What is Investment Banker?

Last Updated on 2 years ago by Imarticus Learning

Finance has become a very popular career option these days. Also, it has various roles to offer. Finance comes with a lot of technical aspects and requires a lot of in-depth knowledge of the subject. Investment banking is one such field where your financial knowledge is put to use. An Investment bank is a financial institution that offers a lot of financial services. These institutions have expertise in handling complex issues related to finance such as underwriting, investments, etc.

Who is an Investment Banker?

An investment banker is a person who works in these investment banking institutions. He or she is responsible for raising capital and other sources of funds for the investment banks in which he or she works. Also, these investment bankers give financial advice to people on stock trading and raising capital. These bankers also assist people with complex financial transactions.

People hire Investment banker courses to help them with different mergers and acquisitions. These people also take care of various securities and trade them to raise funds. Investment bankers are the people who are well-versed with all the technical aspects of finance. They know how to manage finances and put it to best use.

An investment banker has to perform multiple roles. He also assesses risks associated with a particular project or with the financial profile of a particular client. These people give expert bits of advice on handling finances. They also help out people with stock trading.

They also provide financial consultancy to all kinds of organisations including companies, NGOs, Business Co-operatives, etc. Another role which an investment banker takes up is of setting up prices for different securities. They also navigate different regulations and set up working for different securities. Investment bankers act as an intermediary and manage funds and securities for different companies.

They can manage career both independently and through an investment banker or a similar institution. Investment bankers use the mark-up mechanism to earn their share of income. This mark-up is huge and you earn a lot from these mark-ups. These bankers earn a lot through securities’ pricing. Investment banks with the help of these professionals take risks and are then rewarded for these risks in the form of profits.

Investment bankers have been doing their jobs with utmost precision for years now. They know how the market works and they put a lot of time studying these markets.

How to become an Investment Banker?

Being good in finance is a pre-requisite for becoming an investment banker. Investment bankers have spent years to gain expertise in this field. So, they are highly paid. An investment banking course can help your cause. You have to be very skilled to excel in this particular career domain.

To become an excellent investment banker, you must have a stronghold on stock markets and the different types of securities. You can take up a course to learn about financial markets and their workings. Also, you must have enough knowledge about the pricing of securities and should know how to price them as your profits are going to come from those prices.

Investment bankers do well when the market works in their favour. A lot of investment banks prefer taking people who have an MBA in finance but you can also venture this field with a bachelors’ degree and a good skill set. The career path of investment banking is highly competitive and you have to outperform yourself with all your deals and negotiations to survive in the market.

Conclusion
Investment banking has become one of the most desirable jobs recently. With the right skill set and training, you can work wonders in the field.

What is Banking & Finance All About?

Last Updated on 5 years ago by Imarticus Learning

The banking and finance sector forms the main pillar on which the modern capitalist economy is based on. The roots of 6can be traced back to the period when money was introduced as a method of exchange for goods and services.

This was a revolutionary measure that sparked a revolution; people no longer had to rely on the barter economy which provided a not so efficient measure of exchange. Money filled all the loopholes in the barter economy and started to act as the primary medium of exchange, propelling the wheels of trade and commerce.

So what is banking and finance all about? What goes into these institutions daily? For understanding this, we need to dig deeper into the main functioning of the banking and finance courses and industries.

The primary function of a bank is to accept deposits from people with excess funds and lend money to those who need it. Interest is provided to those who deposit the money in the bank based on the terms and conditions of the institution. Similarly, an interest fee is charged to those who are borrowing money from the banks.

The rate of interest paid to depositors is less than the rate of interest charged from borrowers; this difference in interest rate constitutes a major income source for the banks. So, if you look closely the banks and other financial institutions act as an intermediary between the borrowers and lenders in the economy.

This helps with the channeling of funds in the economy. In addition to all this, banks also help to manage the risk in the economy by properly vetting the lenders and the chances of repayment to provide loans.

There are several types of banks and finance companies catering to a diverse set of individuals and corporations. The different types of banks include commercial banks, retail banks, community banks, credit unions, investment banks, central or federal banks, etc.

Commercial banks are the most common ones catering to private individuals and corporations. The retail banking segment provides services related to credit and money management to individuals and families.

