Glossary: F

Face value

This is the value of the bond or security as printed on the document. The face value represents the amount that the issuing company promises to pay at the time of maturity.

FAST

Fast Market

Fill or Kill Order

An order submitted to the electronic order book with a specified size and, at the option of the member firm, a specified limit price which either executes in full against eligible orders at the price of those orders or is rejected in full from the order book.

Financial Investigation Unit (FIU)

The police unit that investigates cases related to money laundering.

An independent body which regulates the financial services industry in the UK.

Financial year

The year for which corporate tax rates apply. It runs from April 1 of one year to March 31 of the next year.

FIQP

Firm/Indq Quote Period

Firm exposure order

An order that is displayed on the trading system with the mnemonic of the member firm.

Firm quote

A quote whose price is guaranteed. That is, market participants are obliged to deal at the displayed prices or volumes, when their quotes are firm. Firm quotes are displayed during the mandatory quote period.

Fixed interest securities

Securities which attract a fixed rate of interest each year.

Flotation

The process by which a company obtains a listing from the UKLA and is admitted to trading on the Exchange.

Forwards

The buying and selling of underlying assets such as commodities and financial securities at a specified future date at a fixed price.

Fraud Squad

The police department that deals with financial crime.

Free float

The number of shares not held by corporate insiders that are freely tradable in the public market or markets on which a company's securities are listed.

Front running

A type of misuse of information, where the employees of a brokerage firm or a bank trade in equity shares using price-sensitive information that is privately available to the firm.

FCA

See Finance Conduct Authority.

FST1

Fast Market

FST2

Fast Market

FTSE™ 100

An index of the share prices of the UK’s 100 largest companies (by market capitalisation).

FTSE™ Indices

Indices, including the FTSE 100 index, which are calculated and maintained by FTSE International Ltd to illustrate the performance of various sectors of the UK and European markets.

FTSE™ International Ltd

A jointly owned company by the London Stock Exchange and the Financial Times that provides financial indices.

FTSE™ MID 250 Index  (FTSE 250)

Financial Times Stock Exchange Mid 250 Index comprises the share prices of the 250 companies that follow the top 100 (comprising the FTSE 100).

Fund

A fund is a collective investment scheme where money is pooled, which is invested in a portfolio of securities with a common investment purpose.

Fund manager

A fund manager is a professional who decides how fund money is invested (see Fund).

Futures

A futures contract is an agreement or obligation to buy or sell a given quantity of a particular security, at a specified future date at a pre-determined price.