Banco Ciudad (A): Who is the Owner Net Present Value (NPV) / MBA Resources

Introduction to Net Present Value (NPV) - What is Net Present Value (NPV) ? How it impacts financial decisions regarding project management?

NPV solution for Banco Ciudad (A): Who is the Owner case study

At Oak Spring University, we provide corporate level professional Net Present Value (NPV) case study solution. Banco Ciudad (A): Who is the Owner case study is a Harvard Business School (HBR) case study written by Aldo Musacchio, Gustavo A. Herrero, Cintra Scott. The Banco Ciudad (A): Who is the Owner (referred as “Ciudad Banco” from here on) case study provides evaluation & decision scenario in field of Global Business. It also touches upon business topics such as - Value proposition, Government.

The net present value (NPV) of an investment proposal is the present value of the proposal’s net cash flows less the proposal’s initial cash outflow. If a project’s NPV is greater than or equal to zero, the project should be accepted.

NPV = Present Value of Future Cash Flows LESS Project’s Initial Investment

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Case Description of Banco Ciudad (A): Who is the Owner Case Study

To maximize their effectiveness, color cases should be printed in color.The state-run Banco de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires (Banco Ciudad) was losing money in 2007. Early in 2008, Federico Sturzenegger, a renowned academic in Argentina, was appointed executive chairman by the city government and charged with turning the bank around. But just four months later, Sturzenegger was already facing the 45th day of a labor conflict sparked by union representatives on account of having fired six employees. The showdown raised several questions. First and foremost: Who owned Banco Ciudad? The city government? The citizens? Its employees? How could this bank use its strengths and overcome its weaknesses to best serve its constituents and the public? This case follows Sturzenegger's eventful first few years in office to examine how a state-owned enterprise maneuvered in a challenging environment to hit its targets of greater efficiency and profitability.

Case Authors : Aldo Musacchio, Gustavo A. Herrero, Cintra Scott

Topic : Global Business

Related Areas : Government

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Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 6% for Banco Ciudad (A): Who is the Owner Case Study

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 6 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10010819)	-10010819	-	-
Year 1	3446310	-6564509	3446310	0.9434	3251236
Year 2	3972527	-2591982	7418837	0.89	3535535
Year 3	3961316	1369334	11380153	0.8396	3325997
Year 4	3237737	4607071	14617890	0.7921	2564591
TOTAL			14617890		12677359

The Net Present Value at 6% discount rate is 2666540

In isolation the NPV number doesn't mean much but put in right context then it is one of the best method to evaluate project returns. In this article we will cover -

Different methods of capital budgeting

What is NPV & Formula of NPV,
How it is calculated,
How to use NPV number for project evaluation, and
Scenario Planning given risks and management priorities.

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Capital Budgeting Approaches

Methods of Capital Budgeting

There are four types of capital budgeting techniques that are widely used in the corporate world –

1. Profitability Index
2. Payback Period
3. Internal Rate of Return
4. Net Present Value

Apart from the Payback period method which is an additive method, rest of the methods are based on Discounted Cash Flow technique. Even though cash flow can be calculated based on the nature of the project, for the simplicity of the article we are assuming that all the expected cash flows are realized at the end of the year.

Discounted Cash Flow approaches provide a more objective basis for evaluating and selecting investment projects. They take into consideration both –

1. Magnitude of both incoming and outgoing cash flows – Projects can be capital intensive, time intensive, or both. Ciudad Banco shareholders have preference for diversified projects investment rather than prospective high income from a single capital intensive project.
2. Timing of the expected cash flows – stockholders of Ciudad Banco have higher preference for cash returns over 4-5 years rather than 10-15 years given the nature of the volatility in the industry.

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Formula and Steps to Calculate Net Present Value (NPV) of Banco Ciudad (A): Who is the Owner

NPV = Net Cash In Flowt1 / (1+r)t1 + Net Cash In Flowt2 / (1+r)t2 + … Net Cash In Flowtn / (1+r)tn
Less Net Cash Out Flowt0 / (1+r)t0

Where t = time period, in this case year 1, year 2 and so on.
r = discount rate or return that could be earned using other safe proposition such as fixed deposit or treasury bond rate. Net Cash In Flow – What the firm will get each year.
Net Cash Out Flow – What the firm needs to invest initially in the project.

