S
Securities - The general name for stocks
and shares.
SERPS - State Earnings Related Pension Scheme -
A state pension in addition to the basic state pension based
on earnings, to be renamed State Second Pension (S2P).
Shares - A stake in a company which entitles
you to vote at annual meetings and benefit from the company's
profits in the form of a dividend.
SICAV - A SICAV or "société d'investissement à capital
variable" is an open-end investment trust. Its social object
is not to manufacture a product or to provide a service, but
to invest in financial or real estate assets.
Small Caps - Another name for small companies.
SOFA - The Society of Financial Advisers,
the professional and educational body for financial advisers.
It awards qualifications for progressive levels of examination
achievement.
SSAS - Small Self Administered Scheme - Small
Self Administered Scheme, an occupational scheme where the
members are trustees and are directly responsible for administering
the fund and paying out the benefits. Some funds are invested
in assets other than insurance premiums.
Stakeholder pension - New low cost pension
schemes introduced by the government in 2001 to encourage people
to make provision for their financial future. They are aimed
at those who may not have been able to afford a personal pension
and were not eligible for an occupational or group scheme.
Stock market - The marketplace for the sale
and purchase of shares, government bonds and other securities.
Switching - Moving an investment out of one
fund and into another.
T
Tax Harmonisation - The process whereby the
tax rates in the countries of the European Union are being
equalised to make trade easier and ensure that no country has
a competitive advantage over another.
Term Assurance - A life assurance contract
with a fixed term and a sum assured which is paid out only
if the life assured dies within the term specified.
TESSA - Tax-exempt special savings accounts
replaced by ISAs in 1999. You can no longer invest in a new
TESSA but you can transfer your existing TESSA into an ISA.
Tied Agent - Financial advisers who have
an agreement with one particular company to recommend its products.
They can range from self employed individuals to banks and
building societies and can give you advice on your financial
circumstances but they cannot survey the whole market for you.
Total Return - The combination of capital
growth and reinvested income at the end of any given period.
Transfer Value - The amount of money which
is available to be transferred to another pension arrangement.
U
UCITS - Undertaking for Collective
Investments in Transferable Securities. A Ucits
fund is theoretically one that is authorised for sale in
any of the EU member states. However, many EU countries also
have their own requirements which must be fulfilled if a
fund is to be offered for sale there.
Unit Linked Policy - An insurance policy
in which the benefits depend on the performance of units in
a fund invested in shares, bonds and property.
Unit Trust - An investment contract which
invests in a variety of different stocks and shares and is
divided into units which are issued to its members instead
of shares.
V
Variable Rate Mortgage - A mortgage product
where the amount of the monthly payment goes up or down in
accordance with variations in the interest rate, based on the
Bank of England rate.
Venture Capital Trusts (VCT's) - VCT's were
devised in the 1993 budget as a way for new and unquoted companies
to obtain money from investors. VCT's are essentially investment
trusts. Like other investment trusts their shares are often
traded in the stock market. Investors receive tax relief at
20% on the money they put in. Any dividends or capital gains
will also be free of tax.
VAT - Value Added Tax - A form of indirect
taxation levied on goods and services.
Volatility - The degree by which share prices
in a particular market or sector go up or down. |
