Government Cash Management

This technical note and manual (TNM) addresses the following main issues: Interaction between treasury cash management and monetary policy operations within the wider context of the respective economic responsibilities of the ministry of finance and the central bank; Institutional arrangements for an effective relationship between the treasury and the central bank; Contractual arrangements between the treasury and the central bank for the provision of banking and other services. This document will be particularly relevant to developing countries that are reforming cash management operations or contemplating more active cash management; or where there are operational policy differences between the treasury and the central bank.

This technical note and manual addresses the following main issues: 1. Discusses the problems of fragmented government banking arrangements and how a treasury single account (TSA) could address them. 2. Explains the concept of a TSA and describes its features. 3. Discusses the design issues that need to be considered in setting up a TSA system. 4. Discusses the preconditions and key sequencing and implementation issues that need to be addressed in establishing a TSA.

This technical note describes the interaction of government cash management with other financial policies. The note offers guidance on policy, institutional, and practical issues for governments looking to develop a more sophisticated cash management function, specifically to move toward more active cash management. This involves financial market intervention by the government cash manager, with the aim of smoothing the projected short-term profile of the government's net cash balances. The note is particularly relevant to emerging market countries where there are already functioning, if not necessarily well-developed, domestic money and bond markets.

Central government could improve its day to day cash management and reduce the amount of interest it pays on debt if its departments and their sponsored bodies held less money in commercial bank accounts. The National Audit Office recommends that these organisations instead use the Exchequer as their main banking provider. The NAO points out that keeping as much money as possible in the Exchequer is one of the most important elements of good cash management in government, since it not only reduces government borrowing but also minimises risks and allows the government to plan and manage its cash flow more cost-effectively. But central government departments and their sponsored bodies hold more money in commercial bank accounts than is necessary. The Treasury estimated that at the end of March 2008 such organisations held a total of £4 billion in commercial bank accounts, equivalent to four days of central government spending. The NAO estimates that some £28 million might have been saved in a year if the £4 billion had been held in the Exchequer. Snother important aspect of cash management is forecasting, as inaccurate forecasting of cash flow by government departments can lead to losses for the taxpayer. In 2008-09, the government as a whole over or under forecast its cash requirements by an average of £63 million a day, which represents four per cent of the Government's net spending.