We are restructuring our organization a little, and rearranging some duties. We are attempting to divide what we refer to as our bookkeeping department and our accounting department. Accounting department's scope will be narrowed. I would like some opinions on which department should be responsible for balancing the correspondent account. Our correspondent account activity is based around wires, ach, cashletters, basically all the transactions that we do with FRB on a passthrough basis. Some feel bookkeeping should balance the account and research outstanding items for resolution and have the accounting department just review the balancing periodically. Some feel that the accounting department should balance the account and reserach outstanding items for resolution. What do you think and why?

Where you do it is not that important. However, appropriate segregation of duties would suggest that whoever does the reconciliation should not have the ability to make entries to the account(s).

I agree with rlcarey.

Thank you for your input. I know it doesn't really matter who does it, but I was wondering who balances the correspondent account at most institutions.

I'm not sure what bearing that will have on your situation. Such operations are as varied among banks as there are grains of sand. The important matter is to insure that your own institution has the appropriate internal controls in place.