- In a partnership, both partners own a share of the business; these may not be equal shares. The percentage of a business owned by a partner is typically the percentage of the capital that the partner put into the business; if the partner takes a draw from the business -- withdrawing capital he's put into it -- he may be reducing his percentage of ownership of the business. Similarly, refusing to take a draw can increase his ownership percentage of the business.
- The balance sheet is the chief financial statement that a partnership uses to secure credit and get a loan. The joint holdings and capital investments in a partnership are greater than the resources of any single partner, and can be used to leverage a significantly larger loan for the business to fund expansion, or to bring new products and services to market.
- While there are functions that a balance sheet does that are enhanced by a partnership, or enable additional information about a partnership to come to light, the balance sheet still serves its fundamental purpose of giving a good overview of the profit-and-loss status of the business, and a picture of its overall financial health. While it can be slightly more complicated with multiple owners, it's still a worthwhile metric to get an idea of how the business is growing.
- While the balance sheet is one of the financial reports useful for maintaining an effective partnership, it's far from being the only one. The income statement is another example -- it takes net income as the result of revenue minus expenses, and is a broad measure of the cash flow of the business.
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