Support your figures
Financial plan for new businesses: four connected budgets
A financial plan makes the numbers behind your business plan traceable. Separate the funding need, its financing, expected profit and payment schedule, then reconcile them. A single profit figure does not provide enough information.
Four budgets, four questions
KVK distinguishes four component budgets. Use the table to organise the work: each part answers a different question. For your own preparation, you can also record the owner’s personal cash needs.
| Component | Question answered |
|---|---|
| Investment budget | What do you need and what will it cost? |
| Financing budget | Which funds will pay for it? |
| Operating budget | What income, costs and profit do you expect? |
| Cash-flow budget | When will money enter and leave the bank? |
An investment affects several parts of the plan
Suppose you buy equipment for €18,000 and assume six years of use with no residual value. Simple straight-line depreciation is €3,000 per year. Investment is €18,000; the annual expense is €3,000. Cash paid depends on the agreed payment schedule. This illustrates the relationship and is not a tax depreciation election.
If part is financed with a loan, include the loan receipt and repayments in the payment schedule. Interest belongs among costs where applicable. Do not classify the loan as revenue or count principal repayment again as an operating expense. That would inflate revenue or costs beyond the underlying activity.
Work from evidence towards expectations
First collect the figures and agreements already known. Then complete the open assumptions in each budget. Record the source, reference date and owner of each assumption. Rent might come from a contract, selling prices from your price list and customer numbers from your own plan. You can then revise one assumption without reconstructing the entire model.
Finish by reconciling the plan: investment and financing totals agree, profit follows the selected costs and closing cash carries into the next period. Explain differences between accounting entries and cash movements. Ask the recipient which extra years or explanations are needed.
Common questions
Is a forecast the same as a financial plan?
A forecast can be one component. A complete financial plan also addresses the resources needed, their financing and payment timing. The required detail depends on the business and recipient.
Does Rekenbox automatically create all four budgets?
Yes. The financial plan generator connects all four budgets for 12 to 36 months. Check your revenue, costs, payment terms, VAT and funding. An XAF forecast can support historical income and costs.
Sources and product scope
The worked examples were prepared by Rekenbox for explanation. Product behaviour and source references were checked on the stated update date.
KVK uses these four budgets as the main structure of a financial plan. KVK · Een financieel plan maken ↗
Continue your preparation
Support your figures
Create an operating budget: from revenue to expected profit
Creating an operating or profit budget? See a worked example with revenue, purchases, operating costs and profit before tax.
Read the guide
Support your figures
Create a cash-flow budget: when might cash run short?
Preparing a business or bank cash-flow forecast? Follow opening cash, receipts and payments in a monthly example. Understand the difference from profit.
Read the guide
Prepare for financing
Investment and financing budgets: what do you need and how will you pay?
Reconcile your investment and financing budgets. Includes a funding example, cash-buffer considerations and links to calculators.
Read the guide