University of Illinois System
Policies & Procedures

14.2 Open or Close a University Bank Account

Policy Statement

The Vice President, Chief Financial Officer & Comptroller is the signer on all bank contracts and accounts, as authorized under the General Rules Concerning University Organization and Procedure. The Comptroller delegates Cash Management to maintain and manage the services associated with each bank account. The Comptroller or delegate must approve all requests to close a bank account.

The University of Illinois System also maintains bank accounts for Merchant Card Services. Merchant Card Services works under a State of Illinois contract, and all bank activity is acquired through the State of Illinois. The Comptroller is the signer for all bank accounts opened for the University of Illinois System at the bank the State of Illinois has contracted.

These bank accounts are subject to audit at any time by the Office of University Audits.

Procedure

To open a bank account:

  1. If your department needs a bank account, forward your request to Cash Management, who will review to determine if a new bank account is needed or activity can be directed to an existing account. If a new account is needed, the request will be made to the bank and be signed by the Comptroller.
  2. Two authorized persons must sign all checks or authorizations for withdrawing funds.

To close a bank account:

  1. Send the request to Cash Management for approval.
  2. Cash Management will process and transfer any remaining funds to the system's primary bank account and notify the bank of the system's action.
  3. University Accounting and Financial Reporting (UAFR) credits the funds to your unit's CFOP.
  4. Destroy all unused checks and deposit tickets in the presence of another person.
  5. UAFR will notify your unit if there are any transactions that have not yet been recorded in Banner. UAFR will continue to monitor these transactions until they are resolved.

Related Policies and Procedures

14.4 Manage Foreign Bank Accounts

Last Updated: May 6, 2020 | Approved: Senior Associate Vice President for Business and Finance | Effective: November 2010