Glossary
S
Same day transaction
A transaction that matures on the day the transaction takes place.
Selling Rate
Rate at which a bank is willing to sell foreign currency.
Settlement
The process by which a trade is entered into the books and records of the counterparts to a transaction. The settlement of currency trades may or may not involve the actual physical exchange of one currency for another.
Short
To go `short` is to have sold an instrument without actually owning it, and to hold a short position with expectations that the price will decline so it can be bought back in the future at a profit.
Slippage
It's the experience of not getting filled at (or even very close to.) your expected price when you place a market order or stop loss. This can happen because either: market price is simply moving too fast, the market is not liquid or you're talking to an unmotivated broker.
Spot Price
The current market price. Settlement of spot transactions usually occurs within two business days.
Spread
The difference between the bid and offer prices.
Stop Loss Order
An order to buy/sell at an agreed price. One could also have a pre-arranged stop order, whereby an open position is automatically liquidated when a specified price is reached or passed.
Straddle
The simultaneous purchase/sale of both call and put options for the same share, exercise/strike price and expiry date.
Swap
The simultaneous purchase and sale of the same amount of a given currency for two different dates, against the sale and purchase of another. A swap can be a swap against a forward. In essence, swapping is somewhat similar to borrowing one currency and lending another for the same period. However, any rate of return or cost of funds is expressed in the price differential between the two sides of the transaction.
Swift Society for Worldwide Inter-bank Financial Telecommunication
A clearing system for international trading. | 
