At the end of December 2013, Amazon had about $12.4 billion in cash and marketable securities. The cash and securities were obtained from sales, sales of stock and notes to the public, venture capital investors, and institutional investors in return for equity (shares) in the company or debt securities. Total assets are listed at about $40 billion. The company emphasizes the strength of its “free cash flow” as a sign of financial strength, suggesting it has more than enough cash available to cover short-term liabilities (such as financing holiday season purchasing).Amazon’s cash assets should certainly be enough to cover future short-term deficits should they occur.