Introduction to Financial Statements

Program Description

Rationale:

Lenders rely on the financial reports prepared by the managers of a business to present a fair and consistent picture of how the business has operated. An understanding of these financial reports is essential to evaluate the financial health and viability of commercial borrowers.

 Course Objective:

• Appreciate the importance of accounting as a source of preparing financial statements
• Understand the key components of financial reports and what they represent i.e. Balance Sheet, Income Statement and Cash Flows.
• Analyze the important measures of business performance, such as profitability and liquidity and the ability to generate cash to meet obligations.
• Use the financial statements as a “report card” on how well management is running the business.

Course Content:

• Introduction to Accounting as source of information for preparing financial Statements
• Information provided in Annual Financial Reports
• The basic accounting equation
• Introduction to financial statements: balance sheet, income statement and cash flows
• Introduction to financial ratios
• Preparation and Discussion of sample financial statements