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How to Borrow Money, Part 2
Debt Financing
Debt financing means borrowing money that must be paid back over a period of time, usually with interest. It can be a short-term: less than a year and a long-term more that a year. You do not relinquish any ownership rights by taking a loan and limited by obligation of paying a loan back with interest. This is why loan for new businesses usually secured by one or more of the following: owners personal guarantee, real estate, company assets, etc.
The disadvantage comparing to the equity financing is that you must make scheduled payments regardless of your companys financial situation.
Debt sources can be divided into two groups: non-professional such us relatives, friends, and employees, etc. and professional such as banks, credit unions, etc.
Financial Institutions, by themselves, traditionally provide short term financing for small and mid size businesses: line of credit, equipment loan, etc. Long term loans in many cases guaranteed by the Small Business Administration loan program that helps leverage out risk for financial institutions.
There are some pros and cons in both Equity and Debt Financing. The best capital structure will depend on many different factors. For more sophisticated cases I suggest to hire a seasoned Financial Consultant.
Points the borrower usually evaluates before you giving the money:
1. How good is your credit history
2. Do you a solid collateral
3. Will you be able to repay the loan
4. Does your management team have enough management experience
Your personal financial situation while starting a business
It is always a good idea to build your personal credit history. In the beginning your business does not have any credit history and lender will use your personal data to evaluate a loan terms. Order you personal report to see where you stand and check it for any unexpected errors.
Work with your personal budget. You need to understand that usually you will not be able to take any cash from new business for a while. Make sure that you have enough money to start you business venture and enough money to pay you bills until business will become cash producing.
Put together projections and classify your future business expenses. Some of the expenses will be one-time costs such as the fee for incorporating your business; some will be ongoing such as inventory, insurance, etc.
There are two types of expenses: variable such as inventory, sales commission, etc. and fixed such as rent, utilities, etc. If you feel that you do not have enough expertise to do budgeting and forecasting it might be a good idea to hire a professional to do that.
Yury Iofe, MBA
Universal Business Structured Solution
More educational resources by Yury Iofe:
www.ubssolution.com
How to Borrow Money, Part 1
There are two types of financing: equity financing and debt financing.
The most frequent source of funding for a small and mid size businesses is to borrow money. Getting a loan usually is not an easy and short process.
It is always a good idea to learn as much as you can in advance about the factors that important in the decision-making process of banks and other lenders when they consider your loan application. For more detailed information you may refer to my other articles.
When looking for funding, you should consider your company’s debt-to-equity ratio, which is defined by dividing amount of borrowed money by amount of invested in the business. The lower the ratio is: more invested and less money borrowed, the easier for you will be to get financing and at more favorable terms.
The decision what financing to pursue works on case to case basis, but the general rule of tomb is: if you have a high debt to equity ratio you should seek equity financing and vice versa.
In the most cases it is impossible to get 100% financing. Institutions want to see at least 20% of equity in a business. Building equity can be achieved by investing owners cash or build it through retained earnings, but by itself does not guarantee that you get financing for a business.
Equity Financing
Equity financing means financing a business by selling ownership interests to investors or, the money is raised in exchange for a share of ownership in the business or having the right to convert other financial instruments into stock. It is the way raise funds without incurring debt, or without obligation to repay a specific amount of money at a particular time.
Equity sources can be divided into two groups: non-professional such us relatives, friends, and employees, etc. and professional that can be divided into two sub groups: Private such as Angels and Venture Capital and Institutional such as Hedge Funds and Government Assessed Sources. Most of professional groups specialize in particular industries.
Venture Capitalists may review thousands of proposals a year, but invest only in a few that have bigger prospective returns on the capital, great management team, industry growth, competitive advantage and solid exit strategies (e. g. IPO). Venture Capital firms usually passively involved in a companys management, unless business fails to perform as projected.
Many people think that Venture Capital firms finance new businesses, but in the most cases they prefer established companies with stable cash flow. If you need money for a start up look for an Angel (Private) Investors. Angels might work alone or in groups (sometimes as big as few hundred people) and usually actively involved in companys management.
Pros and cons of equity financing
Company shares give you two major rights: participation in the future companys profit-sharing and decision-making processes. The biggest drawback of equity financing is that you relinquish those rights to an outsider.
To be continued.
Yury Iofe, MBA
Universal Business Structured Solution
More educational resources by Yury Iofe:
www.ubssolution.com