Chapter 23 Audit of Cash Balances

Review Questions

23-1 The appropriate tests for the ending balance in the cash accounts depend heavily on the initial assessment of control risk, tests of controls, and substantive tests of transactions for cash receipts. The company's controls over cash receipts assist the auditor in determining that cash received is promptly deposited, that receipts recorded are proper, that customer accounts are promptly updated, and that the cash cutoff at year-end is proper. If the results of the evaluation of internal control, the tests of controls, and the substantive tests of transactions are adequate, it is appropriate to reduce the tests of details of balances for cash, especially for the detailed tests of bank reconciliations. On the other hand, if the tests indicate that the client's controls are deficient, extensive year-end testing may be necessary. 23-2 The appropriate tests for the ending balance in the cash accounts depend heavily on the initial assessment of control risk, tests of controls, and substantive tests of transactions for cash disbursements. The company's controls over cash disbursements assist the auditor in determining that cash disbursed is for approved company purposes, that cash disbursements are promptly recorded in the proper amount, and that cash cutoff at year-end is proper. If the results of the evaluation of internal control, the tests of controls, and the substantive tests of transactions are adequate, it is appropriate to reduce the tests of details of balances for cash, especially for the detailed tests of bank reconciliations. On the other hand, if the tests indicate that the client's controls are inadequate, extensive year-end testing may be necessary. n example in !hich the conclusions reached about the controls in cash disbursements !ould affect the tests of cash balances !ould be" If controls over the issuance of blank checks, the revie! of payees, amounts, and supporting documentation, the signing of checks, and the reconciliation of bank statements and vendors' statements are adequate, the auditor's revie! of outstanding checks on the year-end bank reconciliation may be greatly reduced. The year-end outstanding checks can be verified by testing a sample of checks returned !ith the cutoff bank statement rather than tracing all paid outstanding checks and the final monthly checks in the cash disbursements #ournal to the last month's cleared checks and the bank reconciliation.

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23-3 The monthly reconciliation of bank accounts by an independent person is an important internal control over cash balances because it provides an opportunity for an internal verification of the cash receipts and cash disbursements transactions, investigation of reconciling items on the bank reconciliation, and the verification of the ending cash balance. nyone responsible for the follo!ing duties !ould not be considered independent for the purposes of preparing monthly bank reconciliations"

Issuance of checks 'eceipt and deposit of cash Other handling of cash 'ecord keeping

23-4 The controller's approach is to reconcile until the balance agrees. The shortcoming of this approach is that it does not include a revie! of the items that flo! through the account and it opens the door for the processing of improper items. (uch items as checks payable to improper parties, reissuance of outstanding checks to improper parties, and kiting of funds !ould not be discovered !ith the controller's approach. The controller's procedures should include the follo!ing" a. b. c. )xamination of all checks clearing !ith the statement *including those on previous month's outstanding check list+ and comparison of payee and amount to the cash disbursements #ournal. Test of cash receipts to determine that they are deposited !ithin a reasonable amount of time. ,ollo!-up on old outstanding checks so that they can be recogni-ed as income after it is determined that they !ill not be cashed, and no liability exists.

23-5 .ank confirmations differ from positive confirmations of accounts receivable in that bank confirmations request several specific items of information, namely" &. $. %. /. The balances in all bank accounts. 'estrictions on !ithdra!als. The interest rate on interest-bearing accounts. Information on liabilities to the bank for notes, mortgages, or other debt.

0ositive confirmations of accounts receivable request of the buyer to confirm an account balance stated on the confirmation form or designate a different amount !ith an explanation. The auditor anticipates fe! exceptions to accounts receivable confirmations, !hereas !ith bank confirmations he expects differences that the client must reconcile. .ank confirmations should be requested for all bank accounts, but positive confirmations of accounts receivable are normally requested only for a sample of accounts. If bank confirmations are not returned, they must be pursued until the auditor is satisfied as to !hat the requested information is. If positive confirmations of accounts receivable are not returned, second and maybe third requests may be made, but thereafter, follo!-ups are not likely to be pursued. lternative procedures, such $%-$

as examination of subsequent payments or other support of customers' accounts may then be used.

