---
title: "Cash & treasury"
description: "Cash is the only balance sheet account where an independent third party, the bank, says what the balance should be. That makes it the easiest account to verify and the one where a break hurts most."
canonical: "https://lopifi.com/docs/domain/cash-and-treasury"
---

# Cash & treasury

> Cash is the only balance sheet account where an independent third party, the bank, says what the balance should be. That makes it the easiest account to verify and the one where a break hurts most.

Source: https://lopifi.com/docs/domain/cash-and-treasury
Part of: Lopifi — Planned: US GAAP books on autopilot, checked by a CPA (https://lopifi.com)

---

# Cash & treasury

Cash is the only balance sheet account where an independent third party, the bank, says what the balance should be. That makes it the easiest account to verify and the one where a break hurts most.

---

## 1. Balances are plural

One "cash balance" is almost always the wrong number. There are at least four, and they differ.

| Balance | Meaning | Source |
|---|---|---|
| **Book (GL)** | What we've recorded | GL |
| **Bank current** | What the bank has posted | Bank feed |
| **Bank available** | Posted, minus holds, plus same-day credit | Bank feed |
| **Projected** | Available, minus scheduled payments, plus expected receipts | Derived |

**UI rules:**
- **`BalanceCard` shows available as the figure and current as a secondary line when they differ.** Mixing them up is the costliest copy error in banking UI.
- **The ledger balance and the bank balance can legitimately differ**, because of deposits in transit and outstanding checks. Explaining that gap is what a reconciliation does.
- **Projected balance is a forecast and looks like one:** dashed on charts, labeled, with the assumptions one click away.
- **Every balance carries its "as of" and its source.** A cached bank balance shown as current is the most dangerous state in the product, and `StaleIndicator` exists for it.

---

## 2. Transaction states

```
pending → posted → reconciled
   │         │
   │         └─ settled on the bank's books; reaches the GL once coded or matched
   └─ visible on the feed, may still change amount or vanish entirely
```

**A pending card authorization is not a transaction.** It can settle for a different amount (tips, fuel, hotels) or disappear. UI rules:
- Pending transactions render at `opacity: 0.6` with a `--warning` left border, and are **excluded from the ledger balance**.
- When a pending transaction settles at a different amount, the UI shows the change instead of overwriting the old amount.
- **Never reconcile a pending transaction.**

---

## 3. Bank reconciliation

The full model is in [periods & close](https://lopifi.com/md/docs/domain/periods-and-close#5-reconciliation-vs-tie-out). What matters at the component level:

### Matching ladder
1. **Exact** — amount, date, and reference all agree. Auto-matched, no review.
2. **Near** — amount agrees, date within tolerance. Auto-suggested, one-click accept.
3. **Rule-based** — a saved rule (this description pattern → this account). Suggested with the rule named.
4. **Many-to-one** — a bank deposit covering several invoices, or one payment covering several bills. **Common, and the hardest case to match.**
5. **One-to-many** — one book entry split across several bank lines.
6. **Unmatched** — the exception a person has to look at.

**UI rules:**
- **Confidence is shown with its basis**, not as a bare percentage. "Matched on amount and reference" is actionable; "94%" is not.
- **Many-to-one selection shows a running sum against the target**, so the user can see when the selection is exact.
- **Auto-matched items are reviewable and reversible.** If nobody can inspect the automation, nobody can defend it at audit.
- **The difference is always on screen.** It is the number being driven to zero.
- The match animation is one of the four sanctioned delight moments — see [motion catalog](https://lopifi.com/md/docs/motion/catalog).

### Categorization rules
```ts
type CategorizationRule = {
  conditions: { field: "description" | "amount" | "counterparty" | "account"; op: Op; value: string }[];
  actions: { account: string; dimensions?: Dimensions; memo?: string };
  autoPost: boolean;               // suggest vs. post automatically
  priority: number;
};
```
- **Rules are created inline from a transaction.** Categorize one and the UI offers to categorize the other 40 like it. Nothing else in bookkeeping saves as much time.
- **Preview the match count before applying.** "This rule matches 47 existing transactions."
- **`autoPost` is off by default.** Letting a rule post to the GL without review is a control decision, and someone should make it on purpose.

