Role of Bank Credit and External Commercial Borrowings in Working Capital Financing: Evidence from Indian Manufacturing Firms

Determinants and levels of working capital financing (WCF) in the manufacturing sector have been empirically proven to impact firm profitability across emerging as well as developed nations. With time, firms adjust toward financing their working capital requirement (WCR), although the speed of adjustment, financing constraints, and bargaining power are subject to variations. In this study, we estimate the effect of bank credit and firm foreign currency borrowing on working capital financing with three distinct models for manufacturing firms in India. We examine the relationship between short-term foreign currency borrowings and WCF. Further, we investigate if the internal capital market affects WCF in the form of business group affiliation; lastly, we assess the impact of bank dependency and financial distress on WCF. We conclude that the debt–equity ratio becomes relevant, whereas firm characteristics such as age, size, and asset tangibility become irrelevant. Our original contribution to the literature is the finding that even smaller emerging market firms with well-managed, low debt exposure have improved access to WCF. Our results support that financial distress negatively impacts WCF but deviates from macroeconomic fundamentals, such as the GDP growth rate. This indicates deterioration in the health of Indian manufacturing, as a capital-intensive sector. Bank dependency remains significant, wherein smaller firms and those without a dividend pay-out continue to have longer cash conversion cycles and less efficient WCR. As a unique finding, we note foreign currency borrowings significantly contribute to WCF in the case of less developed credit markets in emerging economies such as India.