Please consider a bank statement noting that when checks cleared the bank and monies were accordingly deducted from the checking account, the bank reported it as a "debit" entry on the bank statement. You are likely familiar with a "debit card" which allows you to immediately withdraw cash from your personal bank account. We have learned that a positive cash balance is an asset and that an asset's balance decreases with a credit entry and increases with a debit entry. If this is the case, why do banks refer to these withdrawals (account reductions) as a "debit?" Please explain.