Corporate finance is a crucial field that deals with how businesses secure funding, manage their capital structure, and strategically allocate resources to maximize shareholder value. It primarily encompasses capital budgeting, for deciding long-term investments, and working capital management, for handling daily financial operations. The term is also closely associated with investment banking, where firms help businesses raise capital for growth or acquisition.

Historically, corporate finance roots trace back to 15th-century Italian city-states, with the Dutch East India Company (VOC) being pioneering as the first publicly listed company to pay regular dividends and have a fixed capital stock. By the early 1800s, London emerged as a global hub, and modern corporate finance saw significant innovation and development in the latter half of the 20th century, particularly in the United States and Britain.