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23-5 (continued) The reason !hy more importance is placed on bank confirmations than accounts receivable confirmations is that cash, being the most liquid of assets, must be more closely controlled than accounts receivable. In addition, other information1such as liabilities to the bank must be kno!n for purposes of the financial statements. ,inally, there are usually only a fe! bank accounts and most bank accounts have a large volume of transactions during the year. 23This is a good auditing procedure that attempts to discover if any accounts that should have been closed are still being used, such as by a company employee to deposit customer remittances. The procedure may also discover unrecorded and contingent liabilities. 23-! cutoff bank statement is a partial period bank statement !ith the related cancelled checks, duplicate deposit slips, and other documents included in bank statements, !hich is mailed by the bank directly to the auditor. The purpose of the cutoff bank statement is to verify the reconciling items on the client's year-end reconciliation !ith evidence that is inaccessible to the client. 23-" uditors are usually less concerned about the client's cash receipts cutoff than the cutoff for sales, because the cutoff of cash receipts affects only cash and accounts receivable and not the income statement, !hereas a misstatement in the cutoff of sales affects accounts receivable and the income statement. ,or the purpose of detecting a cash receipt cutoff misstatement, there are t!o useful audit procedures. The first is to trace the deposits in transit to the cutoff bank statement to determine the date they !ere deposited in the bank account. .ecause the recorded cash !ill have to be included as deposits in transit on the bank reconciliation, the auditor can test for the number of days it took for the in-transit items to be deposited. If there is more than a t!o or three day delay bet!een the balance sheet date and the subsequent deposit of all deposits in transit, there is an indication of a cutoff misstatement. The second audit procedure requires being on the premises at the balance sheet date and counting all cash and checks on hand and recording the amount in the audit files. 2hen the bank reconciliation is tested, the auditor can then check !hether the deposits in transit equal the amount recorded. 23-# n imprest bank account for a branch operation is one in !hich a fixed balance is maintained. fter authori-ed branch personnel use the funds for proper disbursements, they make an accounting to the home office. fter the expenditures have been approved by the home office, a reimbursement is made to the branch account from the home office's general account for the total of the cash disbursements. The purpose of using this type of account is to provide controls over cash receipts and cash disbursements by preventing the branch operators from disbursing their cash receipts directly, and by providing revie! and approval of cash disbursements before more cash is made available.

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23-1$

The purpose of the four-column proof of cash is to verify"

2hether all recorded cash receipts !ere deposited. 2hether all deposits in the bank !ere recorded in the accounting records. 2hether all recorded cash disbursements !ere paid by the bank. 2hether all amounts that !ere paid by the bank !ere recorded as cash disbursements in the accounting records.

T!o types of misstatements that the four-column proof of cash is meant to uncover are"

3ash received that !as not recorded in the cash receipts #ournal 3hecks that cleared the bank but have not been recorded in the cash disbursements #ournal

23-11 2henever a cutoff bank statement is not received directly from the bank, the auditor may verify the bank statement for the month subsequent to year-end. The audit procedures used for the verification are as follo!s" &. $. %. ,oot all of the cancelled checks, debit memos, deposits, and credit memos. 3heck to see that the bank statement balances !hen the totals in & are used. 'evie! the items included in & to make sure they !ere cancelled by the bank in the proper period and do not include any erasures or alterations.

The purpose of this verification is to test !hether the client's employees have omitted, added, or altered any of the documents accompanying the statement. 23-12 4apping is a defalcation in !hich a cash shortage is concealed by delaying the crediting of cash receipts to the proper accounts receivable. The first step in the fraud is to !ithhold cash remitted by a customer from a bank deposit. fe! days later, because the customer must receive credit for the remittance, the first customer's account is credited !ith an amount from a remittance made by a second customer. The process requires the continuous shifting of shortages from account to account and the crediting of subsequent receipts to the !rong accounts receivable. 5iting is a procedure used to conceal cash shortages from employers and auditors, to conceal bank overdrafts from the bank or banks affected, or to pad a cash position. ll kiting procedures are designed to take advantage of the 6float6 period during !hich a check is in transit bet!een banks. shortage in the cash in bank account may be concealed by depositing in the bank a transfer check dra!n on another bank. The transfer check, not recorded as a deposit or a cash disbursement, brings the bank account into agreement !ith

