CORAA
Internal audit programme - Treasury audit programme

Treasury and Cash Management Internal Audit Programme programme.

A treasury internal audit programme tests bank governance, borrowings, interest, covenant compliance, investments, deposits, bank guarantees, letters of credit, forex exposure, hedging, cash forecasting and treasury-system access.

Download Excel/PDF workbookOpen detailed checklist
Why this cycle matters

Treasury combines liquidity, borrowing covenants, bank authority and market exposure. Errors may not appear in routine accounting until a breach, unauthorised exposure or funding shortage occurs.

Unauthorised borrowing or guarantees
Covenant breach not escalated
Incorrect interest/fee accounting
Unsupported investments or deposits
Unmonitored forex exposure
Treasury access conflicts
Fieldwork programme

Audit procedures, evidence and sample basis procedures

Borrowings and limits

Objective: Borrowings are approved, recorded and reconciled.

Procedure steps
  • Reconcile loan/CC/OD registers to GL and confirmations.
  • Review sanction terms and authority.
  • Recompute interest and fees.
Evidence

Loan register, sanction letter, confirmations, interest working, GL.

Sample basis

All facilities and material interest charges.

Covenants and lender reporting

Objective: Covenants are monitored and reported.

Procedure steps
  • Inspect covenant tracker and calculations.
  • Compare lender submissions to MIS/financials.
  • Review waivers and breach communications.
Evidence

Covenant tracker, lender reporting pack, waiver letters, MIS.

Sample basis

All active covenant facilities.

Investments, deposits and BG/LC

Objective: Treasury instruments are approved and safeguarded.

Procedure steps
  • Trace investment/deposit placements to approval.
  • Review valuation and custody evidence.
  • Test BG/LC issue and closure controls.
Evidence

Investment register, FD receipts, demat/custody, BG/LC register, approvals.

Sample basis

All high-value instruments and open BG/LC items.

Forex, cash forecast and access

Objective: Exposure and treasury access are reviewed.

Procedure steps
  • Compare forex exposure to hedge/settlement records.
  • Review cash forecast accuracy and exceptions.
  • Test treasury/bank portal user access and privileged activity.
Evidence

Exposure statement, hedge contracts, cash forecast, bank portal users, logs.

Sample basis

Open exposures and privileged treasury users.

Data requests

  • Borrowing, investment, FD, BG and LC registers
  • Sanction letters, covenant tracker and lender reporting pack
  • Forex exposure, hedge and valuation workings
  • Cash forecast, bank portal and treasury-system access records

Analytics to run

  • Covenant ratios near breach
  • Interest rate/fee variance
  • Maturing FD or loan not tracked
  • Open BG/LC past expected closure
  • Forex exposure without hedge/approval note

Red flags

  • Borrowing not reconciled to confirmation
  • Waiver obtained after breach but not reported
  • Manual interest entries
  • Treasury user also posts accounting entries
  • Guarantee issued without limit check
Execution workflow

Build a defensible file RCM to evidence.

Use this cycle programme after the SOW, data request list and RCM are aligned. The Excel workbook should carry sample rationale, extraction filters, preparer sign-off, reviewer sign-off and observation references.

Authority

Use current standards and entity facts sources

ICAI IASB lists the Compendium of Standards on Internal Audit as on February 2026 as applicable from 1 April 2026. Use this page as a practical workpaper starter, then verify the latest standard, law, regulation, ERP report and client fact pattern before concluding.

FAQ

Treasury audit programme questions answers

What should a treasury audit programme cover?

It should cover borrowings, limits, covenants, lender reporting, interest, investments, deposits, bank guarantees, letters of credit, forex exposure, cash forecasting and treasury access.

Is this treasury programme a substitute for professional judgement?

No. It is a fieldwork starter. The internal auditor must tailor it to the approved scope, ERP, delegation matrix, locations, volumes, materiality, prior findings and current legal position.

Can I download a treasury audit programme in Excel?

Yes. Use the linked CORAA workbook for the cycle. It contains editable RCM, testing, evidence and monitoring sheets that can be used as a fieldwork base.

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