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Balance reporting is similar to a bank statement and informs customers about their account balances in real time. Banks often perform balance reporting for businesses and larger organizations with more complex accounting needs, but it is also available to individual customers. With the broad availability of online banking, companies and individuals can access balance reports on their own schedules and receive up-to-the-minute balance information.
Balance reporting is an important part of a company’s cash flow or liquidity management, as it allows organizations to see the amount of cash in each of their accounts in real time. Balance reporting is vital for larger corporations and those operating in multiple countries, which may be dealing with different financial institutions, currencies, or time zones. These elements can impact the timing of transactions and balance changes. To simplify accounting practices, balance reports convert foreign transactions and show them in settlement currency.
Depending on the bank or financial institution, balance reports may include:
- Balance summary: A summary of all activity during a specific period. It also shows available funds and pending transactions for the selected date range.
- Balance activity changes: A detailed report on charges, fees, refunds, disputes, and other transactions or activities impacting your funds.
- Itemized transactions or payouts: The full list of transactions occurring in a specified period.
Businesses may use balance reporting to manage their ledger and ensure they meet their financial obligations, such as paying vendors, compensating employees, and covering other expenses. Additionally, many companies rely on balance reporting to track financial performance. Some balance reporting features include the ability to search for individual transactions and monitor pending transactions in real time for bank reconciliation purposes.
Balance reporting is available for different account types, including:
- Checking accounts
- Savings accounts
- Investments
- Credit and loan accounts
How Does Balance Reporting Work?
Previously, banks only performed balance reporting on a daily basis, but that has changed. With online banking, companies and individuals can now access current account balances through an online portal or mobile app at any time.
Once signed into an account, individuals or businesses will see their real-time balances and transaction information and can monitor all cash inflows and outflows as they occur. In addition to accessing balance reports through an online banking system, organizations and individuals will receive monthly account statements.
Businesses are typically eligible for more advanced balance reporting features than individuals, and depending on the bank, may also be able to:
- Save and download balance reports in formats like PDF, CSV, or Excel.
- Obtain and archive front and back images of deposits and canceled checks.
- Track pending transactions in real time.
- Search for specific transactions within a balance report.
- Automate month-end close and reconciliation workflows by producing matched-list reports or paid and cleared reports.
Why Banks Perform Balance Reporting
Balance reporting is beneficial to companies in several ways.
Enhance Financial Operations
Real-time balance reporting provides individuals and businesses with the most current balance information so they can make informed decisions. With the ability to check their account balance on demand or search for specific transactions, companies acquire greater control over their financial information. With more financial data, they can generate insights and take action to enhance their operations.
Improve Efficiency
Automated balance reporting increases workflow efficiency by eliminating mundane or repetitive banking tasks, allowing workers to focus their efforts where they’re needed most. Additionally, real-time balance reports help companies improve the accuracy and timeliness of their cash flow management and even track financial performance, allowing them to quickly make adjustments when needed.
Prevent Fraud
With real-time balance reporting, banks can immediately identify suspicious activity and respond instantly to help businesses prevent fraudulent transactions. This feature helps both banks and their customers protect their assets and avoid major financial problems.
Manage Regulatory Compliance
Banks and other financial institutions are required to provide customers with timely and accurate balance information to stay in compliance with industry regulations. In turn, many businesses rely on balance reports for their accounting and financial reporting requirements, helping banks and customers ensure transparency and compliance.
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