What is an account balance?

The amount of money a user has stored in a financial repository.

Account balance with a bank account

When you check your account balance at your bank, it will show the amount of cash you have stored with the bank.

If you have pending transactions, your account balance might be greater than the amount that is actually available to you. That is because the money needed to make those transactions has not yet been removed from your account.

Account balance with a stockbroker

An account balance with a brokerage is likely to look different from a bank account balance. That’s because you don’t just keep cash with a broker.

Instead, the account balance that you see when you check your brokerage account will be the sum of any cash you hold and any stocks you have bought.

Because the value of stocks changes all the time, your account balance will also vary more frequently with stockbroker than a bank.

More terms

After-hours trading

Trading outside of a stock exchange's opening hours.
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Fundamentals

The data or information that is likely to impact a company's stock price.
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UK Treasury bill

A debt instrument issued by the UK government with a maturity of less than one year.
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Collective investment scheme

Learn what's a collective investment scheme
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Securities

Bonds and stocks.
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Accounting standards

The rules a company follows when preparing financial statements.
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Alpha

The percentage by which an investor outperforms a relevant benchmark.
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Gross Margin

The difference between a company's revenue and the cost to produce its goods/services, divided by revenue.
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Bond

Learn what a bond is
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