Compare
Reconciliation in spreadsheets vs a rules-based recon desk.
Spreadsheets are where most reconciliations start. They stop working when volumes grow, the macro’s author leaves or the auditor asks how a match was made.
| Area | Spreadsheets and macros | Rules-based recon desk |
|---|---|---|
| Matching | Lookups and macros, run when someone has time | Rules you write, run daily |
| Rules | In one person’s head or a macro | Written, versioned, maker-checker |
| Breaks | Age quietly in a tab | Classified, aged and owned |
| Recurring breaks | Fixed by hand every day | Turned into a suggested rule |
| Audit trail | Hard to show who matched what | One audit log |
| Close | Month-end crunch | Daily |
| MIS and packs | Copy-paste | Drafted with every number traced |
When spreadsheets are fine
- Low volume and few sources.
- A one-off or occasional reconciliation.
- A team that is still working out the rules.
When to move
- Volumes too high to match by hand daily.
- Breaks ageing because nobody has time.
- Rules only one person understands.
- Auditors asking for evidence of how matches were made.
Start with the noisiest recon, run it in parallel with the spreadsheet, then make it primary. See matching rules.
How AutoRecon does it
AutoRecon is built for finance, operations and treasury teams at banks, NBFCs and payment companies. Switch, network, core, GL, bank and MT950 statements and ERP files are loaded as they land and mapped to one schema, with bad rows rejected and the reason given. UPI and IMPS, cards, NEFT/RTGS, nostro and vendor recons are matched daily on rules you write: exact, tolerance and fuzzy narration matching. Each break is classified, aged and given an owner; recurring breaks become a suggested rule, which takes effect only after maker-checker. The daily close is approved by maker and checker, and MIS, board packs and regulatory returns are drafted with every number traced to the query that produced it. It is read-only by default and writes nothing to your core unless you open the path.
Questions
Is Excel good enough for reconciliation?
For low volumes and few sources, often yes. It breaks down with high daily volumes, rules only one person understands, ageing breaks and audit questions about how matches were made.
How do I move reconciliation off spreadsheets?
Write down the current rules, start with the noisiest recon, run the new process in parallel with the spreadsheet, then make it primary.
See it on your own data. AutoRecon — Close the day before it starts. Book a 30-minute working session with an engineer.