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GEST-S424

Entrepreneurial finance

academic year
2024-2025

Course teacher(s)

Olivier WITMEUR (Coordinator) and Nathalie DE CEULAER

ECTS credits

5

Language(s) of instruction

english

Course content

Entrepreneurial Finance typically refers to acquiring funding and making financial decisions for startups and scaleups. Higher levels of uncertainty, the absence of a solid track record in early-stage ventures, and the frequent majority position of the entrepreneurs in the shareholding make it diverge from traditional corporate finance. Also, the financial needs of entrepreneurial ventures evolve as the firm grows and matures, demanding adaptive solutions to meet changing needs and challenges. Consequently, startups and scaleups rely on alternative financing and staged techniques, such as bootstrapping, business angels & venture capital, and public grants rather than traditional bank financing.

Are you curious to know what finance means in entrepreneurship?
Are you curious to know how to raise money in a startup and how to manage finances?
The course adopts a practice-oriented approach, taking into consideration the implications of multiple stakeholders;  i.e. the entrepreneurs, their financial partners: friends and family, business angels, venture capitalists, bankers, grant providers, etc.
You will learn everything you need to know about entrepreneurial finance in a real-life setting. You will work with case studies and meet entrepreneurs and investors.

It covers topics such as:
● Introduction to Entrepreneurial Finance
● Funding Options & Lifecycle
● Financial Statements, Analysis & Planning
● Cash management
● Valuation Methods
● Deal structuring
● The VC Process & VC Business
● Exit Routes and Real-world Applications
● Leveraged buyout (LBO)

Objectives (and/or specific learning outcomes)

At the completion of this course, participants should be able to:

  • Demonstrate a practical understanding of fundamental financial principles within the entrepreneurial space
  • Assess and select appropriate funding options for different development stages of a company
  • Demonstrate proficiency in interpreting financial statements and implementing budgeting, forecasting and cash management techniques to make informed financial decisions
  • Effectively execute company valuation, navigate deal structures, understand VC dynamics and plan exit strategies

Prerequisites and Corequisites

Required and Corequired knowledge and skills

There is no formal prerequisite but basic knowledge of accounting, corporate finance, strategy and entrepreneurship are necessary.

Teaching methods and learning activities

This course consists of 3 teaching components: case studies, lectures and testimonials.

Our detailed pedagogical approach is as follows:

  1. Practical application through case studies - Immerse participants in real-world situations, providing opportunities to apply theoretical knowledge to solve practical challenges.
  2. Theoretical foundations through lectures - Provide a structured and comprehensive exploration of key concepts, theories and frameworks in entrepreneurial finance
  3. Real-world insights from testimonials - Share firsthand experiences of entrepreneurs and financial partners, offering diverse perspectives

References, bibliography, and recommended reading

Teaching material (handouts, complementary technical notes, and case studies) will be available on UV and is considered exam material.
No textbook.

Course notes

  • Université virtuelle

Contribution to the teaching profile

The course contributes to the development of the following skills:

NB: MAPPING:
I (Introduce) – Key ideas, concepts or skills related to learning outcome are introduced.
R (Reinforce) – Students are developing and becoming increasingly proficient in demonstrating the learning outcome. The learning outcome is reinforced with feedback.
M (Master) – Students demonstrate the learning outcome with a high level of independence and a level of understanding and sophistication expected upon graduation


LG1. Entrepreneurial and strategic thinking
LO 1.1. Integrate sustainable development in problem analysis: R
LO 1.2. Master and apply key economic and management concepts, frameworks and theories in a professional context to identify a business opportunity and build a relevant innovative solution to it: R
LO 1.3. Approach managerial or business problem through different disciplinary frameworks (law, communication, psychology, etc.) and taking external factors into consideration: M
LG2. Academic mindset
LO 2.1. Adopt a scientific approach to data collection, research and analysis and communicate results with clear, structured and sophisticated arguments: R
LO 2.2. Display critical thinking and develop a life-long learning approach: M
LG3. Quantitative skills
LO 3.1. Apply quantitative and qualitative techniques to support analysis using data with standard office and statistical software R
LG4. Professional skills
LO 4.1. Work and communicate effectively as part of a team in an international and multicultural environment: R
LO 4.2. Demonstrate work ethics to foster corporate socially responsible conduct in workplace: R
 

Other information

Additional information

Class attendance is mandatory.

Contacts

Prof. Olivier WITMEUR

Mail: owitmeur@ulb.ac.be

T. +32.2.650.41.61

Office: J1-117

Campus

Solbosch

Evaluation

Method(s) of evaluation

  • Oral examination
  • Other

Oral examination

  • Open question with long development

Other

Mark calculation method (including weighting of intermediary marks)

Final Assessment Components:
- Class participation (40%): Evaluation based on attendance, case preparation, and participation in class discussions. Class attendance is mandatory.
- Oral exam (60%): The oral exam will consist of open-ended questions based on the case studies, lectures, testimonials, and one additional case/exercise to be solved during the exam.

Resit
- Retake of the oral exam (same content)

Language(s) of evaluation

  • english

Programmes