Corporate Finance

Watch

• TVM, Time Value of Money full chapter, Compounding, Discounting method, Business finance, Capital ↗DWIVEDI GUIDANCE
• Money, Power and Wall Street, Part One (full documentary) | FRONTLINE ↗FRONTLINE PBS | Official
• ALL ABOUT CORPORATE FINANCE | JOB RESPONSIBILITIES,WORK PROFILE,SALARY @thewallstreetschool ↗The WallStreet School
• Corporate Finance Explained in 40 Minutes ↗The Corporate Law Academy (TCLA)
• Corporate Finance Explained | How Companies Set Financial Targets ↗Corporate Finance Institute
• Session 1: Corporate Finance: What is it? ↗Aswath Damodaran

Read

• Principles of Corporate Finance ↗The authoritative textbook, this tome provides a rigorous yet accessible grounding in the theoretical underpinnings and practical applications of corporate finance.Richard A. Brealey, Stewart C. Myers, Franklin Allen
• Valuation: Measuring and Managing the Value of Companies ↗A practical guide from McKinsey, this book offers a robust framework for valuing businesses, essential for strategic decision-making and investment analysis.McKinsey & Company (Tim Koller, Marc Goedhart, David Wessels)
• The Intelligent Investor ↗This timeless classic lays the intellectual groundwork for sound investing, offering principles of value and risk management crucial for any corporate finance practitioner.Benjamin Graham
• The Cost of Capital, Corporation Finance and the Theory of InvestmentThis seminal paper introduces the Modigliani-Miller theorems, fundamentally reshaping understanding of capital structure and firm value in perfect markets.Franco Modigliani and Merton H. Miller
• Theory of the Firm: Managerial Behavior, Agency Costs and Ownership StructureThis influential article introduces agency theory, explaining how conflicts of interest between principals and agents shape corporate governance and financial decisions.Michael C. Jensen and William H. Meckling

Voices to follow

• Aswath Damodaran ↗His pragmatic approach to valuation and corporate finance, distilled into accessible lectures and writings, offers invaluable insights for practitioners and academics alike.Professor of Finance, NYU Stern School of Business
• Stewart Myers ↗As co-author of a seminal textbook, his enduring contributions have shaped the theoretical underpinnings and practical application of modern corporate finance.Professor Emeritus of Financial Economics, MIT Sloan School of Management
• Luigi Zingales ↗His incisive research and commentary on corporate governance, the political economy of finance, and the societal impact of financial markets provide a critical lens on contemporary business.Robert C. McCormack Distinguished Service Professor of Finance, University of Chicago Booth School of Business
• Raghuram Rajan ↗With a unique blend of academic rigour and policy experience, he offers profound perspectives on financial stability, corporate governance, and the interplay between finance and global economic development.Katherine Dusak Miller Distinguished Service Professor of Finance, University of Chicago Booth School of Business; former Governor of the Reserve Bank of India

Glossary

• AssetAnything of value that a company owns, which can be used to generate future economic benefits. This includes things like cash, buildings, machines, and even brand names. For example, for a delivery company, its delivery vans, its office building, and the cash in its bank account are all assets.
• CapitalThe money, assets, and resources a company uses to start, operate, and grow its business. It's the financial fuel for a company. For example, the initial money a startup company raises from investors to buy equipment and pay salaries is its starting capital.
• Company (or Corporation)A business that is legally separate from its owners. This means the company itself can sign contracts, own property, and be responsible for its own debts. For example, a big mobile phone maker like Samsung is a corporation, meaning it's treated as a separate "person" in the eyes of the law, even though many people own parts of it.
• Debt (or Loan)Money borrowed by a company from a bank or other lenders, which must be paid back, usually with extra money called interest. It's a way for companies to get funds without selling ownership. For example, if a company needs money to build a new factory, it might take out a large debt (a loan) from a bank and promise to pay it back over several years.
• ExpenseThe costs a company has to pay to operate its business, like salaries, rent, or the cost of materials. These are the outflows of money. For example, for a school canteen, the cost of buying ingredients, paying the cooks, and electricity bills are all expenses.
• InterestThe extra money paid back when you borrow money, or the extra money earned when you lend money. It's essentially the cost of borrowing or the reward for lending. For example, if a company borrows ₹10,000 and has to pay back ₹10,500, the extra ₹500 is the interest.
• InvestmentPutting money into something with the expectation of making more money in the future. Companies invest to grow, like buying new machines or building new factories. For example, a company might make an investment by buying a new, faster computer system for its employees, hoping it will help them work more efficiently and earn more money.
• LiabilityWhat a company owes to others, like money owed to suppliers, banks, or employees. These are financial obligations that must be paid in the future. For example, if a company bought raw materials on credit and hasn't paid for them yet, the money it owes to the supplier is a liability.
• ProfitThe money a company has left over after paying all its expenses from the money it earned. It's the reward for running a successful business. For example, if a lemonade stand earns ₹100 from selling lemonade and spends ₹30 on lemons and sugar, its profit is ₹70.
• RevenueThe total amount of money a company earns from selling its products or services before any expenses are paid. It's the top line of a company's earnings. For example, if a clothing store sells 10 shirts at ₹500 each, its total revenue from those shirts is ₹5000.
• Share (or Stock)A tiny piece of ownership in a company. When you buy a share, you own a very small part of that company. For example, if a company has 100 shares and you buy 1 share, you own 1% of that company.
• ShareholderA person or group who owns one or more shares in a company. Shareholders are part-owners of the company. For example, if your parents buy shares in a popular tech company, they become shareholders and own a small part of that company.

Threads 4

Where this connects to other fields, and why it's worth knowing.

• Evolution Science

  A company has limited money, so it funds the projects with the best payoff and axes the losers first. Your body does the identical thing with energy: when you're starving, it shuts down reproduction before it shuts down your heart or brain. Both a firm and a body ration scarce fuel toward whatever gives the biggest return.

• Motivation & Behaviour Change Psychology

  Finance treats the future with a smooth, steady discount, so a spreadsheet weighs next year calmly. Human brains don't; we crave the reward right now and shrug off later, a lopsided 'hyperbolic' curve. That math gap is the real reason we blow off the gym while a calculator never procrastinates.

• Longevity & Aging Science Health

  In finance, a 'discount rate' measures how much you shrug off future money compared to cash today. That same impatience that makes people skip saving also makes them skip exercise and checkups that pay off decades later. Whether it's your bank account or your aging body, valuing 'future you' too cheaply leads to under-investing in them.

• Calculus & Rates of Change Mathematics

  A rupee ten years from now is worth less than a rupee today, and the further out you go, the more its value fades. Finance calls this 'discounting,' and it shrinks future money along a smooth curve. It's the exact same math as radioactive decay, how carbon-14 fades over time, just run in reverse. Future money is basically decaying money.