Finance, what does it mean? The word "finance" refers to the science of managing funds. This overall topic is generally divided into business finance, personal finance, and public finance. The topic of finance includes saving, and lending money, spending and budgeting together with investing and risk.
A major area of finance is banking. The basic principle of banking is that persons or business entities deposit money into a bank then the bank loans that money to other individuals or business entities which utilize or invest it. The bank charges interest to those who borrow the money, sometimes paying interest (at a lower rate) to those who deposit the monies into the bank.
Investment is a key area of finance, and refers to the handling of financial assets. A decent practical definition of an "asset" is something which generates an income. Many individuals think of cars, houses and other possessions to be "assets" but that is confusing since those things as a rule cost money as compared with generating it. One way to become rich is to purchase assets.
Public finance is influenced strongly by central banks. Examples of central banks are the Federal Reserve System banks in the USA and the Bank of England in the UK. They commonly have a large degree of control over the economy of a country, together with monetary and credit conditions.
Stocks originate as part of corporate financing, where a corporation sells them to raise money intended for its own use. Stocks may be bought by persons or other business entities such as pension funds. The financial management of a business, together with profitability and cash flow, is one of the most essential elements of any business.
Personal finance includes income, expenses, insurance, budgeting, borrowing and credit, debts and debt handling, and cash surplus along with taxes and leaving ones assets for future generations.
For huge amounts of valuable details on a wide range of money and finance topics, see Money Articles.