The business of making and pricing loans and of assessing the ability of the borrower, whether company or country, to repay them.

Credit Derivative

Broadly defined as a derivative contract whose value changes with regard to changes in the credit risk of an underlying reference credit.

Credit Rating

A judgement placed on a borrower’s capacity to pay up. For example, AAA, is a good credit rating given by a rating agency such as Standard and Poor's or Moody's and indicates a borrower’s capacity to pay interest and principal on a bond or note issue.

Credit Risk

Credit Risk is assessing the financial and business risk involved in lending to particular counterparties. Relevant factors would include, but are not limited to, a company’s competitive position within its industry, strategic direction, management quality and financial profile.

Debt Capital Markets (DCM)

The area of an investment bank responsible for the issuance and pricing of bonds and other debt securities. DCM is involved in the bond product, providing credit rating advice for corporates, organising bond finance using a pool of investors and offering derivative solutions for risk management. This area also trades bonds in the secondary marketplace. DCM also includes the securitisation businesses, which are involved in repackaging and selling financial or corporate assets to the market place.

Derivative

A manufactured financial instrument, the value of which changes with movements in an underlying asset, index or interest rate. Primarily used for risk management purposes.

Ecommerce

Ecommerce is a significant area of focus for Barclays Capital and we now offer clients electronic services in fixed income, foreign exchange, futures and options, equities, commodities and research. Barclays Capital recently launched electronic trading in dollar-denominated interest rate swaps on its Barclays Automated Real Time Execution system, the first time that a single dealer has offered electronic trading in such products. We were also the first to introduce single dealer electronic trading of interest rate swaps in euros and sterling from our London office.

Emerging Markets

We offer risk management solutions in a variety of asset classes to clients in a number of geographical locations. The team operates from regional hubs in London, New York and Singapore as well as from local trading desks in Bangkok, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Mumbai, Sao Paulo and Seoul.

Equities Lending

Equities Lending involves the loaning of securities to meet the temporary borrowing needs of clients and counter parties. The service can include lending for short sale strategies as well as lending to other counterparties, including the investment bank sector.

Equity

General term for the ordinary shares of a company, especially a publicly owned quoted company.

Equity-linked products

Financial products that are linked to the share capital of companies. Our trading teams are active in European, US and Asian stocks, indices and funds.

Eurobonds

An international bond issued in Europe or elsewhere outside the country in whose currency the value is stated.

Exotic

A term used to highlight the complexity of a product. New variations are born every day and there are exotic swaps, exotic options etc. The term ‘exotic’ distinguishes the product from the more basic version, which is known as ‘vanilla.’ (i.e. vanilla swap or vanilla option) because it is simple.

Financial / Product Control

Finance is divided into Financial Control and Product Control. Financial control is responsible for the recording and reporting of our business activity. Product Control is responsible for ensuring the integrity of the balance sheet for revenue products, and providing detailed explanations of income.

Financial Risk Management

Financial Risk Management is about evaluating the financial risk posed by the bank’s activities. In order to manage financial risk, we need to calculate both the market risk and credit (or counter-party) risk. Within Barclays Capital these activities are undertaken in Global Financial Risk Management.

Fixed Income

Financial instruments that make fixed payments of return over their duration and upon their maturity, such as bonds.

Fixed Income Market

The market for trading bonds and preferred stock.

Fixed Income Sales

Includes sales of our liquidity products or products with a view on interest rates, foreign exchange, and/or credit risk.

Fixed-Rate Bonds

Bonds with a fixed rate of interest.

Floating Rate Note (FRN)

A bond issue which pays a floating rate of interest, usually reset every 3 or 6 months.

Foreign Exchange (FX)

The trading of currencies to allow companies to trade goods across borders and to maximise returns on interest rate investments internationally.

Futures

A contract to buy or sell a specified amount of a commodity, asset, foreign currency or interest rate on an agreed date and at an agreed price. Many of the products structured and traded by investment banks will involve futures at some level. At Barclays Capital futures are at the heart of our business and are traded on behalf of a diverse global client base.

Global Financing

Global Financing provides financing and risk management solutions for sovereign, corporate and institutional clients all over the world. It is the centre of our credit focused services and is divided into three main product areas: Global Credit Products, Investment Banking and Structured Capital Markets.

Global Markets

In Global Markets we share our instincts and expertise with our investing clients, helping them to manage their assets and liabilities with a sophisticated portfolio of risk management products. Trading is the typical role in Global Markets and the financial products we trade are related to interest rates, foreign exchange, equities and commodities.

Government Bonds

Bonds secured on the government's ability to raise taxes.

Hedge Funds

Specialist funds that take positions using credit or borrowed capital. Managers often invest in liquid instruments, such as currency and interest rate derivatives, with the aim of making profits from movements in foreign-exchange or bond markets. Hedge funds are increasingly big clients for our collateralised finance business.

