A Capital Fund simply refers to the financial pool that an organisation may set aside. It is done in order to support long-term investments, infrastructure, or special projects. On the one hand, there are revenue funds used for daily operations. On the other hand, capital funds are used for building or acquiring assets, such as technology, equipment, or buildings.
Capital funds are usually raised through grants, donations, or surplus income or government allocation. For instance, a university may create a capital fund to build a new playground. In this guide, we will explore capital funds, the cost of funding, and related topics.
Understanding the Meaning of Capital Fund
A capital fund is defined as an aggregate of financial resources assigned by a firm, business entity, establishment, or investment fund to fund long-term investments, growth projects, or development endeavours. It includes equity, debt, or hybrid fund provisions that are availed by shareholders, lenders, or other interested parties. The use of capital funds may include the development of infrastructure, the acquisition or merger with other companies, research, or meeting working capital needs.
Debt capital:
Finances obtained as matters of money in the form of bonds, debentures, or loans, which involve a regular payment of interest.
Universal funds support growth and innovation that help organisations expand operations and improve infrastructure, paying off accrued debts or venturing into new businesses. The issuance of such funds is governed by SEBI within the framework of Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs), Private Equity (PE) funds, mutual funds, and green bonds, among others.
Source: Livemint
Examples of Capital Funding
Hereafter are real-life examples of capital funding across industries:
These examples demonstrate diversification of capital funding among conventional and contemporary instruments.
Source: Livemint
Stock Issuance
The issue of stocks is the procedure through which a company raises funds by issuing shares to the public or existing shareholders. It may be done in two major ways:
Initial Public Offering (IPO): A company that has not been listed comes out as a public company by issuing stock for the first time to institutional and retail investors. It facilitates the conversion from private to publicly traded and attracts a substantial amount of capital for growth.
Follow-on Public Offering (FPO) or Rights Issue: Listed companies raise more funds.
Rights issue: Present shareholders receive rights to purchase new shares at a discount in proportion to their existing ownership, maintaining the ownership pattern, e.g., rights at ₹6/share for a 1:5 ratio (livemint.com).
Key aspects:
Use of proceeds: Funding new projects, growth, service of loans, research, and development.
A stock issue, whether an IPO, FPO, or rights issue, is still a strategic funding vehicle for companies to access equity capital.
Source: Livemint
Debt Issuance
Issuance of debt means borrowing proceeds by companies in the form of bonds, debentures, loans, or other debt instruments. These are securities that signify obligations to repay the principal, along with interest, over a specified period. Debt financing is used for many strategic purposes:
1. Types of debt tools:
Secured bonds: Backed by specific things.
Unsecured bonds (debentures): Backed just by the issuer’s credit.
Green bonds: Funds set aside for green or safe projects, checked by SEBI rules.
AT1 bonds: Mixed tools that can change under stress to help banks with money.
2. SEBI rules: Large companies must obtain at least 25% of new loans from public debt to clarify the market and attract more participants.
3. Advantages: Interest can reduce taxes, which lowers costs; maintains ownership; offers flexible terms (rated or not rated, can be changed).
4. Risk: Must pay back; risk of high interest rates; failure to pay back can harm credit scores.
5. Goal: To fund big costs, pay off old debt, needs for working money, or big buys.
6. Market trends: Investors check creditworthiness, yield gaps, and key factors such as interest rates and yield curve spots.
Debt offering provides a tried-and-true and tax-efficient capital-raising method, especially for companies with strong credit characteristics.
Cost of Capital Funding
Cost of capital is the minimum rate of return required for funding from debt and equity capital providers. It determines the threshold return to justify a project's acceptance and investment viability.
Function of WACC: The capital budgeting hurdle rate, acquisition choice, and valuation formulas, such as DCF.
A mix of capital that is optimal ensures the lowest cost of funding, which maximises firm value and return on investments.
Source: Investopedia
Conclusion
Capital finance covers a wide range of capital sources (equity, debt, and hybrid securities) and each of these materials is meant to fit within a particular strategic objective.
Through IPOs, FPOs, or rights issues of equity, innovative and growing firms can obtain non-repayable cash, whereas debt instruments can offer tax-efficient liquidity without diluting ownership. Green bonds and finance, as well as AT1 securities, are examples of hybrid instruments that are customised to the ESG objectives and capital requirements.
The cost of capital determined through the Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) is a crucial threshold in determining the capital mix and project financing. Through conscientious selection of optimal funding paths, companies can pursue risk, cost, and growth aims concurrently, to scale sustainable and scalable operations provided by a regulated financial system.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Bajaj Broking Financial Services Ltd. (BFSL) makes no recommendations to buy or sell securities