If you only build one bookkeeping habit, make it this one. Bank reconciliation means matching every line on your bank statement to an entry in your books — until the two agree. It's the difference between books you hope are right and books you can prove are right.
Why it matters
- It catches everything. Unrecorded sales, forgotten expenses, double captures, bank fees, fraud — they all surface as unmatched lines.
- SARS believes reconciled books. In a verification or audit, books that tie to the bank statement close queries quickly. Books that don't invite deeper digging.
- Your VAT201 and tax return are built on it. Miss expenses and you overpay tax; miss income and you understate it — both are expensive.
- Your accountant charges less. Year-end on reconciled books is hours, not weeks.
How often?
Weekly is the sweet spot for most small businesses; monthly is the minimum. The longer you leave it, the harder each mystery line is to remember ("what was this R418 at Builders in March?").
The process (simpler than it sounds)
1. Import your bank statement (CSV, OFX — or even the PDF). 2. Match each line to an invoice payment, bill payment or expense in the books. 3. Create entries for anything legitimate that isn't recorded yet (bank charges, debit orders). 4. Investigate what's left — that residue is where the errors live. 5. Done when the closing balances agree.
Where the time goes — and how AI removes it
90% of bank lines are repeats: the same debit orders, the same suppliers, the same fees. Modern software matches those automatically — rules handle the regulars, and AI categorises the genuinely new lines. What used to be an evening becomes minutes of reviewing suggestions.
360books imports CSV, OFX and PDF statements (AI reads them), auto-matches deposits to open invoices, learns your recurring transactions, and lets AI suggest categories for the rest — built for South African banks and businesses. Try it on the live demo.