北京大学-公司金融1.pdf

Lecture 1 Introduction of Corporate Finance 1 What is Finance? % % X1 X2 . . . 0 1 2 3 % X0 X3 Finance is the interaction of time, money and uncertainty. Some Central Themes in Finance: • Value Maximization • Cash Flows • Risk, Return and Diversification • Market Efficiency • Information Asymmetry and Signaling 2 Types of Business Organization and Some Features 2.1 The Sole Proprietorship (个体业主制) • It pays no corporate taxes. • It has unlimited liability for business debts and obligations. • The life of the sole proprietorship is limited by the life of the sole proprietor. 2.2 The Partnership (合伙制) • General partners (一般合伙人) have unlimited liability for all debts. The liability of limited partners(有限合伙人) is usually limited to the contribution each has made to the partnership. • It is difficult for a partnership to raise large amounts of cash. • Income from a partnership is taxed as personal income to the partners. 2.3 The Corporation (公司制) • Ownership can be readily transferred to new owners. • The corporation has unlimited life. • The shareholders’ liability is limited to the amount invested in the ownership shares. • Double taxation. 3 Our Focus: The Corporate Firm • The Shareholders (The Owners) (股东,即公司所有者) • The Directors (董事会成员) • The Corporation’s Officers (The Top Management) (公司高层管理者) Principal-Agen