Banking

The Banking module brings your bank activity into Marbles and ties it to your accounting records. Transactions arrive through a secure bank feed, and each one is reconciled against the ledger by matching it to an invoice, bill or expense claim, coding it to an account, or recording it as a transfer. Bank rules propose the coding for recurring transactions, so that reconciliation becomes a matter of review.

How banking works

Banking in Marbles follows a consistent sequence.

  1. Link a bank account. A secure bank feed delivers the account's balances and transactions to Marbles.
  2. Review bank transactions. Each transaction imported from the feed is a statement line awaiting reconciliation.
  3. Reconcile each statement line by matching it to an existing document, creating a new entry, or recording a transfer.
  4. Create bank rules for recurring transactions, so that Marbles proposes the coding on your behalf.
  5. Confirm the result with the Bank Reconciliation report, which compares the balance in Marbles with the balance reported by your bank.

Bank accounts and feeds

Bank accounts are managed under Accounting > Bank accounts. Each linked account is also an account in your chart of accounts, so reconciled transactions post directly to the ledger.

Linking a bank account

Marbles receives bank data through SISS Data Services, an accredited data recipient under the Australian Consumer Data Right (CDR). Your bank shares accounts, balances and transactions directly, with your consent. Marbles never receives your bank login details.

  1. Select Add bank account, then Link, to open the consent wizard hosted by SISS Data Services.
  2. Find your bank and confirm the data to be shared.
  3. Sign in at your bank and approve the request using the one-time code your bank sends.
  4. Select the accounts to share and the duration of the consent.
  5. You are then returned to Marbles. Linked accounts can take up to 30 minutes to appear.

Accounts shared through the feed appear on the Bank accounts page with a Connect button. An account marked Pending approval is still awaiting your bank, and an account marked Unavailable cannot currently be connected. Select Connect to add the account to Marbles.

Keeping accounts up to date

The first synchronisation imports up to 12 months of transaction history. Accounts are then refreshed daily from the feed. To retrieve the latest transactions immediately, open the account's menu and select Sync now.

A bank may revise a transaction after it is first delivered, for example when a pending transaction settles. Marbles updates the existing transaction and does not create a duplicate.

Statement balance and balance in Marbles

Each account displays two balances. Statement balance is the most recent balance reported by your bank. Balance in Marbles is the balance of the account in your ledger. The two agree once every statement line has been reconciled and every payment recorded in Marbles has cleared the bank. A chart shows the statement balance over the last three months.

Bank transactions

Bank Transactions in the main menu lists the transactions imported from all linked accounts. Only transactions that the bank has posted are shown. Pending transactions appear once they settle.

Each row shows the date, merchant, category, amount and reconciliation status. Amounts are labelled Expense for money spent and Received for money received. Where the bank's data allows, Marbles identifies the merchant and assigns a spending category.

Filtering and searching

  • Accounts limits the list to a single bank account.
  • Date range limits the list to transactions posted between two dates.
  • Reconciliation type limits the list to a single reconciliation status.
  • Search finds transactions by merchant name or description.

Reconciliation status

Status Meaning
Unreconciled The statement line has not yet been reconciled.
Manual A user reconciled the line by matching, creating or transferring.
Rule The line was reconciled by applying a bank rule.
Auto The line was reconciled with AI assistance.

Merchant and category views

Select a merchant or category to view its transactions together with the spend per month over the last 12 months and the change from the previous month.

Transaction details

Select a transaction to view its bank account, posting date, reference, merchant and amount, and whether and when it was reconciled. History and Notes records each reconcile and unreconcile action taken on the transaction.

Reconciliation

Reconciliation confirms that each line on your bank statement is recorded in your ledger once, and only once. In Marbles, reconciling a statement line links it to a single journal entry.

To begin, select Reconcile on a bank account under Accounting > Bank accounts, or select the Unreconciled status of a transaction in the Bank Transactions list. Then select the bank account to reconcile.

The page lists every unreconciled statement line for the selected account. The side panel shows the Statement Balance and the Balance In Marbles, and filters the list by date range, amount or search term.

Each statement line appears on the left with its date, merchant, description and the amount spent or received. On the right, choose how to reconcile the line using the Match, Create or Transfer tab. When the required details are complete, select OK. The line is reconciled and removed from the list.

Only posted transactions can be reconciled. Journal entries created through reconciliation are dated on the transaction's posting date.

Match

Use Match when the statement line pays a document already recorded in Marbles. Money received is matched to a sales invoice awaiting payment. Money spent is matched to a supplier bill or an expense claim awaiting payment.

  1. Select Find & match.
  2. Search for the document by number, reference or contact.
  3. Select the document, then select Reconcile.

Marbles records a payment against the document for the full statement amount, dated on the posting date, and links the statement line to that payment. Only documents with an outstanding balance equal to or greater than the statement amount are listed, so each statement line settles against a single document.

Create

Use Create when no document exists for the transaction, such as bank fees, card purchases or interest.

