Edward feels that engaging an expert business consultant to prepare the business plans for the proposed expansion will be extremely useful and approaches you for this purpose. As a first step to base the advice, Edward expresses his wish that the company should maintain the current financial structure for expansion. This may be also the wish of the shareholders unless there are strong reasons to change.
A business can finance its operations with equity capital i.e. ordinary shares, and retained earnings if any, and/ or with debt capital. Usually it will be a combination of these financing sources. Bonds, long term bank loans and other long term borrowings are all examples of debt capital.