This decision is prepared and planned in detail, both from the operative side of a company’s business model and from the financial side, in order to form a sustainable financial construction and business continuity. Most of the investments nowadays are not wholly funded from the organic growth of a company, but they use financial leverage, in the form of:

• long-term credits of commercial banks
• long-term HBOR credits
• HAMAG warranties
• ESIF micro-credit lines
• EU funds
• EIB financial instruments and lines
• strategic partners, such as venture capital funds, individuals, or a group of investors
• the owner or some third party’s loan

Some of the important preconditions, with the exception of operative planning, are financial planning and the development of a comprehensive business plan or/and investment study, depending on the type, size of the investment, and source of financing (providers of financing service). The key elements which a certain company should include in the framework of its business plan are ultimately within the framework of the requirements oriented to financial institutions and strategic investors. They are also within the framework of preparing an investment with:

• defining the structure of an investment
• definite the sources of financing
• defining the maturity of financing
• preparing the existing finances of a company with the current situation
• preparing a financial plan and a strategy on the number of years which is equal to the expected maturity of financing, while bearing in mind the following financial reports: balance sheet, the profit and loss account, and cash flow, together with planning their key parameters, such as the depreciation of fixed funds, analysis of the fixed and variable costs and the rest of key business parameters.

According to the definition of the framework of an investment, an optimal combination of financing channels needs to be selected, after which the financing strategy is being set that, among other things, defines the form itself of the needed project documentation. This documentation needs to be prepared before the application.

Benefits:

• selection of the optimal model of investment with a look ahead – a potential for development (in the next 5 years) – reduction of operating and financial risk of business activities
• making of a business plan, an investment study, a company validation, and a projection, in accordance with the selected potential financing sources
• ensuring the adequate financial leverage in accordance with current and potential future needs
• obtaining the most competitive market conditions of financing costs
• maintaining a credit rating for future business needs.