What is a Fiduciary Fund?

A fiduciary fund is used in governmental accounting to report on assets held in trust for others. The parties for which these assets are being held in trust may be privately-held organizations, individuals, or other governmental units.

Presentation of Fiduciary Funds

When financial statements are prepared for fiduciary funds, they are presented using the economic resources measurement focus and the accrual basis of accounting. The required financial statements for a fiduciary fund are the statement of fiduciary net position and the statement of changes in fiduciary net position.

Which Funds are Classified as Fiduciary Funds?

The fiduciary funds classification includes the following funds:

Agency funds. Used to report on resources held in a custodial capacity, where funds are received, temporarily invested, and remitted to other parties.
Investment trust funds. Used to report the external portion of an investment pool that is reported by the sponsoring government.
Pension and employee benefit trust funds. Used to report on assets held in trust for pension plans, other post-employment benefit plans, and employee benefit plans.
Private-purpose trust funds. Used to report on trust arrangements where the individuals, private organizations, and other governments are the beneficiaries. An example is a trust established to provide financial aid to low-income students at a specific school.