Chapter 7 - Business Finance Flashcards
What are the two ways a business is financed by
Equity and Debt
What is the key difference between the levels of risk between Equity and Debt
- Debt Holders have lower risks and lower returns
- Equity Holders - Face higher risks and higher returns in the form of profits distributed as dividends
What is liquidity?
Being able to pay debts as they fall due
Profitability
Minimising the holding of cash - an idle asset
What are the costs of holding cash
Lost interest on deposits or other investments
What are the influences on the level of cash balances
- Transaction motive
- Precautionary motive
- Investment motive
- Finance motive
What is transaction motive
Meet current day to day financial obligations
What is a precautionary motive
Cushion against unplanned expenditure
What is a investment motive
Take advantage of opportunities
What is a finance motive
Cover major transactions
What are the costs of running out of cash (treasury)
- Loss of settlement discounts
- Loss of supplier goodwill
- Poor industrial relations if wages are not paid
- Winding up of business, liquidation
Why does a business require financing for short term operational needs?
Paying for goods, services and wages as they full due
Why does a business require financing for longer term operational needs?
Purchase of non-current asset for ongoing use in the business and finance growth which involves in the medium term: increasing inventory and receivable levels
What is the classic rule for short term financing
Need to be financed by short term funds -> Working capital (balance of inventories, payables, receivables, cash) and overdrafts.
What is the classic rule for long term financing
Assets should be financed by long term funds, debt and equity.
What are the advantage of short term financing
> Relatively cheap - Shorter period of risk exposure for lenders. [Trade payables are interest free. Unsecured overdrafts are expensive]
> Flexible - Bank overdraft, only when needed
What are the disadvantages of short term financing?
> Renewal Risk - Overdraft may be recalled on demand at the lenders discretion
> Interest rate risk - Short term interest rates can fluctuate.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of long term financing?
> More expensive due to higher risk of uncertainty.
Equity finance will expect high returns due to risk of business failures
Debt finance (money lent from banks) will be expensive for long-term loans
What is aggressive financing
Business use more short term finance over debt and equity; offers greater profitability as it is cheaper but greater risk
What is defensive financing?
Risk averse and will use a portion of long term finance for its short term needs. Carries less risk but more expensive
What is average financing?
Middle of both aggressive and defensive for a medium between the risk and reward in financing approach
What is a financial intermediary?
E.g. Bank
> Bring together investors/lenders with borrowers/users of funds
> Mirror real world by providing relatively risk-free lending environment and easily accessible funds
What is a role of the financial intermediary
> Risk diversification
Aggregation
Maturity transformation
Making a market
Advice
[Financial intermediary] What is risk diversification?
one lender not lending all money to one borrower
[Financial intermediary]
What is aggregation
Pooling lots of deposits together to get better returns
[Financial intermediary]
What is maturity transformation?
Loans and deposits mature at different times
[Financial intermediary]
What is making a market?
Putting lenders and borrowers “in touch”
[Financial intermediary]
What is advice?
Advice on the best rates for example
What are the three types of banks?
- Retail banks
- Commercial and investment banks
- Bank of England
What is a retail bank?
Banks which deal with day to day transmissions e.g. clearing banks like barclays natwest and lloyds
What is a commercial and investment bank?
Offer tailored advice to large commercial clients usually in raising considerable sums e.g. merchant banks like LCF Rothschild.
What is the bank of england?
Acts as a banker to bank by lending money to the banking sector through its financial operations
What is the role of the bank of england?
- Carry out monetary policy
- Ensuring financial stability
What is the monetary policy of the bank of england?
> Lends money to the banking sector at the base rate which is set by the monetary policy committee
> Banks then lend and borrow money amongst themselves at rates such as the sterling overnight index average which affects the rates offered to customers
How does Bank of England enable financial stability?
- BoE Financial Policy Committee (FPC) is responsible for taking action to remove systematic risks in the UK financial system
- The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) is part of the bank of england and is responsible for prudent regulation and supervision of banks, building societies, credit unions, insurers and major investment firms
What is the Financial Conduct Authority? (FCA)
FCA firms are not supervised by the PRA but regulated by the FCA which is independent and responsible for
- Promoting effective competition
- Ensuring that relevant markets function well
What are the 8 cash transmission mechanisms?
FEDS PCBG
- Faster Payments Scheme
- Electronic Fund Transfers (EFT)
- Bank Automated Clearing Systems (BACS)
- Clearing house Automated Payments Systems (CHAPS)
- Societies for worldwide interbank financial telecommunication (SWIFT)
- Payments gateways
- Digital Commerce Platforms
- General Clearing
What is the Faster Payment Schemes?
Same day clearing for amounts < 250k, for some customers of some banks, using phone or internet instruction
What is the Electronic Fund Transfer (ETF)
Computer based system used to transfer money electronically
What are bank automated clearing systems (BACS)
A type of EFT that deals with salaries, and direct debits. Same day clearing in the UK GBP
What is the society for worldwide interbank financial telecommunication (SWIFT)
Similar to CHAPS used for international transfers
What is a payment gateway?
System for payment authorisation when using credit cards online
What is the digital commerce platform?
E.g. Paypal
Payments made using just e-mail address
What is General clearing in terms of Cash transmission mechanisms?
Mainly Cheques -ve = short delay to clear the funds
What is the relationship between a Bank and a customer called?
A fiduciary relationship
What does it mean by a bank has a fiduciary relationship
They are expected to act in good faith in relationship with their customer
What are the four types of contractual arrangements between the bank and the customer
> Mortgator/ Mortgagee - bank has right to asset if customer defaults on loan
> Principle/agent - Bank acts as an agent for the customer e.g. paying a third party sum
> Bailor/Bailee - Safeguard property e.g. title deeds as collateral on mortgage
> Receivable/payable - Contractually owe each other dependent on whether overdrawn or in credit
What are the two types of financial markets?
Money Market
Captial Market