Meaning of Financial Intermediaries

With advances in computer technology, one can transfer money instantly, anywhere in the word, you can trade your funds across major stock exchanges online, you can use your credit card across the globe and so on. Lending and borrowing of money is made simple by financial institutions called financial intermediaries. Financial intermediaries such commercial banks, credit unions and brokerage funds carryout these transactions on your behalf. A financial intermediary is a financial institution that borrows from savers and lend to individuals or firms that need resources for investment. The investments made by financial intermediaries can be in loan and/or securities. Basic role of financial intermediaries is transforming financial assets that are less desirable for a large part of the public into other financial asset, which is preferred more by the public. This transformation involves at least four economical functions: providing maturity intermediation, risk reduction via diversifications, reducing the costs of Continue reading

Double Entry Bookkeeping System

Bookkeeping is an act of keeping permanent records of the financial transactions of a business in a systematic and orderly manner. The financial transactions of the business are identified, recorded and classified in different books. In modern entities, records of financial transactions are maintained under a double entry system. The double entry system has been recognized as a systematic and complete system for recording financial transactions. Double entry system recognizes that every financial transactions has two aspects. It then records two aspects of a transaction simultaneously in two separate accounts with equal amounts. It provides the aspects of a transaction with their names of debit and credit. Thereafter, with the help of ledger accounts, profit and loss account and the balance sheet are prepared to ascertain the profit and loss and the financial position of the business. Thus, the double entry system is the most systematic and complete system of Continue reading

Merchant Banking Services: Credit Syndication

Credit syndication also known as credit procurement and project finance services. The main task involved in credit syndication is to raise to rupee and foreign currency loans with the banks and financial institutions both in India and abroad. It also arranges the bridge finance and the resources for cost escalations or cost Overruns. Broadly, the credit syndications include the following acts; Estimating the total costs. Drawing a financing plan for the total project cost-conforming to the requirements of the promoters and their collaborators. Financial institutions and banks, government agencies and underwriters. Preparing loan application for financial assistance from term lenders/financial institutions/banks and monitoring their progress including the pre-sanction negotiations. Selecting the institutions and banks for participation in financing. Follow-up of the term loan application with the financial institutions and banks and obtaining the satisfaction for their respective share of participation. Arranging bridge finance. Assisting in completion of formalities for drawl Continue reading

Incremental Cash Flow Analysis

The most important and also the most difficult part of an investment analysis is to calculate the  cash flow associated with the project; the cost of funding the project; the cash inflow during  the life of the project; and the terminal, or ending value of the project. Shareholders are  interested in how many additional rupees they will receive in future for the rupees they lay out  today. Hence, what matters is not the project’s total cash flow per period, but the incremental  cash flow for a variety of reasons. They include; Cannibalization: When a new product is introduced it may take away the sales of existing  products. Cannibalization also occurs when a firm builds a plant overseas and winds up  substituting foreign production for parent company exports. In this case company may lose  exports because it is supplying from its overseas production center. To the extent that sales of a Continue reading

Indian banking system: Development banks: Small scale Industrial Development Bank of India (SIDBI)

The Small scale Industrial Development Bank of India (SIDBI) was set up in October 1989 under the Act of parliament as a wholly owned subsidiary of the IDBI. It is the central or apex or principal institution which oversees, co-ordinates and further strengthens various arrangements for providing financial and non-financial assistance to small-scale, tiny, and cottage industries. SIDBI objectives are: To initiate steps for technological up gradation and modernization of existing units To expand channels for marketing of SSI sector products in India and abroad To promote employment-oriented industries in semi-urban areas and to check migration of population to big cities. It operates two funds: Small Industries Development Fund and Small Industries Development Assistance Fund. The operation of the former and of National Equity Fund which were earlier looked by IDBI is now handled by the SIDBI. Its financial assistance is channeled through the existing credit delivery system comprising NSIC, Continue reading

Cash Conversion Cycle (CCC)

Cash Conversion Cycle (CCC) measures ongoing liquidity from the firm’s operation is defined as a more comprehensive measure of working capital and as a supplement to current ratio and quick ratio. CCC shows the time lag between expenditure for the purchases of raw materials and the collection of sales of finished goods. CCC is a measure of the efficiency of Working Capital Management as it indicates how quickly the current assets are converting into cash. CCC comprises three components of days inventory outstanding (DIO), days sales outstanding (DSO), and days payables outstanding (DPO); Cash Conversion Cycle (CCC) = Days Inventory Outstanding (DIO) + [Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) -Days Payables Outstanding (DPO)] Days Inventory Outstanding (DIO) is a key figure that measures the average amount of time that a firm holds its inventory. It is calculated by inventory/cost of sales x 365 days. A decrease in the DIO represents an improvement, Continue reading