Technology Risks In Commercial Banking: KfW Bank Case Study
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Cash vs. Accrual Basis of Accounting
Cash Basis of Accounting Cash Basis of Accounting uses receipts and payments of cash to record incomes and expenses. Therefore, under the cash basis of accounting, if a corporation makes salary payments of January, 3 months later in April, it will be considered as expenses in the month of April, since that is when the […]
The Importance of KYC (Know Your Customer) Norms and Procedures in Banking
Follow the Money Trail In recent months, there has been a spate of disclosures around the world about how banks are compromising on customer identification procedures and are indulging in money laundering and other unsavory activities. From the US to India and the shadow banking system around the world including China, regulators have realized that […]
The Sinister Motive Behind Cashless Society
Cashless society is the latest buzzword in global finance. At the present moment, only 15% to 20% of the world’s money exists in the form of currency notes. This itself is an absurdity. However, many central banks and governments all across the world have pledged to bring the cash percentage down to zero. This means […]
The Functions of a Financial System
Financial resources are scattered across the economy. This is the reason that there is a need for a financial system that can enable the timely deployment of these resources across different parts of the economy at the right time. A well-functioning financial system is supposed to perform several functions. Some of these functions have been […]
Cash flows vary from project to project. In some cases cash flows will occur evenly over time. There might be payments of similar amounts that will be spread out over a time period at regular intervals.
On the other hand, there might be payments which are irregular and have no pattern whatsoever. The challenge in corporate finance is to value these different streams of cash flows. Here is how this is done:
The present value of a stream of cash flows can be expressed as a lump sum amount. This can be done only after all the expected future receipts are converted to their present day values. The sum of these values is then equal to the value of the expected stream of cash flows. This is exactly how the value of a future stream of payments is derived.
The calculation of the present value of the future stream of money depends upon the nature of the cash flows. If the cash flows are spread out in an even pattern, shortcuts like annuities and perpetuities can be used and the value of large streams can also be calculated very easily. However, if the cash flows are uneven, individual payments have to be discounted to their present value and then all those payments need to be added up.
Now, there are many investments that go on for a period of 10 years, 15 years and so on. The inflation forecast does not remain the same over such an extended period of time. In fact historically, the inflation will change every time there is a change in the business cycle. Hence, for investments over a long period of time, multiple inflation forecasts may be required where different rates are used in different years.
Moreover, in projects where cash flow goes on for multiple years, the uncertainty also increases with increased time. It is a fundamental rule in corporate finance that the farther the expected payments are, the more uncertain they are. This is because over an extended period there might be political, economic or social changes that might affect the cash flows. Hence different rates may be used to discount the cash flows in different years to get a more accurate picture.
Analysts almost always use multiple discount rates to represent the different uncertainties that cash flows in different years have inherent in them. Moreover, the value of the future cash flows is highly sensitive to discount rates. Hence, small changes in the discount rate can bring about big changes in valuation. This, coupled with the fact that discount rates are very difficult to predict in advance makes investing an art rather than a science.
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