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23-12 (continued) the books of account. The check is recorded a fe! days later and the shortage 6reappears6 unless the process is repeated. similar effect may be obtained by depositing unrecorded fictitious 8.(.,. checks. If a depositor desires to !rite a check for !hich he does not have funds on deposit, he can deposit a transfer check large enough to cover the payment, even though the transfer check itself creates an overdraft. The transfer process may be repeated indefinitely or may be terminated by a deposit of sufficient funds to cover the overdraft. .ecause the purpose of this procedure is to conceal an overdraft from the bank, the transfer check may or may not be recorded on the books on the date that it !as dra!n. 5iting to pad a cash position typically occurs at the end of a fiscal period9 a check transferring funds from one bank to another is deposited and recorded on the date dra!n but is not recorded as a cash disbursement until the follo!ing period. In this case, the credit on the books !ould probably be made to a revenue account and the subsequent debit to an expense account. The follo!ing audit procedures !ould be used to uncover lapping"

3onfirm accounts receivable and give close attention to exceptions made by customers about payment dates. The confirmation procedure is better applied as a surprise at an interim date so that if a person is engaged in lapping, he or she !ill not have been able to bring the 6lapped6 accounts up to date. If the confirmations are al!ays prepared at year-end, the audit step may be anticipated by the person doing the lapping and the shortage given a different form such as kiting of checks. :ake a surprise count of the cash and customers checks on hand. The deposit of these funds should be made under the auditor's control, and the details of the deposit should later be compared !ith the cash receipts book and the accounts receivable records. 3ompare the details of remittance lists *if prepared+, stamped duplicate deposit slips, and entries in the cash receipts book. .ecause deposit slips are easily altered, some auditors prepare duplicate deposit slips for deposits made a fe! days before and after the audit date and have these slips authenticated by the bank. These authenticated duplicate deposit slips are compared to remittance lists and to entries in the cash book. 3ompare the check vouchers received !ith the customers' checks !ith stamped duplicate deposit slips, the entries in the cash book, and postings to the accounts receivable records. If the client stamps the voucher !ith the date it !as received, the auditor should make careful comparisons of the stamped dates to the dates recorded in the cash receipts #ournal.

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23-12 (continued) 5iting might be uncovered by the follo!ing audit procedures"

s a surprise count of cash and customers' checks on hand is made as a test for lapping, determine that checks representing transfers of funds are properly recorded on the books. 0repare a schedule of the interbank transfers made for a fe! days before and after the audit date. The schedule should sho!, for each check, the date that the cash disbursement !as recorded on the books, and the dates of !ithdra!al and deposit sho!n on the bank statements. Obtain cutoff bank statements directly from the bank covering the seven to ten day period after the balance sheet date. )xamine the checks returned !ith the cutoff statements and pay attention to dates of the transactions stamped by the banks on the backs of the checks. These stamped dates should not be earlier than the dates of the checks or the dates of cash disbursements recorded on the books. 0rotested *8.(.,.+ checks should be investigated to determine they are not fictitious checks deposited temporarily to cover a shortage.

23-13 ssuming a client !ith excellent internal controls uses an imprest payroll bank account, the verification of the payroll bank reconciliation ordinarily takes less time than the tests of the general bank account even though the number of payroll checks exceeds those !ritten on the general account because an imprest payroll account has no activity other than payroll checks dra!n and deposits made to reestablish the standard minimum account balance. ,urthermore, most employees cash their checks quickly, so there usually are fe! outstanding checks, especially older ones, and no other reconciling items. On the other hand, the general bank account !ill include all regular activity plus bank charges, notes, other liabilities, etc., !hich must be reconciled and verified. 23-14 The verification of petty cash reimbursements consists of footing the petty cash vouchers supporting the amounts of the reimbursements, accounting for a sequence of petty cash vouchers, examining the petty cash vouchers for authori-ation and cancellation, and examining the supporting documentation attached to the vouchers for reasonableness. The balance in the fund is verified by a count of the petty cash. Testing of petty cash transactions is more important than the ending balance in the account, because even if the amount of the petty cash fund is small, there is potential for a large number of improper transactions if the fund is frequently reimbursed.

