# Management Accounts > the management accounts of the Company for the period starting on the Accounts Date and ending on 201 , in the agreed form Note: insert relevant details; **Term:** Management Accounts **Last updated:** 2026-07-29 ## Definition ## What Management Accounts Means in a Contract Management accounts, as used in a contract, refers to internal financial statements produced by a company for its own management purposes, distinct from statutory annual accounts filed publicly or audited for shareholders. They generally include a profit and loss statement, a balance sheet, and sometimes cash flow information, prepared for a defined period such as a month or quarter. Because they are not usually audited, contracts treat them as indicative rather than definitive financial evidence. The defined term typically anchors to a specific timeframe, for example a period beginning on an Accounts Date and ending on a stated later date, and specifies that the accounts must be prepared in an agreed form. This framing matters because management accounts are often used as a snapshot of financial health at a point closer to signing or closing than the last full-year audited accounts, filling an information gap for the other contracting party. In practice, the term appears most often in finance and investment documentation, where lenders or investors want visibility into a borrower's or target company's recent trading performance without waiting for the next audited financial year to close. ## How Management Accounts Is Defined or Measured Unlike statutory accounts, which follow prescribed accounting standards and formats under the law governing the contract, management accounts have no universally fixed format. Contracts therefore usually require the parties to agree the form in advance, often attaching a template or referring to accounts prepared consistently with the company's historical management reporting practices. Key measurement points typically specified in a definition include the accounts date marking the start of the relevant period, the end date of the period covered, the frequency of preparation, and the accounting policies or basis of preparation to be applied. Some agreements require that management accounts be prepared on a basis consistent with prior periods or with the company's audited accounts, to prevent manipulation of figures through inconsistent treatment of items like accruals or depreciation. - The accounting period covered, often monthly or quarterly. - The format or template previously agreed between the parties. - Consistency requirements linking management accounts to the company's usual practice or its audited accounts. - Any certification or sign-off required from a director or finance officer. ## Where Management Accounts Appears in Agreements Management accounts provisions are common in loan agreements and facility agreements, where borrowers must deliver them periodically as an ongoing information covenant, allowing lenders to monitor financial performance between audited year-ends. They also feature heavily in share purchase agreements and investment documents, where a seller warrants the accuracy of recent management accounts as part of the disclosure package supporting