Amber Partners, an operational risk certification firm for the hedge fund industry and specialist in hedge fund operational due diligence, has issued a white paper looking at cash transfer controls.

According to the white paper, “Cash Transfer Controls – getting below the surface”, effective account opening and cash transfer procedures are the most important and simplest safeguard to prevent the misappropriation of a fund’s assets.

As the white paper explains though, controls over cash can vary from firm to firm due to factors such as the size of the firm and the nature of the securities traded, while there is also often significant divergence between policy and practice as well as the risk of unintended loopholes which could allow controls to be circumvented.

As the white paper concludes, simply ticking the box after a cursory review of a firm’s signatory policy could leave a significant are of risk unchecked.