Obtaining finance is becoming more of a luxury as the banks are not as credit-friendly as they were prior to the global economic recession. The situation is even made grimmer as the costs of running a business are on the rise. How do businesses survive? Abiding to a professional and concise business plan, using the right accountant and having the right staff are a few key factors that can give a business momentum in the short run. However, cashflow is what makes a business. Careful management of cashflow is key to business continuity and survival. It is a common mistake to confuse cashflow management with cost optimisation. Cashflow management is ensuring that your income surmounts your expenditures at any particular time in the business cycle. Cost optimisation are techniques used by businesses to realise recurring cost savings. Many businesses are caught flat-footed as they often have huge chunks of cash locked up in outstanding invoices. Customers could take up to 90 days to complete payment for invoices. Though this may be in the terms of the agreement, your business might be financially strained, with limited working capital to cover payroll, reduce existing debt or cover administrative overheads. This is where factoring and invoice discounting are here to help. Instead of waiting 30-90 days for customers to settle their bills, either facility can release up to 95% of the value of your outstanding invoices, usually within 24 hours of raising the invoices. Both facilities work in a similar way – release a pre-arranged percentage of the sales ledger almost immediately. However, they differ in the following ways:
Advantages of Factoring
Advantages of Invoice Discounting
Other Forms of Factoring
Other Forms of Invoice Discounting
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