How Automated Bank Reconciliation Software Benefits Global Retailers

The pains of legacy bank reconciliation processes

The outmoded bank reconciliation method of managing multiple spreadsheets and updating separate programs remains in widespread use, despite the fact that automated reconciliation software regularly saves organisations more than 50% of the time and resources previously dedicated to bank reconciliation. Legacy systems take time and require a focused staff to manually review and compare ledgers with bank statements on a monthly or bi-monthly basis.

Retailers with multiple stores in multiple regions must also navigate different closing dates, formats, fees and requirements. With credit cards typically accounting for more than half of accepted payments, legacy systems that require credit card payments to be manually matched with individual store and merchant IDs ensure that the process of bank reconciliation amounts to an unnecessarily significant cost.

Bank reconciliation automation software offers retailer key benefits

Bank reconciliation doesn’t need to be a costly, time-intensive process for global retailers. With advanced bank reconciliation software, global retailers can get a clearer picture of their cash status in less time and with fewer resources.

Full Bank and ERP Integration

Advanced bank reconciliation software solutions like Cashbook integrate with all major banks and ERPs to provide users with easy, automated bank account reconciliation. General ledger data files are compared directly to bank statements, then matched entries are updated in the general ledger and exceptions are handled according to the users’ specifications—all before an employee even has to look at the information.

For global retailer TGI Fridays, on-boarding Cashbook’s Bank Reconciliation Software module enabled automatic integration with their SAGE ERP environment on a SQL Server and the ability to apply different matching rules to different banks.

Automated Algorithms

The smart programming and functionality offered by bank account reconciliation software provides seamless automation of the basic and advanced tasks involved in bank reconciliation for global retailers. An organisation’s finance department is able to establish multiple rule sets according to their accounting needs and goals, and powerful matching algorithms analyse, organise and auto-code the bank information accordingly. Many programs’ algorithms can even monitor specified tolerance levels for differences in banking and GL amounts for specific stores.  For TGI Fridays, we had credit card files auto-uploaded and merchant id’s were linked to stores and credit card fees were auto-assigned.

In-Depth Reporting

Bank reconciliation automation software can provide global retailers with an unprecedented level of flexibility, intelligence and automation when it comes to reconciling bank activity and daily payments. Organisations can use various report formats to review and manage specific aspects of the reconciliation process, such as auto-matched or write-off amounts. The best bank reconciliation software solutions will also offer full, real-time visibility of all activity, matches and exceptions, and provide a complete audit trail to help organisations quickly identify and resolve issues.

The Cashbook bank reconciliation software module has established greater financial control and a higher level of reporting and detail than ever before for TGI Fridays. A full suite of reports is available to facilitate greater overall control including Reconciliation reporting, Write off reports, Auto Matched reports, Carried Forward Reports, Un-Matched Reports, Control Reports, and Comparison reports between Bank & GL balances.

Substantial savings for global retailers with high volume bank reconciliation needs

Automated bank reconciliation software is delivering substantial savings to well-known global retailers on a daily basis. Not only can automated reconciliation programs deliver faster, more accurate matches, but they provide opportunities for organisations to save time and workforce resources that can be better spent elsewhere.

Discover how your organisation can win at bank reconciliation with Cashbook’s automated bank reconciliation software, request a customised demo with a member of our expert team.