What is a money movement map?

A money movement map is a diagram of how funds move through your product. Each arrow has a source and a destination. You draw the map before you write posting code, so every balance and every transfer has a place.

How does a money movement map work?

You list the balances your product needs: customer wallets, an omnibus account, revenue, fees, a payout pool. Then you draw each real movement as one arrow from a source to a destination. Deposits, withdrawals, fees, and refunds each get their own arrow.

The map is unidirectional. Money does not loop. If a refund exists, it is a second arrow, not the first one drawn backwards. That keeps the ledger readable when you turn the diagram into transactions.

When do you use a money movement map?

Use it when you start a new flow, or when two teams disagree about where a fee should land. The map is the spec. If a movement is not on the map, do not post it. If the map is wrong, fix the map before you fix the code.

Money movement map vs chart of accounts

A chart of accounts names the accounts. A money movement map names the paths between them. You need both. The chart without paths leaves developers guessing. The paths without named balances leave you posting into the void.

In Blnk the map is the design step before you create ledgers and balances. Each arrow becomes a transaction with a source and a destination. Internal accounts such as @Revenue live in the general ledger. See money movement maps.