The community banks have a smaller operation when compared with commercial or investment banks. They focus on providing a customized solution to individual customers in close vicinity of the branch.

They focus on a personal touch in their services and the well-being of people they are catering to. Credit unions are more like a closed group designed to help members avail loans and credit services at a cheaper rate.

The investment banks have a more sophisticated operation and generally cater to high-profile corporations and individuals with high-net-worth. One of the primary functions of the investment banks is to raise money for corporations from investors and the public using Initial Public Offers.

They act as underwriters and provide the IPO services to companies seeking funds to grow. They also facilitate mergers and acquisition deal for companies looking to expand and grow by synergizing operations with different companies in the same domain.

Now, the Central banks or Federal banks have a special role to play in the nation’s economy. They act as the watch guards of the economy and help to drive economic changes on a macroeconomic level. The government controls the flow of money in the economy using the central banks.

It deploys monetary policies to control the interest rates which help to manage unemployment rates and the inflation level. The central banks also provide funds to commercial banks in times of distress and act as a guarantor. They help to eliminate the risk element from the market by keeping a check on the bank’s operations.

What Are the Major Tools of Financial Statement Analysis

Last Updated on 6 months ago by Imarticus Learning

Understanding the Financial Statements?

Financial statements can be understood as a formal way to record the financial activities of an entity. The reports comprise financial data that helps to determine the overall financial growth and strength of a company. It reflects the outcome of financial and business-related transactions of a company. The information presented in financial statements follows a rigid structure that helps to obtain information quickly.

Financial statements are primarily categorized into three categories that include a balance sheet, income statement or profit & loss statement, cash flow statements. Other types of financial statements include equity statement and comprehensive income statements. The financial statements also contain footnotes that provide extensive information on a range of subjects.

Tools & Techniques of Financial Statement Analysis

Financial statements contain vital relevant information that helps to assess the company’s financial standing. Financial analysts use various tools and techniques to analyze these financial statements and bring out important information that helps in better decision-making. It also helps to identify trends and patterns based on historical data. Let’s delve deeper into some important tools and techniques used to analyze financial statements.

Comparative Statements

Comparative statements are an important financial statement analysis tools that help to compare different elements of financial statements like Profit and Loss statement and balance sheets. It is used to compare the elements of these financial statements of two or more periods.
Two different comparative statements are prepared to facilitate the comparison of the balance sheet and profit & loss statements. The important elements that are used in comparison for Profit & Loss statements include gross profit, operating profit and net profit. These comparisons help the management to identify the pain points and implement necessary changes.

Common Size Statements

The common size statement tools take a vertical presentation approach to represent financial information. The interesting thing about common size statements is that it doesn’t include the absolute value; instead, it uses percentage form to depict the values. The determining factor or the value that is taken as 100% for the balance sheet is the total assets and revenue for the profit and loss statements.
For example, if the absolute value of sales or revenue is 200 and the profit amount is 100 then profit is recorded as 50% and sales are recorded as 100%. It shows a relation of individual elements as compared to the base elements. In this example, the relation states that the profit is 50% of the revenue.

Ratio Analysis

Ratio analysis is carried out to find meaningful relations between different elements of various financial statements. Ratio analysis is extensively used by financial analysts and business analysts to derive meaningful conclusion and hidden insights from these data points. It is used by both the internal and external parties conduct a financial analysis for a corporation. The main intent is to depict the performing aspects such as profitability, liquidity, solvency, etc.

Trend Analysis

In the trend analysis technique, the ratio of different elements are computed for multiple periods and if followed by a comparison between different periods. This helps to identify a trend or patterns based on the historical data for a company. It also helps to make future predictions following the same trend and identify winning patterns. After the analysis, an uptrend or downtrend pattern is recognized for different elements and necessary steps are taken to make it favourable.

Cash Flow Analysis

Cash flow analysis is conducted to determine the cash position of the firm, meaning it helps to determine the inflow and outflow of cash to and from the business. There are majorly two types of cash flows, actual cash flow and notional cash flow. It helps to understand how much cash balance a company needs to maintain to operate successfully without facing any cash-crunch issues.