Glossary of terms

Fund managers who move investments between different assets often to get the best return for their investors. Active fund managers usually have teams that analyse all the available information and use complicated forecasting techniques to get the best performance for the funds they manage.

A person who sells financial advice and/or products. They include financial advisers, insurance agents, planners, sharebrokers, mortgage brokers and bank managers or agents. They may be salaried, paid a commission or have an hourly rate.

A type of investment where you pay a lump sum at the start, and receive regular payments (say monthly) for the rest of your life. Some annuities will continue for a minimum period, normally 10 years. You can also take out an annuity that is dependent on both your life and that of your partner's. Often the level of payment would reduce on the death of the first person. Normally the annuity payment is for a constant amount. It is possible to get an increasing amount to cover inflation, but it will cost more to purchase.

An asset is a useful or valuable person or thing. In financial terms it's an item that can be converted into cash such as bank deposits, shares or property.

Types of investment, e.g. shares, property, bonds, cash deposits.

Automatic payments (APs) are a way of paying someone a set amount direct from your bank account, usually on a fixed day of the month. Automatic payments are ideal for bills that are the same amount each month, like rent.