Finance Blog Importance of Accurate Information
Importance of Accurate Information
Written by Larry Johnson Friday, 06 November 2009 19:37
Timely financing support is vital to the health and development of any business. All too often, however, businesses find the process of applying for funds confusing, time-consuming and frustrating.
Working with dedicated, knowledgeable professionals who understand their needs, the financial products available to them, and which institutions or lenders best fit their current situations dramatically increase the likelihood of a successful financing.
By far the most important issue to support a timely financing project is the provision of complete, detailed and accurate information.
It can be tempting to gloss over, or even omit, the weaknesses in a particular case, but the minimum cost is time lost while presenting an inaccurate scenario to the wrong lender. At worst, this can spell disaster; the international lending community is both well-trained and close knit.
Once two or more lenders have rejected a case, it becomes exponentially more difficult to interest other lenders in reviewing it, especially so if the project is seen as having been inaccurately portrayed.
The financial marketplace protects itself through a very strong communications network; a negative reputation can make it almost impossible to place a requirement, and, if ultimately successful, the interest rate will be considerably higher due to the perception of increased risk.
So, what does work? Proper preparation, packaging and placement are the keys to unlocking the vault. Accurate and complete information means the underwriter can better evaluate what type of financing best suits the situation and which lenders will find the requirement attractive.
For example, if a company needs a capital asset, but cash flow is weak, the underwriter will prepare the package for a lender who understands the companys industry and whose first interest is in the asset, not the cash flow of the applicant.
A well-informed underwriter will emphasize the strengths of the project, demonstrating how the acquisition of the capital asset will significantly improve performance, while recommending a creative financing vehicle tolerant of the companys tight cash flow cycle.
Knowledge is power. Your BFA professional financing team knows the lending marketplace well. Give them a complete, accurate accounting of the scenario and they will apply their underwriting creativity, flexibility and versatility to ensure that your clients financing is achieved in timely fashion.