Personal Finance Vocab

Bank

A financial institution licensed to receive deposits and provide financial services

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

Independent federal agency that insures deposits in bank accounts up to $250,00

National Credit Union Administrtaion

Independent federal agency that insures deposits in credit unions up to $250,000

Unbanked

People who don’t have bank accounts

Underbanked

People who have savings or checking accounts but still use alternative financial products and services

Retail Banks

for-profit financial institutions that accept deposits and offer a variety of deposit accounts and financial services

Credit Unions

Nonprofit financial institutions that are owned and operated by their members; offer deposit accounts an lending services similar to a retail bank but at a lower cost

Online Banks

Also known as internet banking; all transactions done online; no physical location

Overdraft Protection

An option offered by banks to cover overspending an account and then charge a fee for it

Overdraft Fee

A penalty charged if the account holder spends more than their account balance, causing the available balance to go below zero

Liquidity

How quickly you can access the money in an account or the value of an asset without a penalty or fee

Checking Account Register

Also called a ledger; a lined and divided journal to record checking account activity

Direct Deposit

Option to allow automatic electronic deposit of your payroll checks

Reconciling

The process of making sure you and the bank agree on how much money is in your checking account