Crossword Genius

Deposit intended, but without a promotion (11)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

advancement

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'promotion' is the definition.
(synonyms)

'deposit intended but without a' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'a' could be 'an' and 'an' is present in the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for advancement that I've seen before include "getting on" , "making progress" , "Process of developing" , "Promotion in rank" , "headway" .)

I've seen this clue in The Daily Express.
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