Banking on good relations

Chances are, if asked to list your closest friends and business allies, your banker wouldn't top the list. But for Boeing, maintaining close working relationships with nearly three dozen commercial and investment banks around the world is absolutely essential to ensuring the company's continued business success.

Banks provide Boeing a diverse array of services, whether assisting Corporate Treasurer Paul Kinscherff's group in managing the balance sheet, helping Boeing Capital Corp. President Walt Skowronski's team finance commercial airplanes, or providing insight on mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and joint ventures to the Corporate and Strategic Development team led by Joe Lower. In each case, relationships based on trust and understanding are essential, and all three groups work closely together and with Boeing's banks to ensure the trust and understanding are there.

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Relationship terms for bank dealings

"Corporate line of credit" and "syndicate" are just a few of the terms the Corporate Finance and Banking team uses with their financial services partners. Here are some other terms.

Bonds: Debt issued for a period of more than one year. When an investor buys bonds, he or she is lending money.

Corporate line of credit: In this service offered by financial institutions, the institution provides a corporation with access to cash at a low interest rate by leveraging the company's assets. The primary function of a credit line is to show the ability to access financing if needed.

Liabilities: A financial obligation, or the cash outlay that must be made at a specific time to satisfy such an obligation.

Liquidity: Available cash or the capacity to obtain it on demand. Can also refer to a market characterized by the ability to buy and sell with relative ease.

Rating agency: A company that evaluates the credity quality of a company's debt. Investors and analysts use ratings to assess the risk of an investment.