Introduction
We are all aware that money is required for any business or organisation to succeed. Anytime people consider operating an institution or starting a business, they should consider how much money they will need to invest in the venture. People obtain funding or borrow money from friends or family members to allow their businesses to develop. They come face to face with phrases like cash and fund, which have been used consistently in financial terms, in this topic or situation. Even though they both deal with wealth or money, it is vital to note that they have subtle differences.
Cash vs. Fund
The primary distinction between cash and funds is that cash is something in the shape of pennies or paper currency that we must spend on multiple products or offer us bargaining power. On the other hand, money refers to any form of financial assistance that may be gained from financial institutions or other monetary authorities, companies, and other agencies. Funds cannot be used in the same way that cash can. Individuals, on the other hand, use cash to perform certain goals or to accomplish and meet an individual's purpose or goal.
Difference Between Cash and Fund in Tabular Form
| Parameters of Comparison | Cash | Fund |
| Meaning | Cash is legal tender, in terms of tokens or coins that can be exchanged for products, obligations, or commodities. It may also contain the worth of liquid assets that may be quickly converted into cash. | A fund is a collection of money set aside for a certain reason. A fund can be formed for a variety of objectives, such as a city administration putting money in a savings account to construct a modern convention centre, a university putting money aside to offer a fellowship, or an insurance company putting aside some money to reimburse its clients' complaints. |
| Scope | The scope of cash is narrow. | The scope of the fund is comparatively wider than cash. |
| Flexibility Nature | Cash is liquid. | The fund may or may not be liquid. |
| Form | Cash contains money or currency in the physical form only. | Funds however, contains cash, credit, cheque, etc. |
| Type | Asset | Liabilities |
What is Cash?
In layman’s terms, cash is physically available for carrying out any performance. Cash is money that is not in the form of a check or retained earnings, such as derivative instruments, business documents, treasury bonds, etc. Cash is the tangible kind of money allowed by the government to be used for the exchange of goods or services, such as coins or paper notes. It is recognised as the most flexible total asset in the company since it may be utilised to make immediate settlement of any expenditures. Cash is used in to earn goods and services as well as to remove economic disparities and obligations that come our way. Items that do not fall within the definition of cash are post-dated checks and notes receivable. There are different forms or types of cash. Some of the most common ones are electronic cash or digital cash, coins, paper banknotes and so on.
Since the accounting arrangement is based on volatility, therefore cash appears first on the financial statements, and cash is perhaps the most accessible of all liabilities. Liquid funds are a relevant accounting method for goods that can be readily turned into cash. If a corporate deals with purchases regularly, it might expect to make a lot of money. Conversely, if an entity or advocacy group has an effective cash forecasting model and invests in more flexible and endurance limit commodities, it is less successful in obtaining or keeping the cash. Cash is also believed to have its reasonable worth at all periods.
Pros and Cons of Cash in Business Terms
Pros
- Anonymity is one of the important advantages of doing any business payments by cash. It helps in keeping our identity secure and intact.
- Using cash also helps in the improvement of problem-solving skills. It encourages arithmetic development.
- Transactions are done with the help of cash help in avoiding service charges, unlike digital payments.
- Cash also provides quick and fast access to all funds.
- In some cases, it is seen that when online cards don’t function properly, then we are left at the mercy of technological glitches. In such situations, the only option that comes to our rescue is cash. Hence, cash can also serve as a type of backup when an emergency arises.
- Cash also helps in keeping our debts in check.
Cons
- Cash is not always applicable to make huge payments due to the probability of misplacements.
- The one problem with cash is that it needs high maintenance. For any transaction to be made with cash one must assure enough security during the process because they might be prone to theft. Since the responsibility lies with the banks once it is stored in financial institutions, thus keeping cash with oneself comes with security.
- There also arises the problem of complicated book-keeping with cash because no one can take the headache of keeping the amount in mind once it comes to paying taxes.
What is Fund?
A fund is a money collected or accumulated for a specific purpose that is occasionally required for the business with the goal to improve the company's current value over time. Stakeholders can also gain from investing in other types of funds. Unit trusts, which pool money from the several participants who chose to invest it in a varied range of investments, and institutional investors, who use the capital of high-level individuals and organisations to generate above-market returns, are two examples. Authorities use measures, such as special funds, to compensate for financial damage. While all entrepreneurs want to increase their money, there are a variety of methods for doing so. This implies that there are several sorts of funds accessible. Some might operate in a diversified and wide range of assets across several nations, whereas others may specialise in an individual asset category or have a specified geographical concentration.
Types of Funds
There are several types of funds. Some of the most common ones are as follows:
- Mutual Funds: these are the investment funds managed by professionals who are professionals. They also allocate the funds received from individuals who want to invest as stocks, bonds or other different forms of assets.
