There are numerous benefits for a manufacturer to establish a finance capability ("Captive finance entity or Captive") to support the sale of its products. While the resulting decision may provide significant value to the manufacturer, this can be a complex process and there are many decisions to be weighed to determine the best strategy for your company.

It's important to note the road towards creating a captive is often taken in steps. This site is intended to help you to understand the process and variations of finance program structures to allow you to create a strategy that will help your business both today and into the future.

Equipment manufacturers and vendors offer financing for their equipment to increase sales revenue, gain market share and improve their relationship with the customer. When examining existing manufacturers who offer financing for their equipment, a recent study shows approximately 30% of all equipment sales are financed by the manufacturer or its finance partner. That percentage is increasing each year as the financing division plays a more important role in the overall strategy of the company. Of all manufacturers who offer a financing option to their customer, 67% state their percentage of equipment financing will increase as a percentage of their manufacturer sales (source: Captive Finance Firms in a Challenging Economy, Equipment Leasing and Finance Foundation).

This resource center is designed to clearly present the strategic, legal, financial and operational topics to be considered in the decision making process as equipment manufacturers and vendors seek to develop or enhance their finance capability. When fully functional, the site will include links to industry data as well as ELFA member resources with particular expertise in providing financing and other services for equipment manufacturers and vendors.

We hope you find our Equipment Manufacturers/Vendor Finance Resource Center beneficial and we welcome your feedback.

For more information, contact Bill Choi.