05 LEX · Department
One payment word at a time
Short essays on single words from the world of payments, from float to recourse, and why each one matters to an ordinary buyer.
Float: money that is neither here nor there
Float is the money in between: sent but not yet received, paid in but not yet spent, counted by two people at once or by nobody. The word has followed payments from paper checks to virtual cards. Here is what it means and why it matters to you.
Tender: what counts as payment, and who decides
"Legal tender" is one of the most misunderstood phrases in money. People assume it means every shop must accept cash. Usually it means something much narrower. Here is what tender really means, where the word comes from and who decides what counts as payment.