Definition

Money returned to you after you've already paid, usually requiring more effort to claim than it's actually worth. It's the corporate world's way of saying 'we'll give you a discount, but only if you jump through these seventeen hoops first.' Beloved by marketing departments, despised by everyone who's ever lost a receipt.

Example Usage

The $50 rebate seemed great until she realized it required mailing in the original UPC, three receipts, and a blood sample.

Source: Common financial terminology

Related Terms

Intermediate

turnover

Either the total sales a company racks up in a period, or the depressing rate at which employees flee for greener pastures—context is everything. In finance, high turnover is great; in HR, it's a red flag the size of a building. It can also refer to how quickly inventory or assets get cycled through, because apparently one word needs to do the work of five.

💰 Finance / Accounting
Beginner

liabilities

Everything a business owes to others—debts, obligations, and promises to pay that hang over the company like a financial sword of Damocles. It's the right side of the balance sheet that accountants love to balance against assets, creating the fundamental equation of accounting. Can also mean that person on your team who's more problem than solution.

💰 Finance / Accounting
Advanced

notional value

The total value of a leveraged position's assets, as opposed to the actual cash you put up, which is usually much less. It's the difference between owning a $100,000 house and the $20,000 you put down.

💰 Finance / Accounting
Advanced

conditionality

The practice of attaching specific conditions or requirements to financial assistance, loans, or agreements, most notably used by international financial institutions. It's the global economic version of "you can have dessert after you eat your vegetables," except the vegetables are structural reforms and the dessert is billions in credit. The IMF's favorite way to ensure countries follow through on promises.

💰 Finance / Accounting
Intermediate

return on equity

How much profit a company generates per dollar of shareholder investment, or as executives call it, the only number that matters. Because shareholders' yachts don't buy themselves.

💰 Finance / Accounting
Intermediate

days payable outstanding

The average number of days a company takes to pay its suppliers, calculated by dividing accounts payable by daily cost of goods sold. Low numbers mean you're a prompt payer; high numbers mean you're using suppliers as a free bank.

💰 Finance / Accounting

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