Learn How Surety Bonds Can Protect You

By Patricia Nelson


Financial terms may seem quite daunting to those who have not yet acquainted themselves with the various concepts involving finance. Rather than just ignoring them until you find yourself associated in legal agreements with other parties, it is necessary to educate yourself on these terms as early as possible. Surety bonds, for example, are one of the more common terms that you come across in legal transactions.

In order to understand the surety bond, let us comprehend what a bond is first. Bonds are agreements that legally bind two or more individuals or entities. Do not think of them as stocks because stocks are individual concepts of their own. Bonds are normally considered safer than stocks in terms of means to earn profit with your money.

To illustrate this notion, think of an established corporation planning on expanding. This corporation possibly plans on buying a new factory amounting to one million dollars. Their problem is, they do not have sufficient funds to obtain this factory, thereby impeding their plans to grow.

One thing it could do is to borrow the money by issuing bonds. Since these are fluid entities, many people can purchase bonds. The company could offer bonds worth ten thousand dollars at face value and if at least one hundred people purchase a bond by lending this amount, then the company would have enough money to buy the factory it needed for expanding.

In exchange, the company promises its lenders a ten percent interest to be paid annually. Regardless of whether or not the new factory serves the company well, the interest has to be paid because it is considered a company expense. This is where bonds diverge from stocks.

Stocks may greatly increase or decrease in value depending on how the market does, but interest rates that come with bonds stay put. Although the lenders are unable to get astoundingly big returns if a business does well, they are still protecting themselves from the danger of a business going bankrupt. Nevertheless, they still acquire the interest rate that was agreed upon by both parties.

They also get a guarantee that they get the principal amount they contributed once the bond has reached its maturity or the date the company has promised that they get the entire principal value they initially paid, which in this case, is ten thousand dollars. Of course, bonds do not come without their own risks. Private corporations that issue them often come with a larger risk than government bodies issuing bonds because corporations carry with them the risk of going bankrupt.

Because of this, private entities offer more generous interest rates so they can persuade more lenders. If all else fails and bankruptcy is declared, the lenders lose both the initial amount they loaned and the interest promised to them. To prevent these types of losses, sureties are employed.

A surety, known as a financial guarantee, can be secured by lenders from insurance companies. On account of the enterprise involved, the insurance company will have to return the money loaned by other entities if the enterprise fails to fulfill its obligations. This way, the lenders are guaranteed zero losses. Usually, instances that require sureties are way more complex. However, this is the general idea behind them. Prioritizing your financial education will come in handy when you find yourself amidst these complex legal transactions.




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