Question

Describe the traditional and non-traditional sources of long-term debt and equity capital for a project.

Answer 1

Sources of capital are the most explorable area especially for the entrepreneurs who are about to start a new business. It is perhaps the toughest part of all the efforts. There are various capital sources, we can classify on the basis of different parameters.

Having known that there are many alternatives to finance or capital, a company can choose from. Choosing the right source and the right mix of finance is a key challenge for every finance manager. The process of selecting the right source of finance involves in-depth analysis of each and every source of fund. For analyzing and comparing the sources, it needs the understanding of all the characteristics of the financing sources. There are many characteristics on the basis of which sources of finance are classified.

On the basis of a time period, sources are classified as long-term, medium term, and short term. Ownership and control classify sources of finance into owned and borrowed capital. Internal sources and external sources are the two sources of generation of capital. All the sources have different characteristics to suit different types of requirements. Let’s understand them in a little depth.Medium term financing means financing for a period of 3 to 5 years and is used generally for two reasons. One, when long-term capital is not available for the time being and second when deferred revenue expenditures like advertisements are made which are to be written off over a period of 3 to 5 years. Medium term financing sources can in the form of one of them:

Short term financing means financing for a period of less than 1 year. The need for short-term finance arises to finance the current assets of a business like an inventory of raw material and finished goods, debtors, minimum cash and bank balance etc. Short-term financing is also named as working capital financing. Short term finances are available in the form of: