Let’s take a look at Accounts Receivable Factoring.
Posted on May 28th, 2009. Filed under: Finance.To stay competitive in the world of business you can take the route of cash flow enhancement. Accounts Receivable Factoring is a popular way of achieving it just that. Factoring is a kind of business loan that a company obtains through the sale of their accounts receivable to a Factor. The latter will be responsible for collecting the money and will charge your company a fee for the services provided. Increased cash flow is the most attractive part of Accounts Receivable Factoring.
Factoring is beneficial because you are hiring professionals to manage what your customers owe you and in the process you are reducing the cost and hassle of having your staff doing it.
Factoring is particularly attractive for small business because it enables them to increase the availability of funds that can be used for the day to day activities of the business. The assets that were once stuck in your accounts receivable could, through Factoring, be invested, used to pay liabilities and for payroll. The alternative is, of course less appealing: chasing after the customer to obtain the payment and other potential investments need to wait on him or her to honor their commitment.
When considering the benefits of Accounts Receivable Factoring, we suggest you study in detail what Factoring companies have to offer to you, what they ask in exchange and if it is an appealing path for your company to follow. Many companies have enjoyed the benefits of AR Factoring and yours could too.
Obviously factoring is not free. The company that provides the services charges a fee in order to stay in business. They provide an array of services and in exchange they expect a compensation that is sufficient to cover their benefits and additionally obtain profit. The amount paid by your company is the result of a negotiation with the factor in which a series of factors are considered. Generally, the amount results in a range between 65% and 90% of the debt to be collected.
Interest rates determined by factoring companies follow the following considerations:
If your customers are financially steady or not. The objective of the factoring company is to make profit by delivering services. If the likelihood that your customers will pay their debt is low, then the Factor would you a big risk.
The dollar amount being factored plays a large roll in the fee for the service.
If your commitment with them is long or not. The longer the better. The factoring company will see positively the fact that you stay with them for longer rather than shorter time and therefore they reward you with attractive interest rates.
Finally, when opting for the road of Accounts Receivable Factoring, remember to weigh the pluses and minuses of the deal and always read the details of the contract.