Define the Explicit cost of capital
Explicit cost of retained earnings that involve no future flows to or from firm is minus 100 per cent. This must not tempt one to infer that retained earnings is cost free. As we will discuss in subsequent paragraphs, retained earnings do cost the firm. Cost of retained earnings is the opportunity cost of earning on investment elsewhere or in company itself. Opportunity cost is technically called as implicit cost of capital. It is the rate of return on other investments available to firm or shareholders in addition to that currently being considered.