Compensating balances
a. are a particular form of collateral commonly required on commercial loans.
b. allow banks to monitor firms' check payment practices, which can yield information about their borrowers' financial conditions.
c. are a required minimum amount of funds that a borrower (i. e., a firm receiving a loan) must keep in a checking account at the bank.
d. are all of the above.

Garrett is an executive vice president at samm hardware. he researches a proposal by a larger company, maximum hardware, to combine the two companies. by analyzing past performance, conducting focus groups, and interviewing maximum employees, garrett concludes that maximum has poor profit margins, sells shoddy merchandise, and treats customers poorly. what actions should garrett and samm hardware take? a. turn down the acquisition offer and prepare to resist a hostile takeover. b. attempt a friendly merger and use managerial hubris to improve results at maximum. c. welcome the acquisition and use knowledge transfer to impart sam hardware's management practices. d. do nothing; the two companies cannot combine without samm hardware's explicit consent.