an accounts receivable balance to buyers (factors) that are willing and able to bear the costs and risks of credit and collections.

Fair And Reasonable Price - A price that is fair to both parties, considering the agreed-upon conditions, promised quality, and timeliness of contract performance. "Fair and reasonable" price is subject to statutory and regulatory limitations. Business glossary.

Feasibility study - An investigation into a proposed plan or project to determine whether and how it can be successfully and profitably carried out.

Federal funds - A deposits held in reserve by the Federal Reserve System.

Feedback - The communication of responses and reactions to proposals and changes or to the findings of performance appraisals with the aim of enabling improvements to be made.

Fiduciary - A person legally appointed and authorized to hold assets in trust for another person and manage those assets for the benefit of that person. Business glossary.

FIFO (First in first out) - A method of inventory control where the stock of a given product first placed in store is used before more recently produced or acquired goods or materials.

Finance - The money needed by an individual or company to pay for something, for example, a project or stocks.

Financial Engineering - The process of innovation by which new financial products are created.

Financial Innovation - The process of designing new financial products, such as exotic currency options and swaps.

Fiscal - Relating to financial matters, especially in respect to government collection, use and regulation of money through taxation.

Fixed asset - A long term asset of a business such as a machine or building that will not usually be traded.

Fixed expenses - Those costs which don't vary from one period to the next. Generally, these expenses are not affected by the volume of business.

Float - The period between the presentation of a check as payment and the actual payment to the payee.

Floating rate - An interest rate that is not fixed and which changes according to fluctuations in the market  Business glossary.

Floor - A lower limit on an interest rate, price or the value of an asset.

Flow chart - A graphic representation of the stages in a process or system or the steps required to solve a problem.

Force Majeure - The title of a standard clause in marine contracts exempting the parties for non-fulfillment of their obligations as a result of conditions beyond their control, such as Acts of God or war.

Forecast - A prediction of the value of a variable in a statistical study

Foreclosure - The act by the mortgagee or trustee upon default, in the payment of interest or principal of a mortgage of enforcing payment of the debt by selling the underlying security.

Foreign Bottom - An ocean vessel built or registered in a foreign country.

Forfaiting - A form of factoring in which large, medium- to long-term receivables are sold to buyers (forfaiters) that are willing and able to bear the costs and risks of credit and collections.

Forward Contract - A commitment to exchange a specified amount of one currency for a specified amount of another currency on a specified future date.

Forward pricing - The establishment of the price of a share in a mutual fund based on the next asset valuation. Business glossary.

Forward rate - An estimate of what an interest rate will be at a specified future time.

Franchise - An agreement enabling a third party to sell or provide products or services owned by a manufacturer or supplier. The franchise is regulated by a franchise contract, or franchise agreement, that specifies the terms and conditions of the franchise.

Franchise chain - A number of retail outlets operating the same franchise. A franchise chain may vary in size from a few to many thousands of outlets and in coverage from a small local area to worldwide.

Franchising - A continuing relationship in which the franchisor provides a licensed privilege to the franchisee to do business, and offers assistance in organizing, training, merchandising, marketing and managing in return for a consideration. Business glossary.

Freebie - A product or service that is given away, often as a business promotion.

Free enterprise - The trade carried on in a free-market economy, where resources are allocated on the basis of supply and demand.

Free market - A market in which supply and demand are unregulated except by the country's competition policy, and rights in physical and intellectual property are upheld.

Fulfillment - The process of responding to customer inquiries, orders, or sales promotion offers.

Full And Open Competition - With respect to a contract action, "full and open" competition means that all responsible sources are permitted to compete.

Future - A contract to deliver a commodity at a future date.  Business glossary.

Futures Contract - A commitment to exchange a specified amount of one currency for a specified amount of another currency at a specified time in the future. Futures contracts are periodically marked-to-market, so that changes in value are settled throughout the life of the contract. Exchange-traded currency futures are marked-to-market on a daily basis.

Futures market - A market for buying and selling securities, commodities, or currencies that tend to fluctuate in price over a period of time. The market's aim is to reduce the risk of uncertainty about future prices.

Fundraising - Events staged to raise revenue.