Zombie Firm

Definition

A company kept alive by continuous financing despite being unprofitable and unlikely to ever make money. Financial walking dead.

Example Usage

The startup raised another $50M at an even higher valuation despite burning cash and missing every revenue target—a textbook zombie firm.

Origin

Modern slang from economics term for companies with insufficient profitability to service debt.

Fun Fact

Zombie firms damage entire industries because they suppress prices and keep healthier competitors from thriving.

Source: Corporate finance and market analysis

Related Terms

Intermediate

hard close

The complete month-end or year-end financial closing process with all adjustments, reconciliations, and financial statements finalized—as opposed to a soft close that's faster but less comprehensive. It's the accounting equivalent of spring cleaning versus just shoving everything in the closet.

💰 Finance / Accounting

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inventory

All the stuff a business owns that it plans to sell, currently gathering dust in a warehouse somewhere while the finance team panics about carrying costs. It's the detailed list and physical count of every item on hand, from products to raw materials to that weird promotional item nobody wanted. The annual inventory count is where retail workers discover their will to live has limits.

💰 Finance / Accounting

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crypto

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💰 Finance / Accounting

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Accelerated Depreciation

A method that front-loads depreciation expenses in early years of an asset's life, providing larger tax deductions sooner. It's the accounting equivalent of eating dessert first, with the IRS's blessing.

💰 Finance / Accounting

Beginner

investment

The act of trading current money for the hope of future money, ideally more of it, though the market loves to remind you that hope isn't a strategy. Investments range from boring index funds to cryptocurrency speculation, all united by the principle that you're betting on something increasing in value. It's capitalism's version of planting seeds, except the weather is determined by Federal Reserve interest rates and Twitter sentiment.

💰 Finance / Accounting

Advanced

cookie jar reserves

Reserves that companies stash away during good times to smooth out earnings during bad quarters, like a financial rainy day fund that violates accounting principles. It's earnings management dressed up in respectable terminology.

💰 Finance / Accounting

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