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23-15 There is a greater emphasis on the detection of fraud in tests of details of cash balances than for other balance sheet accounts because the amount of cash flo!ing into and out of the cash account is frequently larger than for any other account in the financial statements. ,urthermore, the susceptibility of cash to misappropriation is greater than other types of assets because most other assets must be converted to cash to make them usable. This emphasis affects the auditor's evidence accumulation in auditing year-end cash as in these examples"

=erifying !hether cash transactions are properly recorded Testing of bank reconciliations Obtaining bank confirmations

23-1 The misstatements that are of the greatest concern to auditors in bank reconciliations are intentional ones to cover up a cash shortage, usually resulting from a defalcation. fraudulent deposit in transit or an omitted outstanding check !ill both cover up a cash shortage. Omitted deposits in transit or inclusion of a nonexistent outstanding check are likely misstatements only !hen the bank balance, after reconciling items are accounted for, is greater than the book balance, a highly unlikely occurrence. 23-1! This questions deals !ith a situation !here a company>s bank received an electronic deposit of cash from credit card agencies making payments on behalf of customers purchasing products from the company>s online 2eb site. The company does not have the electronic deposit recorded in the general ledger. The company>s bank reconciliation should include an ad#ustment for this transaction, !hich !ould increase the book balance of cash and decrease accounts receivable from credit card agencies.

%ultiple Choice Questions &ro' C(A )*a'inations a. a. *%+ */+ b. b. *$+ *%+ c. c. *&+ */+

23-1" 23-1#

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+iscussion Questions and (ro,le's

23-2$
%-./0A./-1 &. To cover a shortage. /1.)R1A2 C-1.R-2 Internal verification of bank reconciliation, including accounting for all checks recorded in the cash disbursements #ournal as cleared or still outstanding. (ame as &. A3+/. (R-C)+3R) Trace all checks dated on or before @une %A that cleared !ith the cutoff bank statement to the @une %A outstanding check list.

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=erify the bank reconciliation by tracing checks dated on or before @une %A in the cash disbursements #ournal to checks clearing !ith the @une %A bank statement. ny checks not clearing should be included on the @une %A outstanding check list. Trace deposits in transit to cutoff bank statements to determine deposit date. Trace all interbank transfers to accounting records.

%. Bold open books to improve cash position. /. 5iting-covering a defalcation or padding a cash position. 7. To cover a shortage. ;. To cover a cash shortage or to improve the current ratio. <. Original check !as unauthori-ed and illegal. Outstanding check made the bank reconcile.

Independent bank reconciliation. Independent bank reconciliation.

Internal verification of bank reconciliation. Independent bank reconciliation.

,oot outstanding check list. Obtain bank confirmation.

Independent bank reconciliation that includes accounting for all cash disbursement transactions.

=erify the bank reconciliation, including cash disbursements for all material uncleared outstanding checks.

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23-21

The ob#ectives of each of the audit procedures are" &. $. %. To ascertain all cash balances and liabilities to banks that might exist. The verification includes amounts and descriptions. To assure that the client is using the correct balance from the bank in preparing its reconciliation. To determine !hich checks on the outstanding check list have since cleared and to uncover checks that should have been included on the outstanding check list, but !ere not. These could represent a cover-up of a cash shortage. To create a list of outstanding checks for follo!-up to determine !hy they have not cleared and to investigate the possibility of a misstatement of cash and accounts payable. To assure that all loans, terms, and arrangements !ith the bank !ere properly authori-ed by the board of directors and are disclosed in the financial statements. To reconcile the recording of cash receipts and cash disbursements bet!een the bank and the client's books and to prepare a bank reconciliation at the same time. This may disclose existence, completeness, accuracy, cutoff, or posting and summari-ation misstatements. To determine if there is a cutoff misstatement in cash disbursements. To make sure the cash receipts !ere recorded by the bank shortly after the beginning of the ne! year and recorded in the current year's cash receipts #ournal. misstatement in either of these could indicate the cover-up of a cash shortage or a cash receipts cutoff misstatement. .ank reconciliation" .alance per bank dd" Eeposits in transit 3heck erroneously charged to 0ittsburgh (upply 4ess" outstanding checks d#usted bank balance .alance per books before ad#ustments d#ustments to books" @uly bank service charge 8ote payment *;,AAA principal, /AA interest+ 8(, check Fnrecorded check D &A,&A% *&A< + *;,/AA + *7&; + *&,&%A + D &,7$$ $,AAA ;/; *$,$&?+ D &,C7A

/. 7. ;.

