> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://www.practiceownersguide.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# How to structure your bank accounts

> The Start Here banking page covers the single-practice minimum. This page covers what changes as you grow — from separation by purpose to separation by law.

The [Start Here banking page](/start-here/03-setting-up-your-banking) covers the single-practice minimum. This page covers what changes as you grow.

## One entity: separation by purpose

Operating, tax reserve, savings. Two disciplines make it work: threshold sweeps (define a target operating balance, move the excess on a schedule) and percentage tax funding (a fixed share of collections, rate set by your CPA).

## Multiple entities: separation by law

The moment you own two PCs, or an MSO and a PC, structure stops being preference. Each entity has its own accounts. Money crosses entity lines only as documented transfers: management fees per the MSA, loans with notes, distributions per the operating agreements. Pooling a PC's revenue "for convenience" undermines the corporate separateness the whole [MSO-PC structure](https://mso.getlemma.com) depends on.

```mermaid theme={null}
flowchart TD
    subgraph PC1[PC 1]
        A1[Operating] --> A2[Tax]
        A1 --> A3[Savings]
    end
    subgraph PC2[PC 2]
        B1[Operating]
    end
    subgraph MSO[MSO]
        C1[Operating: shared expenses, MSO payroll]
    end
    P1[PC 1 payer deposits] --> A1
    P2[PC 2 payer deposits] --> B1
    A1 -->|management fee per MSA| C1
    B1 -->|management fee per MSA| C1
    OP[Operator] -.consolidated visibility,<br/>entity-level permissions.-> PC1 & PC2 & MSO
```

Watch the enrollment detail: each payer EFT must point at the right entity's account. Cross-entity enrollment errors are common and painful.

## Yield and insurance

Groups accumulate real balances, and the defaults are bad: near-zero interest and \$250k FDIC per bank per depositor ([FDIC](https://www.fdic.gov/resources/deposit-insurance/)). Options in order of effort: accounts that pay market rates, sweep networks that spread deposits across many insured banks, Treasury ladders for long-idle cash. Sweeps move freely within an entity, but across entities only on documented rails.

## Controls that scale

Dual approval above a threshold. Role-based access per entity. Issued cards with limits and merchant controls instead of a shared debit card. Audit trail on every movement. Configure it on day one instead of after an incident.

<Note>
  **Lemma aside:** this is Lemma's native shape: per-entity accounts in one dashboard, rule-based sweeps, approval workflows, and yield with expanded FDIC coverage ([getlemma.com](https://getlemma.com)).
</Note>