Banking technology has automated a great deal of bookkeeping however, anyone who deals in financial records will tell you that automation isn’t 100% perfect. Customers still send statements in PDF format, feeds from banks may not work as they should, and historical transactions may not be available. A person must convert a document that was created to be read as information that accounting software actually uses.
Image credit: docubrew.com
Converting bank statements can save you time by making the process easier. Instead of entering manually dates or descriptions, withdrawals and deposits row-by-row, Docubrew converts information from the statement into a spreadsheet format that is ready to be used.
If a PDF is the missing piece
Imagine a bookkeeper making an annual reconciliation for a client. The accounting platform contains recent transactions but some older months are missing. Luckily, the client has downloaded the original PDF statement.
It used to take many hours of grueling copying the spread sheet. A PDF bank account statement to Excel workflow is a more suitable alternative. Docubrew collects data about transactions from scanned paper statements or digital PDFs.
For professionals who regularly need to move a bank statement to Excel, reducing manual transcription also removes an unnecessary opportunity for typing errors.
Make sure you keep the pages that matter
Statements from banks don’t contain only transactions. A 12-page report could contain a cover sheet, account summary, disclosures, or notices, and several pages of actual transactions.
Docubrew lets users preview the document and choose the pages that are relevant prior to conversion. It is much easier to convert bank statement accounts to Excel because the unrelated contents of the statement are not included in your work dataset.
After processing, the file can then be opened in Excel or re-formatted to work with accounting platforms, such as QuickBooks, Xero, and FreshBooks.
CSV provides a flexible accounting workflow
CSV remains useful because it’s supported by spreadsheets and databases. Accounting software also supports CSV. Docubrew will transform your bank statement into CSV by using the transaction tables within the report.
The same process can help firms convert bank statements into CSV. It is useful whether rebuilding old records, coordinating an ongoing cleanup project for new clients, looking into missing transaction, or preparing information for reconciliation.
Accounting firms that have to work with multiple statements or clients can use batch processing to their advantage.
Financial Documents should be analyzed for privacy controls
When processing financial records it isn’t the only thing to think about. Bank statements could contain sensitive information about clients therefore bookkeepers and accountants could also consider the location where processing occurs.
Docubrew offers two alternatives. Windows desktop software processes files stored on the computer of the user. However, the statements aren’t uploaded to be transformed. For those who prefer a browser-based workflow can select the cloud encryption option that allows for uploading files to be automatically deleted within 24 hours.
This distinction distinguishes the platform from the bank statement Excel software that relies solely on remote processing.
Turning Document Archives Back Into Working Data
The PDF statement is a great document, however it’s a pain when you have to sort, reconcile or filter transactions in other systems. Scanned documents can be problematic since transaction data could only be present as a picture.
Docubrew integrates statement parsing and OCR support for scanned documents that give bookkeepers, accountants as well as businesses a practical method of converting financial paperwork that is archived to a usable set of transactional data.
This simple fix can speed up the process of keeping the bank statement that was originally issued while converting its transaction table to data you can use.