Is there a difference between the words "divestment" and "divestiture"?
Solution 1:
Business Dictionary has subtly different definitions:
divestment
- Realizing the market value of an asset by selling, liquidating, or exchanging it. Opposite of investment.
- Sale of all or majority of voting stock (voting shares) of a firm.
divestiture
Selling of, or otherwise disposal of, a firm's assets to achieve a desired objective, such as greater liquidity or reduced debt burden. In accounting, divestiture transactions are recorded as a one time, non-recurring gain or loss.
If you sell an asset such as stock in another firm to realise that investment, that's a divestment of that asset.
A firm can divest itself of its own assets to raise funds for the firm, and this is divestiture. While stock in other companies might be an asset, I'd take divestiture to refer to fixed assets, and use divestment for more liquid assets or short-term investments.
But the meanings are so close as to be functionally identical.