By ALICIA TUOVILA

Reviewed by JANET BERRY-JOHNSON

编写人：ALICIA TUOVILA

审核人：JANET BERRY-JOHNSON

What Is Restricted Cash?

什么是限制性现金？

Restricted cash, in contrast to unrestricted cash, is not freely available for a company to spend or invest. Restricted cash refers to money that is held for a specific purpose and thus not available to the company for immediate or general business use.

与非限制性现金相比，限制性现金无法由公司自由支配或投资。限制性现金是为特定目的持有的现金，因此，公司不能立即使用或在一般业务中使用限制性现金。

Restricted cash appears as a separate item from the cash and cash equivalents listing on a company's balance sheet. The reason for the cash being restricted is usually disclosed in the accompanying notes to the financial statements. Cash can be restricted for a number of reasons, including debt reduction and capital investments.

在公司资产负债表中，限制性现金与现金及现金等价物分开列示。现金受限原因通常在财务报表附注中披露。现金受限的原因有很多，包括减少债务、资本投资。

KEY TAKEAWAYS

关键要点

·Restricted cash, in contrast to unrestricted cash, is not freely available for a company to spend or invest.

与非限制性现金相比，限制性现金无法由公司自由支配或投资。

·Restricted cash refers to money that is held for a specific purpose, meaning it's not available for immediate or general business use.

限制性现金是为特定目的持有的现金，因此，公司不能立即使用或在一般业务中使用限制性现金。

·Restricted cash appears separately from cash on the balance sheet, while its purpose is disclosed in the financial statement footnotes.

限制性现金在资产负债表单独作为一项进行列示，现金受限原因在财务报表附注中披露。

·Restricted cash can be used as collateral for a loan or for capital expenditures such as a factory upgrade or equipment purchase.

限制性现金可作为贷款或工厂升级或设备采购等资本支出的抵押品。

Understanding Restricted Cash

了解限制性现金

Restricted cash is held aside by companies and is earmarked for a specific purpose. Restricted cash could be set aside for a particular purchase or to repay a loan or debt. Cash that has been deemed restricted cannot be used for other purposes.

限制性现金是公司为特定目的预留的现金，可以用于特定采购或偿还贷款或债务。视为受限的现金无法用于其他目的。

Restricted cash is classified as either a current asset, which is used up within one year, or a non-current asset, which are long-term assets. As a result, if the restricted cash is expected to be used in the short-term, it is classified as a current asset. If it is not expected to be used within a one-year time frame, it is classified as a non-current asset. Since funds are separated on the balance sheet/income statement, restricted cash typically appears on a company's balance sheet as either "other restricted cash" or as "other assets."

限制性现金可被归类为流动资产（一年内耗尽）或非流动资产（属于长期资产）。因此，限制性现金预计在短期内使用的，被归类为流动资产；超过一年的，被归类为非流动资产。资金在资产负债表/损益表是分开列示的，限制性现金通常在资产负债表作为“其他限制性现金”或“其他资产”进行列示。

Special Considerations

特别说明

There are a number of variables to the handling of restricted cash. For example, it may or may not be held in a separate bank account designated for the purpose for which the cash is restricted. Regardless of whether the cash is held in a special bank account or not, restricted cash is still included in a company's financial statements as a cash asset.

处理限制性现金会出现许多变数。比如，限制性现金可以（也可以不）存放在为限制现金之目的指定的单独银行账户中。无论现金是否存放在专门的银行账户中，限制性现金仍作为现金资产在公司财务报表中列示。

In the event that the restricted cash is not spent as intended, it may then become unrestricted cash that a company can transfer to a general cash account or spend for general business purposes. For example, a company may hold restricted cash for the purpose of making a large capital expenditure, such as a factory upgrade, but later decide against making the expenditure. The cash designated as restricted for that purpose is then freed up for the company to spend or invest elsewhere.

限制性现金没有按计划使用的，可能会变为非限制性现金，公司可以将其转入一般现金账户或用于一般业务目的。比如，一家公司持有限制性现金是为了进行工厂升级等资本支出较大的项目，但是后来决定不做了。这样一来，受限于上述目的的现金可在其他地方使用或投资。

Examples of Restricted Cash

限制性现金示例

Although there are various reasons companies can restrict a portion of their cash, below are two of the most frequent uses for restricted cash.

虽然公司对部分现金进行限制的原因各不相同，但是下文所列是限制性现金最常见的两种用途。

Capital Expenditures

资本支出

Companies often hold restricted cash for capital expenditures or as part of an agreement with a third party. Companies also frequently set aside cash designated as restricted in planning for a major investment expenditure, such as a new building.

公司经常为资本支出或作为与第三方协议的一部分持有限制性现金。此外，公司在规划重大投资支出（如新建大楼）时，常常也会预留现金。

Loan or Debt Payments

贷款或债务还款

Lenders sometimes require a company to hold restricted cash as partial collateral against a loan or line of credit. A bank or other lender may require the company to set up a designated restricted cash account in which the company must maintain a minimum balance, sometimes referred to as a compensating balance, equal to a specified percentage of the credit extended by the bank. This is a fairly common practice in situations in which a bank grants a business loan to the owner of a new small business.

贷款人有时会要求公司持有限制性现金作为贷款或信贷额度的部分抵押品。银行或其他贷款人可能会要求公司专门为限制性现金设立一个账户，公司必须在该账户中维持最低余额（有时称为补偿性余额），最低余额相当于银行所提供信贷的特定百分比。在银行向新成立的小型企业发放商业贷款时，这种做法很常见。