Banking & Business, PRO-SEC
From central banks and credit systems to startups and sprawling corporations, banking and business shape how capital is raised, risk is managed, and economies grow.
Banking & Business Encyclopedia Articles By Title
property tax
property tax, levy that is imposed primarily upon land and buildings. In some countries, including the United States,......
prospectus
A prospectus is a legal document that every publicly traded stock, mutual fund, and exchange-traded fund (ETF)......
protectionism
protectionism, policy of protecting domestic industries against foreign competition by means of tariffs, subsidies,......
PSA Group
PSA Group, major French automotive manufacturer and holding company that was formed from the merger of Peugeot......
Public Broadcasting Service
Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), private, nonprofit American corporation whose members are the public television......
public company
public company, a company that issues shares of stock to be traded on a public exchange or an unlisted securities......
public debt
Public debt is money owed by governments, typically in the form of bonds and other securities that promise repayment......
public enterprise
public enterprise, a business organization wholly or partly owned by the state and controlled through a public......
public investment
public investment, investment by the state in particular assets, whether through central or local governments or......
public utility
public utility, enterprise that provides certain classes of services to the public, including common carrier transportation......
Pullman Strike
Pullman Strike, (May 11, 1894–c. July 20, 1894), in U.S. history, widespread railroad strike and boycott that severely......
Qantas
Qantas, Australian airline, the oldest in the English-speaking world, founded in 1920 as Queensland and Northern......
Quaker Oats Company
Quaker Oats Company, former (1901–2001) Chicago-based American manufacturer of oatmeal and other food and beverage......
qualified business income (QBI)
The qualified business income (QBI) deduction is a tax concept that allows many small business owners to deduct......
quantity theory of money
quantity theory of money, economic theory relating changes in the price levels to changes in the quantity of money.......
quasi-market
quasi-market, organizationally designed and supervised markets intended to create more efficiency and choice than......
quinto real
quinto real, (Spanish: “royal fifth”), in colonial Spanish America, a tax levied by the crown on mineral products;......
quota
quota, in international trade, government-imposed limit on the quantity, or in exceptional cases the value, of......
QVC, Inc.
QVC, Inc. is an American television network and multimedia retailer; its name stands for quality, value, and convenience.......
R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company
R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, American manufacturer of tobacco products. The origins of the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco......
RAG Aktiengesellschaft
RAG Aktiengesellschaft, German company that was created in order to consolidate all coal-mining activities in the......
RAK Records
For a long time, London pop was cynical, inept, or ironic. In the early 1970s a new generation of producers—heedful......
Ralston Purina Company
Ralston Purina Company, former American manufacturer of cereals, packaged foods, pet food, and livestock feed.......
rand
rand, monetary unit of South Africa. Each rand is divided into 100 cents. The South African Reserve Bank has the......
RCA Corporation
RCA Corporation, major American electronics and broadcasting conglomerate that is a unit of General Electric Company.......
RCA in Music City, U.S.A.: The Nashville Sound
Chet Atkins was a respected guitarist and songwriter long before he was put in charge of RCA’s office in Nashville......
REA Express, Inc.
REA Express, Inc., American company that at one time operated the nation’s largest ground and air express services,......
Reading Company
Reading Company, American railroad in Pennsylvania, New York, and Delaware, absorbed into the Consolidated Rail......
real
real, monetary unit of Brazil. Each real (plural: reais) is divided into 100 centavos. The Central Bank of Brazil......
Real Cuerpo de Minería
Real Cuerpo de Minería, (Spanish: “Royal Mining Company”), guild of mine owners in the Spanish colonies in the......
rebate
rebate, retroactive refund or credit given to a buyer after he has paid the full list price for a product or for......
reciprocity
reciprocity, in international trade, the granting of mutual concessions in tariff rates, quotas, or other commercial......
Reconstruction Finance Corporation
Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC), U.S. government agency established by Congress on January 22, 1932, to......
Reddit
Reddit is an online social media forum where users share news stories and other content. Reddit was launched in......
regressive tax
regressive tax, tax that imposes a smaller burden (relative to resources) on those who are wealthier. Its opposite,......
Reliance Industries Limited
Reliance Industries Limited, privately owned conglomerate that operates in petrochemical production and refining,......
relief
relief, in European feudalism, in a form of succession duty paid to an overlord by the heir of a deceased vassal.......
Renault
Renault, major French automobile and motor carrier manufacturer. Controlled by the French government, it is the......
renminbi
renminbi, monetary unit of China. One renminbi (yuan) is divided into 100 fen or 10 jiao. The People’s Bank of......
Repartimiento
Repartimiento, in colonial Spanish America, a system by which the crown allowed certain colonists to recruit indigenous......
Repsol SA
Repsol SA, integrated Spanish petroleum company with a presence in more than 50 countries. Headquarters are in......
Reserve Bank of India
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is the central bank of India, established in 1935 by the Reserve Bank of India......
restaurant
restaurant, establishment where refreshments or meals may be procured by the public. The public dining room that......
retailing
Retailing is the selling of goods and services to consumer end users. Retailing is seen as a contrast to wholesaling,......
revenue bond
revenue bond, bond issued by a municipality, state, or public agency authorized to build, acquire, or improve a......
revenue sharing
revenue sharing, a government unit’s apportioning of part of its tax income to other units of government. For example,......
Revolut
Revolut is a digital-only banking platform based in London that is designed to bring together a host of financial......
Rhône-Poulenc SA
Rhône-Poulenc SA, former French chemical manufacturer and leading producer of organic chemicals, synthetic fibres,......
rial
rial, monetary unit of Iran, Oman, and Yemen. The rial was introduced as Iran’s monetary unit in 1932. The Central......
ringgit
ringgit, monetary unit of Malaysia. The ringgit, also known as the Malaysian dollar, is divided into 100 sen. The......
