As a business owner, you can do it all … but you probably shouldn’t. When your business expands, so do your business needs, and they only get more complicated as time passes. Whether you’re paying your team or getting paid by hard-won customers, you want a strategy that takes you all the way — one that is easy to manage, helps your business grow, and lets you control your finances without drowning in the daily details.
If that’s your goal, you’re looking for treasury services. These are the building blocks for any company’s finances. Treasury services don’t manage your money for you, per se, but they do make it much, much easier to simplify, customize, and automate your company’s finances. Here’s how to figure out which ones you need.
First, What Are Treasury Services?
Before we dive into the tools themselves, it’s worth mentioning that treasury services are often known by several names. Some financial institutions call it treasury management, while others call it treasury services, and still others say cash management. From a big-picture vantage, the terms tend to mean the same thing.
At ICCU, we use the phrase treasury services. This includes three sub-categories:
- Accounts Receivable – How you get paid
- Accounts Payable – How you pay others
- Reconciliation and Fraud Mitigation – How you protect your funds
Know Your Tools
No business is alike, yet all successful businesses know how to optimize their account receivables, account payables, and fraud prevention. Here’s what each means and the best way to use them.*
Accounts Receivable (AR): How You Get Paid
Accounts receivable, sometimes called ‘receivables,’ represent the money due for the product or service you delivered. It refers to any items on your balance sheet that others owe you, particularly if you expect the balance to be paid in the near term, which is why they’re considered current assets.
To manage your receivables, you’ll likely use one or several of these treasury services:
- Merchant Services: Process customer card purchases quickly and conveniently with an array of options, including Fiserv and Clover point-of-sale technologies.
- Preferred Pay (ACH Origination): Collect funds owed to you electronically with our ACH collections process.
- Remote Deposit Capture: Deposit checks by scanning and submitting them electronically.
- Lockbox Services: Process a large volumes of check payments and create efficiency in your accounts receivable process.
- Cash Vault Services: Deposit or order cash directly from Loomis. This service is ideal for businesses that operate multiple locations, require continuous coin and currency, or operate similar hours to ICCU.
Accounts Payable (AP): How You Pay Others
Accounts payable, sometimes called ‘payables,’ represent the money you owe. This is usually shown on your balance sheet as a current liability. These include vendor, supplier, creditor, and payroll payments.
To manage your payables, some or all of these treasury services will be invaluable to your business:
- Preferred Pay (ACH Origination): Send ACH files for next business day settlement, or with Same Day Preferred Pay, the same business day.
- Online Wires: Initiate domestic and international wires through your Business eBranch account.
- Business Visa Credit Cards: Get the purchasing power and flexibility your company needs with the right Visa card. On approved credit.
Reconciliation and Fraud Mitigation: How You Protect Your Funds
Where receivables and payables dictate the cash flow in and out of your business finances, reconciliation and fraud mitigation help keep that process running smoothly, protecting your funds from external threats — and internal accounting mistakes.
In accounting, reconciliation, sometimes called double-entry accounting, refers to keeping two sets of financial records. This acts as a check-and-balance system for every transaction made, keeping your business protected from inaccurate accounting and fraud.
Though it may use different tools, fraud mitigation is the same in accounting as it is in other aspects of your business: It’s there to keep your funds safe from fraudulent activity.
To manage your reconciliation and fraud mitigation, some or all of these treasury services can help:
- ACH Positive Pay: Monitor and protect your accounts from unauthorized check and ACH debit transactions through Business eBranch.
- Check Positive Pay: Automatically verify every check payment against a list of authorized issued checks.
- Reporting: Generate account and online reports in varying formats, including CSV, PDF, EDI and more.
Keep Business Finances Simple and Automated
Business ownership is only as easy as you make it. With the right tools in hand, you can not only simplify and automate your finances but give your business the space it needs to grow.
If you’re not sure which of these services are best for your business, reach out to a Treasury Management Officer. They can help you streamline your cash management systems so they work for your specific needs, no matter how basic or advanced.
*Treasury Services subject to availability and approval. Fees and conditions apply, contact a Treasury Management Officer for details.