  • Who is the contact. A new contact can be created from this field.
  • What is the ledger account the transaction is coded to. Bank accounts cannot be selected.
  • Tax rate defaults to the selected account's default tax rate and can be changed.
  • Why is the description, pre-filled with the merchant name.

Marbles posts a journal entry between the bank account and the selected account. The statement amount is treated as GST inclusive. Where the tax rate carries GST, the GST component is separated and posted to the GST account.

Transfer

Use Transfer for money moved between your own bank accounts. Select the other bank account and, optionally, enter a reference. Marbles records a transfer between the two accounts, with the direction determined by whether the money left or entered the account being reconciled.

Transfers carry no GST and are excluded from BAS reporting. A transfer cannot be recorded to the same bank account.

Bank rules

A bank rule defines how a recurring transaction is coded. When an unreconciled statement line meets a rule's conditions, Marbles presents the rule's coding on the reconciliation page for review. Rules reduce data entry. They do not reconcile a transaction without your confirmation.

To manage rules, select Manage bank rules under Accounting > Bank accounts. Rules are grouped into three tabs.

  • Spend money rules apply to money leaving a bank account.
  • Receive money rules apply to money entering a bank account.
  • Transfer money rules apply to movements between your own bank accounts, in either direction.

Use the search field to find a rule by name or condition. Select a rule to edit or delete it. Deleting a rule cannot be undone.

Creating a bank rule

Select Create new rule, choose the rule type, then complete each step.

1. Conditions

Choose whether Any conditions match or All conditions match, then add one or more conditions. Each condition compares a field of the statement line with a value.

Setting Options
Field Payee, Description, Amount or Reference
Condition Equals, Contains, Starts with or Ends with
Value The text or amount to compare against

Text comparisons are not case sensitive. An Amount condition using Equals compares the monetary value, regardless of whether the money was spent or received.

2. Contact

Select the contact to assign to the transaction. If no contact is set, the contact is chosen during reconciliation.

3. Fixed value allocations (optional)

Allocate a fixed dollar amount to an account and tax rate. Fixed amounts are taken from the statement amount first.

4. Remainder allocation

Allocate the amount remaining after any fixed allocations across one or more accounts by percentage. At least one remainder allocation is required, and the percentages must total 100%.

For example, for a statement line of $110.00, a rule with a fixed allocation of $10.00 and a single remainder allocation of 100% codes $10.00 to the first account and $100.00 to the second. If a rule's fixed allocations exceed the statement amount, the rule is not suggested for that line.

5. Reference and rule details

The reference is entered during reconciliation. Under Run this rule on bank account, apply the rule to all bank accounts or restrict it to one. Name the rule, then select Create rule. The rule name becomes the description of each journal entry the rule creates.

Transfer money rules

A transfer money rule has conditions, followed by the bank account on the other side of the transfer. Select an account, or select Choose during bank reconciliation to decide each time the rule is applied.

How rules are applied

A rule is suggested for a statement line when all of the following are true.

  • The direction of the transaction suits the rule type: money spent for a spend money rule, money received for a receive money rule, and either direction for a transfer money rule.
  • The rule runs on all bank accounts, or on the account being reconciled.
  • The rule's conditions are met, according to its Any or All setting.

Only one rule is suggested for each line. Where several rules match, the rule highest in the list takes priority. Drag rules within a tab to change their order.

On the reconciliation page, a suggested rule is identified by a Bank rule label and the rule's name. The account coding is shown for review and cannot be edited. Complete any field marked choose when reconciling, then select OK. Spend and receive money rules appear on the Create tab. Transfer money rules appear on the Transfer tab.

To disregard a suggested rule for a single line, select Enter details manually. Select Apply rule to return to the suggestion.

Undoing a reconciliation

Open the transaction from the Bank Transactions list, open its menu and select Unreconcile. The statement line returns to the unreconciled list, and Marbles reverses the accounting according to how the line was reconciled.

  • Match: the payment is reversed, and the invoice, bill or expense claim returns to awaiting payment.
  • Create or Transfer: the journal entry is voided.

A reconciliation cannot be undone when its journal entry falls within a locked period. Lock dates are set in your organisation's financial settings.

Bank Reconciliation report

The Bank Reconciliation report, found under Reporting, explains any difference between your ledger and your bank for a selected account, as at a selected date.

Line Meaning
Balance in Marbles The ledger balance of the bank account.
Plus outstanding payments Payments recorded in Marbles that are not yet reconciled to a statement line.
Less outstanding receipts Receipts recorded in Marbles that are not yet reconciled to a statement line.
Plus un-reconciled statement lines Statement lines imported from the feed that are not yet reconciled.
Expected statement balance The total of the lines above.
Statement balance The balance reported by the bank feed, shown with its date.
Difference The expected statement balance less the statement balance. A difference of zero indicates that the ledger agrees with the bank.

The outstanding payments, outstanding receipts and un-reconciled statement lines are itemised beneath the summary.

Roles and permissions

Role Banking access
Reader View bank accounts, bank transactions and transaction details.
Advisor Everything a Reader can do, plus link bank accounts, reconcile and unreconcile transactions, and manage bank rules.
Administrator Everything an Advisor can do.