Description

Many students – and even CFOs – dismiss financial management books as dull. Financial Management: From Angel to Zebra shatters that cliché.

The author tells the fascinating socio-cultural story of financial management, starting from two accessible insights. First, companies differ: unicorns, gazelles, mice, zebras, and zombies each have distinct financing requirements. Second, not all money is the same. The financing landscape is populated by an eclectic mix of banks, business angels, crowdfunders, family offices, mezzanine financiers, private equity, stock exchanges, and venture capitalists – each with their unique modus operandi.

After a clear discussion of the core principles of financial management – such as financial planning, control, and decision-making – the author explores the main types of financing available to businesses. Cases, examples, and exercises bring the story to life. Dull? No. Enriching? Absolutely.

Rudy Aernoudt is a professor of corporate finance at the universities of Ghent and Nancy, and at BMI. He is the founder of EBAN, the European Business Angel Network, manages a fund with 32 start-ups, and sits on various investment committees. He served as a corporate manager at a major bank, as chief of staff at the European, federal, Flemish and Walloon levels, as secretary-general of the Flanders Department of Economy, Science and Innovation, and worked at MIT.