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23-22

a.

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.alance per books after ad#ustments

D &,C7A

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23-22 (continued) *&+ ;G%A EIT @uly deposits per books @uly deposits per bank <G%& EIT *$+ ;G%A OG( checks @uly checks per books @uly checks clear )rroneous check charged Fnrecorded check <G%& OG( checks b. d#usting entry" :iscellaneous expense Interest expense 8ote payable llo!ance for doubtful accounts 0urchases 3ash in bank To record ad#ustments arising from <G%&GAC bank reconciliation. H c.
R)C-1C/2/14 /.)% &. Eeposits in transit $. )rroneous check %. Outstanding checks A3+/. (R-C)+3R) Trace to duplicate deposit slip and entry on cutoff bank statement. )xamine correction notice in ugust charge received from bank. Obtain cutoff bank statement. Trace enclosed checks to outstanding check list. Trace uncleared items to supporting documentation. )xamine advice returned !ith @uly bank statement. )xamine cancelled note. 'ecompute interest. 3heck for absence of note on <G%& bank confirmation.

;AA $;,?</ *$7,/</ + D $,AAA D $,7<? $%,&<& *$7,%A< + ;/; D &&%A D $,$&?

&A< /AA ;,AAA 7&; &,&%A H D ?,&7%

2ill require reversal on ugust & because of recording in cash disbursements #ournal.

/. .ank service charge 7. 8ote payment

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23-22 (continued)
R)C-1C/2/14 /.)% ;. 8(, check A3+/. (R-C)+3R) )xamine advice returned !ith @uly bank statement. )xamine other related evidence from credit manager to determine if account is uncollectible. )xamine check returned !ith @uly bank statement. Trace number to absence in @uly cash disbursements #ournal and recording in ugust. )xamine supporting documentation. Investigate !hy unrecorded.

<. Fnrecorded check

d. 23-23 a.

The correct cash balance for the financial statements is D&,C7A. In verifying the interbank transfers, the follo!ing audit procedures should be performed" &. $. 4ist interbank transfers made a fe! days before and after the balance sheet date *already done+. Trace these interbank transfers to the appropriate accounting records, bank reconciliations, and bank records to verify proper recording.

b.

&or +ece',er 2$$" 3ash in bank .ranch bank clearing account 3ash in bank .ranch bank clearing account 3ash in bank .ranch bank clearing account D&;,AAA D&;,AAA $&,AAA $&,AAA $$,AAA $$,AAA

Only the first entry is essential because the same entry is also being made on the branch bank for the other t!o entries.

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23-23 (continued) &or 5anuar6 2$$# )liminate corresponding entries already made for the above. c. &or +ece',er 2$$" Bome office clearing account 3ash in bank Bome office clearing account 3ash in bank Bome office clearing account 3ash in bank &or 5anuar6 2$$# )liminate corresponding entries already made for the above. d. and e. 7-%) -&&/C) R)C-R+8 &<,AAA $?,AAA &;,AAA &A,AAA $&,AAA $$,AAA %C,AAA 8o EITH 8o EIT 8o EIT 8o EIT 8o EIT 8o EIT 8o EIT BRA1C7 ACC-31. R)C-R+8 8o O3HH 8o O3 8o O3 O3 8o O3 O3 8o O3 D$?,AAA D$?,AAA $&,AAA $&,AAA $$,AAA $$,AAA

H EIT I Eeposit in transit HH O3 I Outstanding check 23-24 a. C-RR)C.)+ R)C-1C/2/A./-1 Eecember %&, $AAC .alance per bank &$-%&-AC dd" Eeposits in transit 4ess" Outstanding checksH .alance per bank - ad#usted D$;,C<?./& %,<&7.$< *%,&$&.?%+ D$<,7<&.?7