Ringling Brothers
Ringling Brothers, family of American circus proprietors who created the Ringling Brothers circus empire in the......
risk
risk, in economics and finance, an allowance for the hazard or lack of hazard in an investment or loan. Default......
riyal
riyal, monetary unit of Saudi Arabia and of Qatar. Each Saudi riyal is divided into 20 qurush or 100 halala. The......
RJR Nabisco, Inc.
RJR Nabisco, Inc., former conglomerate corporation formed by the merger in 1985 of R.J. Reynolds Industries, Inc.......
RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.
RKO Radio Pictures, Inc., American motion-picture studio that made some notable films in the 1930s and ’40s. Radio-Keith-Orpheum......
Robinson-Patman Act
Robinson-Patman Act, U.S. law enacted in 1936 that protects small businesses from being driven out of the marketplace......
Rockwell Automation
Rockwell Automation is an American company that develops factory control systems, industrial software, and related......
Rogers Communications
From its modest origins as a single FM radio station in Toronto, Canada, in 1960, Rogers Communications has grown......
Rolex
Rolex, Swiss manufacturer of rugged but luxurious watches. Company headquarters are in Geneva. Founder Hans Wilsdorf......
Rolls-Royce PLC
Rolls-Royce PLC, major British manufacturer of aircraft engines, marine propulsion systems, and power-generation......
Roman Curia
Roman Curia, the group of various Vatican bureaus of the Holy See that assist the pope in the day-to-day exercise......
Rosa Parks, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and the Birth of the Civil Rights Movement
On the evening of December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, a 42-year-old African American seamstress and civil rights activist......
Rothschild family
Rothschild family, the most famous of all European banking dynasties, which for some 200 years had considerable......
Royal Bank of Canada
Royal Bank of Canada, Canadian commercial banking company with foreign subsidiaries and affiliates. Headquarters......
Royal Bank of Scotland Group
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS), in the United Kingdom, a bank and financial services company that became one......
Royal Niger Company
Royal Niger Company, 19th-century British mercantile company that operated in the lower valley of the Niger River......
RT
RT, 24-hour international news network headquartered in Moscow and funded by the Russian government. RT was known......
RTX Corporation
RTX Corporation (RTX) is an American aerospace and defense company headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It was......
ruble
ruble, the monetary unit of Russia (and the former Soviet Union) and Belarus (spelled rubel). The origins of the......
rules of origin
rules of origin, in international trade, legal standards supporting the differential treatment of some products......
rupee
The rupee is the monetary unit of Muslim India from the 16th century and the modern monetary unit of India and......
rupiah
rupiah, monetary unit of Indonesia. The Central Bank of the Republic of Indonesia (Bank Sentral Republik Indonesia)......
Russell, Majors and Waddell
Russell, Majors and Waddell, business partnership formed by William Hepburn Russell, Alexander Majors, and William......
Russian-American Company
Russian-American Company, Russian trading monopoly that established colonies in North America (primarily in California......
Ryabushinsky Family
Ryabushinsky Family, family of wealthy Russian industrialists. Descended from peasants, they successfully invested......
ryotwari system
ryotwari system, one of the three principal methods of revenue collection in British India. It was prevalent in......
S corporation (S corp)
A corporation is a legal form of business organization, chartered by a state, that exists as a separate entity......
S&P 500
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Saab AB
Saab AB, Swedish high-technology company involved in defense, aviation, and aerospace. Its products include airplanes,......
Safeway Inc.
Safeway Inc., leading U.S. supermarket chain, with stores in the United States and abroad. Its headquarters are......
Saint Louis-San Francisco Railway Company
Saint Louis-San Francisco Railway Company, railroad with lines in nine southern and central U.S. states before......
Saint-Gobain-Pont-à-Mousson, Compagnie de
Compagnie de Saint-Gobain-Pont-à-Mousson, leading French manufacturer and distributor of construction materials,......
sales tax
sales tax, levy imposed upon the sale of goods and services. Sales taxes are commonly classified according to the......
Salesforce, Inc.
Salesforce (CRM) is an American technology company best known for developing cloud-based software for customer......
salting
salting, organizing tactic employed by labour unions. To start the process, a union targets a nonunionized company......
Samsung
Samsung specializes in producing a range of consumer and industrial electronics, including appliances, televisions,......
sandwich board
sandwich board, advertising sign consisting of two placards fastened together at the top with straps supported......
Sanofi-Aventis
Sanofi-Aventis, French pharmaceutical company founded in 2004 through the merger of Sanofi-Synthélabo SA and a......
Sanwa Bank
Sanwa Bank, former Japanese commercial bank that became part of UFJ Holdings in 2001 through its merger with Asahi......
Sara Lee Corporation
Sara Lee Corporation, major American producer of frozen baked goods, fresh and processed meats, coffee, hosiery......
Saudi Aramco
Saudi Arabian Oil Company, or Saudi Aramco, is a state-owned energy giant based in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. It is......
saving
saving, process of setting aside a portion of current income for future use, or the flow of resources accumulated......
savings and loan association
savings and loan association, a savings and home-financing institution that makes loans for the purchase of private......
savings bank
savings bank, financial institution that gathers savings, paying interest or dividends to savers. It channels the......
Scandinavian Airlines System
Scandinavian Airlines System, major international air travel company, formed by three national Scandinavian air......
Scutage
Scutage, (scutage from Latin scutum, “shield”), in feudal law, payment made by a knight to commute the military......
Sears
Sears, American retailer of general merchandise, tools, home appliances, clothing, and automotive parts and services.......
Securities and Exchange Commission
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), U.S. regulatory commission established by Congress in 1934 after the......