Working capital is defined by experts as follows -
“Working capital is the amount of funds necessary to cover the cost of operating the enterprises.”
---Shubin
“Circulating capital means current assets of a company that are changed in the ordinary course of business from one form to another, as for example, from cash to inventories, inventories to receivables, receivables in to cash.”
---Genestenberg
Broadly, there are two types of capital required for a business:
● Fixed Capital
● Working Capital
Fixed capital requires investing in long term investments of business to create production facility through purchase of fixed assets such as building, plant, machinery, furniture etc. Investment in these assets means permanent blockage of capital or for a long term fixed term blockage of funds.
Capital is required for short term purposes to purchase raw material, payment of day to day needs of organization, routine business expenditure, payment of salaries, wages, taxes etc. These funds are called working capital. Working capital refers to capital to finance short term or current assets such as cash, securities, debtors and inventories.