- Emergency Funds: These are long term savings devices designed by people to withstand fiscal disasters such as loss of employment, protracted disease, or an item of significant expenditure. The general recommendation is to set aside at least three months' equivalent of net profit in an emergency fund.
- Government Bond Funds: these funds are for investors who are looking up for putting their money away in investments that are of low risk such as treasury bonds.
- Hedge Funds: these typically include high net worth individuals or organizations which can take risks of high performance-based fees.
- Retirement Funds: these funds are used by individuals who save money after they retire from jobs. The people who are retirees receive monthly income or pensions from this type of retirement fund.
- College Funds: these funds are basically taxed advanced savings plans set up by families to collect money for their children’s expenses in colleges or any other higher institution.
- Debt Funds: These are investment vehicles in debt securities, such as corporate debenture holders, treasury bonds, and other marketable securities. They are regarded as secure investments with guaranteed profits. These funds do not deduct taxes at the point of sale.
- International Funds: these are also sometimes called foreign funds which offer investments to the organizations that are set up in different parts of the globe. These businesses might also be found in developing countries. The only businesses that will not be invested in are those based in the investor's home country.
Apart from these types of funds, there are also various other funds such as:
- Real estate funds
- Exchang- traded funds
- Open-ended funds
- Close-ended fund
- Tax-saving funds
- Money market funds
- Sector funds
- Inverse funds
- Gilt funds
- Global funds
- Hybrid funds
- Liquid funds
- Asset allocation funds
- Equity funds etc.
Pros and Cons of Funds
Pros
- When anybody or any individual buys a mutual fund, they need to pay a management fee as a part of the advanced ratio which is again used to hire professionals who are experts in bonds and stocks management. This process is known as advanced portfolio management where the buyers have to pay a very small amount for getting the help of experts in managing their investments.
- Funds also are convenient because they are very easy for the buyers to buy and are very easily understandable. They also generally have a fair pricing system which helps in maintaining the fluctuations of price thereby helping the traders or those who are in practice.
- Numerous mutual funds also help in the reduction of risks for the investors. Portfolio risks are easily maintained through the use of stock diversification.
- Mutual funds are also liquid. They are very flexible and tax-efficient.
- Funds also help in attaining the financial goals of the individuals.
- There is a widespread belief that mutual funds are less secure than bank products. This is a fallacy since fund houses are rigorously regulated by statutory government authorities such as SEBI and AMFI. SEBI can readily verify the qualifications of the fund house and asset manager. They also offer an unbiased grievance redress mechanism that works in the best interests of the investors.
Cons
- High fees are a problem for many mutual fund schemes nowadays. While mutual funds accomplish a lot for their shareholders, their fees might be high in certain situations. In contrast, some financial institutions have extremely low or no charges, helping businesses to create strategies with only a few funds at a cheap cost.
- When it comes to capital gains dividends in mutual funds, investors have little option. Investors often get distributions from the funds that are an unavoidable tax event due to the volatility, refunds, profits, and depreciation in security holdings during the year.
- For investors looking for faster execution times, maybe because of short investment horizons, day trading, or timing the market, mutual funds provide a weak execution strategy.
Main Differences Between Cash and Fund in Points
- Cash is basically for quick and immediate use. On the other hands, funds may not necessarily be taken for the immediate purposes.
- Physically available money is termed as cash. For instance: coins, banknotes and so on. Whereas, funds cannot be presented in physical terms. They are in different other forms such as cheques, credits and so on.
- Compared to cash, funds always have a higher return approach.
- Cash is a type of asset. On the other hand, funds are the type of liabilities.
- The scope of cash is narrow. But compared to cash, the scope of funds is wider.
Conclusion
Thus, to conclude it can be seen that for any business organization to function smoothly, both cash and funds are of utmost necessary. To undergo immediate expense, cash at hand is very important and when the time comes to use it, funds must also be available easily. Users may use the cash to make all kinds of transactions, transfer funds for various items, contribute to increasing obligations, and much more. However, using funds, users will be able to set aside a certain amount of currency to be used later. Funds can be used later on to invest in various kinds of investments like bonds, properties, equities and more. Hence, cash and funds are both prerequisites for any business to run its operations smoothly and efficiently. Cash can be implemented easily to pay costs, regulatory service charges, or the institution's remaining responsibilities. Funds, on the other hand, hold the money for a specific duration of time, allowing it to be employed for other reasons such as making an investment in it for larger results in the days to come.
References
- https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/10/mutual-funds-advantages-disadvantages.asp
- https://www.hl.co.uk/beginners-guides/guide-to-funds/what-is-a-fund
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/fund.asp
