Credit can be characterized as when one party receives resources from another party, without immediate cash payment. Commercial credit, specifically, is when a business entity (the debtor) receives resources from a lender (the creditor). Typically these are financial resources such as operating credit or term financing to support the acquisition of assets, in exchange for the promise of future repayment of principal (plus interest). The future repayment terms are a function of the debtor’s overall creditworthiness and any underlying physical collateral - this is called credit structuring.