Film Accounting Glossary
Zero-balance account
What is a zero-balance account?
Also called ZBA.
A zero-balance account is a bank account funded only on demand: checks presented against it draw exactly the amount needed from a master account, leaving the balance at zero.
Productions use them for payroll and petty cash so that a single account can be reconciled cleanly while central cash stays pooled and controlled. It is a control mechanism as much as a cash management one, since the account can never be overdrawn beyond what the master funds.
Example
Payroll clears against an account funded on demand from the master account, so the balance is always zero and it can never be overdrawn beyond what the master releases. It reconciles cleanly while central cash stays pooled and controlled.
Figures are illustrative, chosen to show the mechanics rather than to quote market rates.
Where you'll see it
Used for payroll and petty cash accounts. A control mechanism as much as a cash management one.
Common mistake
Treating it as an ordinary account and funding it in advance. The point is that it holds nothing until a presented payment draws exactly what is needed.
Related questions
- How does a zero-balance account work?
- Payments presented against it draw exactly the required amount from a master account, leaving the balance at zero and central cash pooled.
- Why do productions use zero-balance accounts?
- For control as much as cash management: the account cannot be overdrawn beyond what the master releases, and it reconciles cleanly.