High Yield

A high-risk bond with a credit rating that is below investment grade. Also known as a’ junk’ bond, a term meant often used pejoratively to suggest its potential lack of worth.

Human Resources

The Human Resources (HR) function provides critical support and advice to line management. The attraction, retention and development of high calibre people is a source of competitive advantage for our business, and is the responsibility of HR.

Institutional Investors

These large investors that buy and sell stocks and bonds in large volumes include mutual funds, banks, insurance companies, pension funds and others.

Internships

Internships are for 10-12 weeks, usually over the summer and are available to candidates in their penultimate (next to last) year of study.

Investment Banking and Debt Capital Markets

Investment Banking and Debt Capital Markets is responsible for providing multi-product solutions for clients seeking to raise capital or issue debt, and generating new business with prospective and existing clients.

Investment Grade

Bonds that are of a high level of credit quality. A bond rated BBB or above by Standard & Poors and rated Baa by the Moody's credit rating agency would qualify as investment grade.

Legal

The principal purpose of Legal is to ensure that Barclays Capital’s business is conducted in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.

Leveraged Funds

Specialist funds that take positions in equities, FX and interest rates. Typically highly leveraged.

Market Risk

Market Risk is the risk of price changes in the market for traded instruments and evaluates the potential impact of the market moving against the bank (a tradable instrument is anything that can be bought or sold, ranging from stocks and bonds to complex options and derivatives).

Medium-Term Notes

A flexible facility to issue notes of varying maturity, varying currency and either fixed or floating - all within one set of legal documentation.

Mezzanine Finance

Finance that is usually provided by specialist financial institutions that is neither pure equity nor pure debt. It can take many different forms and can be secured or unsecured; it usually earns a higher rate of return than pure debt but less than equity. Conversely, it carries a higher risk then pure debt, but less than equity.

Nostro

A bank’s bank account with another financial institution. Used to settle all transactions in a particular currency. Works in a similar fashion to a personal bank account.

Operations

Operations coordinate and streamline all business processes that underpin the smooth running of the bank. It ensures that all trades are settled quickly and efficiently, provides effective cash management, full reconciliation of both trades and cash, and ensures the integrity of the balance sheet. It is also responsible for the global integrity of client data as well as full compliance monitoring of all transactions.

Options

The right but not the obligation to buy/sell equities, bonds, foreign exchange or interest rate contracts by a future date at a price agreed now. 'Traded options' means the options themselves can be bought and sold.

Portfolio Management

The strategic portfolio of Barclays Capital is a global fixed income portfolio, and is a significant contributor to the revenues of the Global Markets division. The portfolio invests in government securities, bank paper and derivatives of the most developed fixed-income markets.

Primary Capital Markets

The market into which a new issue of bonds, or any other form of medium-or long-term money-market paper, is launched.

Prime Brokerage

The Prime Brokerage service is aimed at leveraged and hedge funds providing fully integrated equity, futures, fixed income, foreign exchange execution and clearing products. It also includes custody of assets, consolidated position reporting, access to scarce equity and fixed income securities, competitive margin, collateral and financing terms.

Private Equity

One of the four main Business Areas of Barclays Capital, Private Equity involves the provision of equity finance to young, unquoted businesses that require help starting out or that want to expand. This is done through the provision of tailor-made financing packages that meet the needs of investee companies attracted by this type of risk.

Quantitative Associate

An applicant/hire who is studying for a PhD or equivalent degree in a highly quantitative discipline (e.g. Maths, Life Sciences, Engineering, Financial Economics) without any significant work experience.

Repo

Sale and Repurchase Agreements. These are agreements to sell bonds with a simultaneous agreement to repurchase these bonds back at a later date, typically less than one year. A repo effectively enables the holder of a bond to borrow money while using the bond as collateral with the lender.

Research

Research is responsible for analysing the economic, political and technical factors influencing the markets, supporting both the salespeople and traders, as well as their own direct client relationships.

Risk Finance

Provides the business with a key means of structuring, re-packaging and distributing more structured debt and complex asset pools. A variety of techniques and products are used to help credit risk, finance and portfolio management deliver profitable solutions. These include the use of complex credit derivatives, hedging techniques, and increased interaction with different product areas like securitisation, where separating risk from credit quality is vital.

Sales

Salespeople are responsible for building and maintaining client relationships, as well as providing clients with information about products and services, and marketing information to help manage risk. The firm’s salesforce is fundamental to our client-driven business model. Sales delivers the services of the firm to the client and also delivers the client’s business to the firm.

Secondary Market

A market that provides for the purchase or sale of previously issued securities or financial products. The general name given to stock exchanges and other market places in which stocks, bonds, mortgages and other investments are sold after they have been issued and sold initially.

Securitisation