What Is an Uncommitted Facility?

什么是非承诺贷款？

An uncommitted facility is an agreement between a lender and a borrower where the lender agrees to make short-term funding available to the borrower. This is unlike a committed facility that involves clearly defined terms and conditions set forth by the lending institution and imposed on the borrower. Uncommitted facilities are used to finance seasonal or temporary needs of businesses with fluctuating revenues, such as paying creditors to earn trade discounts, single or one-off transactions, and meeting payroll obligations.

非承诺性贷款是贷款人和借款人之间的协议，贷款人同意向借款人提供短期资金。与承诺贷款不同，承诺贷款涉及贷款机构明确规定并强加给借款人的条款和条件。非承诺贷款用于为收入波不稳定的企业的季度需求或临时性需求提供资金，如支付债权人以赚取贸易折扣、单笔或一次性交易以及履行工资义务。

KEY TAKEAWAYS

要点

· Uncommitted facilities lending arrangements used to fund short-term needs, such as payroll.

· 非承诺贷款安排用于为短期需求（如工资）提供资金。

· Term loans are a common committed facility, which can include equipment, working capital, and equipment loans.

· 定期贷款是一种常见的承诺贷款，可包括设备、营运资金和设备贷款。

· Uncommitted facilities are cheaper to set up than committed facilities.

· 与承诺贷款，非承诺贷款利息更低。

· An uncommitted facility can include a working capital facility, also known as an overdraft, and is payable on demand.

· 非承诺贷款可包括营运资金贷款，也称为透支，可按需支付。

How an Uncommitted Facility Works

非承诺贷款如何运作

Because small businesses may struggle to have adequate monthly cash flow, an uncommitted facility may help them operate until they establish a stronger presence in the marketplace and increase their annual revenues.

由于小型企业可能难以获得足够的月度现金流，因此，非承诺贷款可能有助于其运营，直到小型企业在市场上建立更强大的影响力并增加年度收入。

Uncommitted facilities are generally less costly to arrange, compared to committed facilities, because the lender has no obligation to extend the loan; when financing is made available, it is short term, and the credit risk is comparatively small.

与承诺贷款相比，由于贷方没有延长贷款的义务，未承诺贷款的安排成本通常较低；可融资时期限较短，信用风险较小。

Uncommitted Facility vs. Committed Facility

非承诺贷款 vs. 承诺贷款

A term loan from a bank, a committed facility, is for a specific amount with a specified repayment schedule and a fixed or variable interest rate. For example, many banks have long-term programs offering small businesses the cash necessary for monthly operations. In many cases, a small business uses cash for purchasing fixed assets such as production equipment.

从银行获得的定期贷款，即承诺贷款，是指具有特定还款时间表和固定或可变利率的特定金额。例如，许多银行都有长期计划，为小企业提供每月运营所需的现金。在许多情况下，小企业使用现金购买固定资产，如生产设备。

A term loan for equipment, real estate or working capital is paid off within one to 25 years through a monthly or quarterly repayment schedule. The loan requires collateral and a rigorous approval process for reducing the risk of repayment. The loan is appropriate for established small businesses with sound financial statements and a substantial down payment for minimizing payment amounts and total loan cost.

设备、房地产或营运资金的定期贷款通过每月或每季度还款计划在1至25年内还清。贷款需要抵押品和严格的审批程序，以降低还款风险。该贷款适用于拥有健全财务报表和大量首付的已建立的小企业，以最大限度地减少支付金额和贷款总成本。

Example of an Uncommitted Facility

非承诺贷款示例

An overdraft, or working capital facility, solve companies’ short-term cash flow issues. The bank or other financial institution decides whether to lend money and the limit. Because an overdraft is typically payable on demand, it is unsuitable for purposes such as funding a major acquisition. The lender typically does not call in the overdraft unless the borrower’s financial position or activities give the lender reasons for concern.

透支，或营运资金贷款，解决公司的短期现金流问题。银行或其他金融机构决定是否放款和放款限额。由于透支通常是按需支付的，因此不适用于为重大收购提供资金等目的。贷款人通常不会催缴透支款，除非借款人的财务状况或活动使贷款人有理由担心。

Receiving an overdraft is typically a simple process. However, there is always uncertainty about whether the bank will lend to a specific business and when the lender will demand repayment. Plus, a limited amount of capital may be borrowed, and lender charges may be high. Also, the borrower typically has little room for amending the lender’s standard form for issuing an overdraft. In addition, the borrower may have to reduce the overdraft to a set amount for a particular number of days to ensure it is used only for short-term cash flow issues.

接受透支通常是一个简单的过程。然而，银行是否会向某一特定业务放贷，以及贷款人何时要求还款，总是存在不确定性。此外，可能会借入有限数量的资本，贷款人的费用可能很高。此外，借款人通常几乎没有修改贷款人发放透支的标准表格的空间。此外，借款人可能不得不将透支减少到特定天数的固定金额，以确保其只用于短期现金流问题。

By JAMES CHEN

作者：James Chen

Updated April 26, 2021

更新于20201年04月26日

Reviewed by ERIC ESTEVEZ

审校：Eric Estevez

Translated BY WANG LULU

翻译：王碌碌