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23-24 (continued) .alance per books - before ad#ustments dd" proceeds of note collected by bank 4ess" Eishonored check Fnrecorded bank service charge )rror in recording check .alance per books - ad#usted b. 3ash 8otes receivable To record collection of a note left for collection. ccounts receivable 3ash To charge dishonored check to accounts receivable. :iscellaneous expense 3ash To charge Eecember bank service charge to expense. ccounts payable 3ash To charge to accounts payable *or to receivables+ the actual amount of a check dra!n !hich !as recorded for a lo!er amount. 23-25 a.
Cash #93$9$# D;,C&7 7,;$& *&,?&&+ Receipts D$?,<C$ *7,;$&+ CC; *&,?&&+ $,;&7 *;AA+ D$%,7;< D$A,$<& %,$C; D$%,7;< *&,&//+ *&,%%7+ D$7,<7; D$7,&;A 7C; D$7,<7; +is,urseCash 'ents 1$9319$# D$<,/%& D?,$<; CC; *$,;&7+ &,&// <%7 D?,7%; D7,?%; *7C;+ %,$C; D?,7%;

D$<,$7%.?7 &,$AA.AA D/7A,AA %7,AA %C<.AA

*??$.AA + D$<,7<&.?7

H4ist of checks totals D%,&$&.?% not D%,$C7.&7. D&,$AA.AA D&,$AA.AA

/7A.AA /7A.AA

%7.AA %7.AA

%C<.AA %C<.AA

.alance per bank Eeposits in transit CG%AGAC &AG%&GAC Outstanding checks CG%AGAC &AG%&GAC .ank error J check charged to !rong account 8(, checks .alance per bank J ad#usted .alance per books J unad#usted d#ustments to be made Interest charged 8ote proceed .alance per books J ad#usted

D&A,<$7 D&A,<$7

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23-25 (continued) b. d#usting #ournal entries" Er. 3ash in bank 3r. 8otes receivable 3r. Interest income Er. Interest expense 3r. 3ash in .ank To record ad#ustments resulting from Oct. %&, $AAC reconciliation of bank account.

D %,$C; D$,CAA %C; 7C; 7C;

/nternet (ro,le' 8olution: Auto'ated Clearin; 7ouse 86ste' for )lectronic &unds .ransfers

23-1 The s!ift and accurate movement of money is critically important to the health of our economy. The ,ederal 'eserve .ank plays a ma#or role in assuring the continued flo! of money in our nation. =isit the 8 3B Khttp"GG!!!.nacha.orgG boutGdefault.htmL to learn ho! money is transferred through the utomated 3learing Bouse net!ork among individuals and institutions and then ans!er the follo!ing questions" &. 2hat is the 3B net!orkM 2ho provides clearing servicesM Answer: ,rom the 8 3B !ebsite" N .he )lectronic (a6'ents Association is a not-for-profit association that oversees the utomated 3learing Bouse * 3B+ 8et!ork, one of the largest electronic payment net!orks in the !orld. :ore than &? billion 3B payments !ere exchanged in $AA<. 8 3B brings together hundreds of diverse payments system stakeholder organi-ations to enable the development of ne! net!ork services and applications. 8 3B represents more than &&,AAA financial institutions through direct membership and &C regional payments associations. The 3B 8et!ork facilitates commerce electronically by serving as an efficient, reliable and secure payments system. 8 3B , led by member depository financial institutions and payments associations, fulfills this purpose by managing the development, administration, and governance of the 8et!ork and by providing superior services and value to its members as the industry association responsible for 3B payments.O

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/nternet (ro,le' 23-1 (continued) $. 2hat types of payments are processed in the 3BM Answer: ,rom the 8 3B !ebsite" 3B processes"

Eirect Eeposit of payroll, (ocial (ecurity and other government benefits, and tax refunds9 Eirect 0ayment of consumer bills such as mortgages, loans, utility bills and insurance premiums9 .usiness-to-business payments9 )-checks9 )-commerce payments9 ,ederal, state and local tax payments.

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2ho sets the rules that are follo!ed by 8 3B M Answer: ,rom the 8 3B !ebsite" 8 3B provides the legal foundation for the 3B 8et!ork through the development and enforcement of the 8 3B Operating 'ules. 'ules and guidelines are established for all participants in the 3B system and ensure that the 8et!ork infrastructure, applications, rules and enforcement are consistent !ith processing payments in a secure, reliable, and efficient manner, and that financial institutions have access to effective risk management tools.

*1ote" Internet problems address current issues using Internet sources. .ecause Internet sites are sub#ect to change, Internet problems and solutions may change. 3urrent information on Internet problems is available at !!!.pearsonhighered.comGarens.+

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