Britannica AI Icon

short-term financing

Also known as: floating debt, short-term capital, short-term debt, short-term security(Show More)

Quick Summary

Short-term financing refers to borrowing money for a period of weeks or months. The primary sources include trade credit, commercial bank loans, commercial paper, and secured loans. Secured loans are backed by collateral, typically accounts receivable or inventories, and are used when a company's credit rating isn't strong enough for unsecured borrowing. Accounts receivable can be pledged or sold outright through factoring. Inventory can also serve as collateral, sometimes managed through field warehousing arrangements. Intermediate-term financing, in contrast, is repaid over 1 to 15 years and includes term loans, conditional sales contracts, and lease financing.123

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.