Bank Reconciliation

Introduction

A bank reconciliation module is primarily used to help businesses and individuals reconcile their bank statements with their internal financial records (Nominal Transactions). This reconciliation process ensures that the recorded financial transactions in your accounting system match the transactions recorded by your bank.

Here's how a bank reconciliation module typically works:

Import Bank Statements: Users can paste the electronic bank statements into Experience. These statements are usually in formats like CSV or ASCII, and they contain a list of all transactions processed by the bank during a specific period.

Matching Transactions: When selecting the individual Imported Bank Transactions, Experience automatically filters the transactions recorded in your accounting system to make transaction search easier and faster. 

Experience looks for matches based on amount.

Reconciliation Process: Users need to check transactions between the Bank Statement Transactions and the Nominal Transactions. This involves investigating the differences, making adjustments, and ensuring that the accounting records accurately reflect the actual financial transactions.

Note: Any transactions listed in the Bank Statement which are not found in Experience should be posted using the Posting functions available in the Bank Reconciliation module.

Starting the Process

Step 1 - To start a Bank Reconciliation process you need to select the appropriate Bank Code, and Financial Year.

Then update the Statement Date and Ending Balance as shown on your Bank Statement.

Note: If the bank code is not visible check Bank Codes settings from Company Controls, to ensure the Bank Code is allowed Bank Recons, and the username has access to view this Bank Code.

Step 2 - Download the bank statement electronically from your online banking system, and open it in Excel.

Step 3 - Copy the transactions from Excel into the Bank Statements Section in Experience

Step 4 - Tick on the item to search/reconcile and the system.

Press Spacebar to toggle between reconciled and unreconciled.

Transactions that are not found in Experience can be posted using the posting function located on the right hand side (marked with an orange box)

Step 4 - Once the Bank Reconciliation is done and agrees, press Confirm to confirm and save the reconciliation.

Identifying Discrepancies: Any discrepancies between the bank statement and your internal records are left 'unreconciled'. The difference between the Bank Statement balance and the Nominal Ledger Balance will be reconciled by a list of discrepancies or unreconciled transactions. 

Balancing Accounts: The ultimate goal of the reconciliation process is to balance your bank accounts, ensuring that the ending balances in your accounting software match the ending balances on your bank statements.

Reports: Experience Bank Reconciliation provides reports and summaries of the reconciliation process, which can be useful for auditing and record-keeping purposes.

Bank reconciliation modules are crucial for ensuring the accuracy of financial records and identifying potential discrepancies or errors early on. They are particularly valuable for businesses that handle a large volume of financial transactions and need to maintain tight control over their finances. Automating the reconciliation process can save time and reduce the risk of errors in financial reporting.

Bank Codes Security Settings

Security settings are set under Bank Codes (System Codes - Bank Codes).

Ensure that Allow Bank Recons is set to YES and the user has access to use this Bank code from User Access.