Step 1 – Understand the nature of the project and calculate cash flow for each year.
Step 2 – Discount those cash flow based on the discount rate.
Step 3 – Add all the discounted cash flow.
Step 4 – Selection of the project

Why Global Business Managers need to know Financial Tools such as Net Present Value (NPV)?

In our daily workplace we often come across people and colleagues who are just focused on their core competency and targets they have to deliver. For example marketing managers at Ciudad Banco often design programs whose objective is to drive brand awareness and customer reach. But how that 30 point increase in brand awareness or 10 point increase in customer touch points will result into shareholders’ value is not specified.

To overcome such scenarios managers at Ciudad Banco needs to not only know the financial aspect of project management but also needs to have tools to integrate them into part of the project development and monitoring plan.

Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 15%

After working through various assumptions we reached a conclusion that risk is far higher than 6%. In a reasonably stable industry with weak competition - 15% discount rate can be a good benchmark.

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 15 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10010819)	-10010819	-	-
Year 1	3446310	-6564509	3446310	0.8696	2996791
Year 2	3972527	-2591982	7418837	0.7561	3003801
Year 3	3961316	1369334	11380153	0.6575	2604630
Year 4	3237737	4607071	14617890	0.5718	1851187
TOTAL					10456409

The Net NPV after 4 years is 445590

(10456409 - 10010819 )

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Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 20%

If the risk component is high in the industry then we should go for a higher hurdle rate / discount rate of 20%.

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 20 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10010819)	-10010819	-	-
Year 1	3446310	-6564509	3446310	0.8333	2871925
Year 2	3972527	-2591982	7418837	0.6944	2758699
Year 3	3961316	1369334	11380153	0.5787	2292428
Year 4	3237737	4607071	14617890	0.4823	1561409
TOTAL					9484461

The Net NPV after 4 years is -526358

At 20% discount rate the NPV is negative (9484461 - 10010819 ) so ideally we can't select the project if macro and micro factors don't allow financial managers of Ciudad Banco to discount cash flow at lower discount rates such as 15%.

Acceptance Criteria of a Project based on NPV

Simplest Approach – If the investment project of Ciudad Banco has a NPV value higher than Zero then finance managers at Ciudad Banco can ACCEPT the project, otherwise they can reject the project. This means that project will deliver higher returns over the period of time than any alternate investment strategy.

In theory if the required rate of return or discount rate is chosen correctly by finance managers at Ciudad Banco, then the stock price of the Ciudad Banco should change by same amount of the NPV. In real world we know that share price also reflects various other factors that can be related to both macro and micro environment.

In the same vein – accepting the project with zero NPV should result in stagnant share price. Finance managers use discount rates as a measure of risk components in the project execution process.

Sensitivity Analysis

Project selection is often a far more complex decision than just choosing it based on the NPV number. Finance managers at Ciudad Banco should conduct a sensitivity analysis to better understand not only the inherent risk of the projects but also how those risks can be either factored in or mitigated during the project execution. Sensitivity analysis helps in –

What are the key aspects of the projects that need to be monitored, refined, and retuned for continuous delivery of projected cash flows.

What will be a multi year spillover effect of various taxation regulations.

Understanding of risks involved in the project.

What can impact the cash flow of the project.

What are the uncertainties surrounding the project Initial Cash Outlay (ICO’s). ICO’s often have several different components such as land, machinery, building, and other equipment.

Some of the assumptions while using the Discounted Cash Flow Methods –

Projects are assumed to be Mutually Exclusive – This is seldom the came in modern day giant organizations where projects are often inter-related and rejecting a project solely based on NPV can result in sunk cost from a related project.

Independent projects have independent cash flows – As explained in the marketing project – though the project may look independent but in reality it is not as the brand awareness project can be closely associated with the spending on sales promotions and product specific advertising.

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Negotiation Strategy of Banco Ciudad (A): Who is the Owner

References & Further Readings

Aldo Musacchio, Gustavo A. Herrero, Cintra Scott (2018), "Banco Ciudad (A): Who is the Owner Harvard Business Review Case Study. Published by HBR Publications.