Section 1 — The Language of Money Grammar focus

Session 4 Grammar: Passive voice for describing financial services

Financial and banking English uses the passive voice extensively — to describe systems, processes, and services. Mastering it makes your English sound more formal, accurate, and professional.

Grammar Focus

Passive voice: is/are [past participle] / was/were [past participle]

The passive voice is used when the action matters more than who does it — or when the actor is unknown, obvious, or deliberately omitted. In financial English, it describes how systems work, how processes operate, and how charges are applied. It sounds more formal and objective than active voice.

Structure: [subject] + is/are/was/were + [past participle] + (by [agent])

Interest is calculated daily and is credited to your account at the end of each calendar month.

All deposits are held in a ring-fenced client account and are protected under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme up to £85,000.

The fee was charged in error — it will be refunded within three to five business days.

Funds are transferred via the SWIFT network and typically are received within two to three working days.

The account was flagged by our fraud detection system following an unusual transaction pattern — we apologise for any inconvenience.

Your application has been reviewed and a decision will be communicated to you within five working days.

Common passive structures in banking

is subject to... is secured against... is governed by... is authorized by... is regulated under...