Transactions details can now automatically appear in the cloud-based accounting platform.
The Commonwealth Bank is rolling out an upgrade of its systems that will make it easier for small business users to set up feeds from their bank accounts in Xero’s cloud-based accounting platform.
The feeds feature allows small business owners to view transaction details from their bank accounts through their Xero dashboard. It means that instead of having to key in the details after paying a bill, the transaction is automatically copied from the bank into the business’ books and added to an account previously selected for that payee.
Xero has previously offered feeds from more than 50 banks in Australia, along with global payments providers such as PayPal and Stripe. For example, NAB has offered the arrangement since May of last year.
However, the Commonwealth Bank is the first to allow the arrangement to be set up either directly from within Xero, or from within its own online banking site.
Because the set-up process is handled through an API (application programming interface), the feeds appear overnight instead of after a 10-day waiting period, and there is no manual paperwork involved in setting it up.
There are also no additional fees or charges to use the feature, aside from the usual Xero subscription costs.
In a statement, the banking giant said the improved integration will allow business owners and managers to reconcile more of their transactions automatically, and get a more up-to-date view of their cashflow from any device.
“We know small businesses struggle with staying across their finances, which is why we are focused on delivering simple, intuitive functionality to make their lives easier,” Commonwealth Bank executive general manager small business Clive van Horen said.
“More than 100 small businesses requested a data feed with Xero in the first 24 hours of this functionality being available, which shows small businesses are yearning for these types of solutions.”
Thomas Paule, the chief digital officer at accounting firm Findex, told BIT increased convergence between financial services products and cloud-based platforms is likely to allow easier business management and simpler financial accounting.
“This announcement is yet another example of the convergence of the financial services world – tighter integration between banks, professional services and software vendors,” Paule said.
The improved Commonwealth Bank integration comes less than a week after Xero launched a new content pack for Microsoft Power BI that includes 25 pre-built business intelligence data visualisations, including revenue versus expenses, profit/loss trend, debtor days and return on investment.
