The balance sheet is one of the most important pieces of financial information issued by a company. It is a snapshot of what a company owns and owes at that point in time. The income statement, in contrast, shows the company's revenues and profits over a certain period.
Variable interest entity. Variable interest entity (VIE) is a term used by the United States Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) in FIN 46 to refer to an entity (the investee) in which the investor holds a controlling interest that is not based on the majority of voting rights. It is closely related to the concept of a special purpose entity.
Interest, from the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics Interest is the price people pay to have resources now rather than later. Resources, of course, can be anything from college tuition to a big-screen TV. Interest is conventionally expressed as a percentage rate for a period of one year.