---

## 4. Cash forecasting

```
  Opening available balance                      412,880
  Add: expected receipts (AR due, by date)       184,200
  Less: scheduled payments (AP due + payroll)   (241,600)
  Less: committed (approved POs to invoice)      (48,000)
  ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  Projected closing balance                      307,480
```

**UI rules:**
- **Certainty tiers are visually distinct.** Contracted (scheduled payments), expected (AR by due date, with a collection-probability haircut), and forecast (modeled) are three grades of number, and they never look the same.
- **Show the lowest balance in the horizon as well as the endpoint.** If a forecast ends at $300k but dips to −$40k in week three, the dip is the news, and an endpoint-only view hides it.
- **Payroll is a separate, prominent line.** It is the payment that cannot be delayed.
- **Scenario comparison** (base / downside / upside) uses distinct line styles as well as color, never color alone.

---

## 5. Multi-account treasury

- **Sweeps and internal transfers are not income or expense.** They net to zero at the group level and must be eliminated from any cash-flow presentation. A dashboard that counts an internal transfer as a receipt is double-counting.
- **`InternalTransferMatch`** pairs the two sides of a transfer and marks both as eliminated.
- **Restricted cash is disclosed separately** and excluded from available cash. It's on the balance sheet, but you can't spend it.
- **Concentration risk**: cash by institution against insured limits (FDIC $250,000 per depositor, per insured bank, per ownership category — sweep and reciprocal-deposit networks can extend it). `CashConcentration` renders exposure by bank with the limit line.

---

## 6. Payment rails

Rails differ in timing, reversibility and cost. The UI states all three at the moment the user picks one.

| Rail | Settlement | Reversible? | Cutoff |
|---|---|---|---|
| **ACH** | Next or second business day; Same Day ACH up to $1M per payment | Limited — returns and reversals within Nacha windows (generally 2 banking days; 60 days for unauthorized consumer debits) | Three Same Day ACH windows; the last closes at 4:45 p.m. ET |
| **Wire (domestic)** | Same day | **No** | Bank-specific, typically mid-afternoon |
| **Wire (international)** | 1–5 days | **No** | Plus correspondent-bank delays |
| **RTP / FedNow** | Seconds | **No** | 24/7 |
| **Check** | 5–10 days + float | Stop-payment possible | Mail |
| **Card** | 1–3 days | Chargeback window | |

**UI rules:**
- **Irreversible rails get `HoldToConfirm`.** Wires, RTP, FedNow.
- **The cutoff is shown as a live countdown** where it matters. "Submit within 2h 14m for same-day settlement."
- **Business days, not calendar days.** Weekends and bank holidays are respected in every arrival estimate, and the holiday calendar is per-country.
- **The arrival estimate is always shown before confirming**, and it's the sentence users read most: "Arrives Tue, Sep 8".

---

## 7. Cash component set

| Component | Purpose |
|---|---|
| `BalanceCard` | Available as the figure, current as the secondary line, with source and as-of |
| `AccountCard` | Per-account, with connection health — connected / stale / reauth-required, prominent |
| `TransactionTable` | Pending and posted, with settlement changes visible |
| `ReconciliationView` | The two-pane matcher; suggestions carry their confidence basis, not a bare score |
| `CategoryPicker` | Rule creation inline from a transaction, with match-count preview |
| `CashRequirements` | Due in 7/14/30 vs. available |
| `CashForecast`* | Certainty-tiered, showing the minimum in the horizon |
| `InternalTransferMatch`* | Pairs and eliminates both sides |
| `CashConcentration`* | Exposure by institution against insured limits |
| `PaymentRailSelector`* | Timing, reversibility, and cost at the point of choice |

\* Specified here, not yet in the [catalog](https://lopifi.com/md/docs/catalog/index).