Start a Reconciliation

Open the reconciliation workflow for a bank or credit card account, review the statement dates and balances that SPRK locks or derives, and start the clearing session correctly.

When To Use This

Use this workflow when you are ready to begin reconciling one bank or credit card account against a statement.

Before You Start

  • An active company is selected.
  • The bank or credit card account you want to reconcile already exists.
  • You are ready to confirm that the selected account matches the statement you are holding, even if SPRK opens a saved default account automatically.
  • The transactions you expect to clear have already been confirmed in SPRK.
  • For a first-time reconciliation with no prior reconcile history, you know which journal entry should serve as the opening balance anchor for that account.

Steps

  1. Open Reconcile.
  2. In the account picker near the page header, choose the bank or credit card account you want to reconcile.
  • If SPRK opens a saved default account automatically, confirm that it matches the statement before you continue.
  1. Select Start.
  2. Review the Start reconciliation window:
  • If SPRK finds a prior reconciliation for that account, the Statement opening date and Statement opening balance fields are locked from the last posted reconciliation before the selected statement ending date.
  • If SPRK does not find a prior reconciliation, select the Opening balance journal entry that should anchor the account’s first reconciliation.
  1. For a first-time reconciliation, confirm that SPRK derives the opening and ending values from the selected journal entry before continuing.
  2. If this is not the first reconciliation, enter or confirm the Statement ending date.
  • Use the calendar control or type the date directly in the order set by your Preferences date format.
  1. If this is not the first reconciliation, enter the Statement ending balance:
  • Use a positive number for bank accounts.
  • Use a negative number for credit accounts.
  1. Select the modal action to continue:
  • Start begins a normal reconciliation session when a prior reconciliation exists.
  • Reconcile completes the opening anchor flow immediately when this is the first reconciliation and you are using the journal-entry anchor.

How SPRK Determines The Beginning Balance

SPRK uses reconciliation history to set the beginning balance for a normal reconciliation. It does not recalculate the beginning balance from every general-ledger line each time you open the reconciliation page.

  • For the first reconciliation on an account, the source is the selected Opening balance journal entry. Completing that first-time flow creates the posted reconciliation anchor that future reconciliations use.
  • For later reconciliations, the source is the last posted reconciliation for the same account before the selected statement ending date.
  • The Statement opening date and Statement opening balance are locked from that prior posted reconciliation record. They are carried forward as reconciliation history, not edited directly in the start window.
  • Starting or finishing reconciliation does not create a journal entry, and selecting an opening-balance journal entry for the first anchor does not create a duplicate ledger posting.
  • If a journal entry that affects an earlier period is later edited or reversed, financial reports can change according to that ledger correction, while posted reconciliation history continues to show the values recorded for that statement period.
  • Use Resolve common reconciliation exceptions when the opening balance looks wrong.

What Happens Next

The reconciliation workflow is initialized with statement dates and balances for the selected account.

  • Starting a normal reconciliation session does not create a new general ledger entry.
  • The page loads confirmed transactions for the selected account and preselects those that fall inside the statement window.
  • Eligible unreconciled confirmed rows can still appear for manual selection even when their transaction date is after the statement ending date. Use statement evidence to decide whether a later-dated row belongs on the current statement.
  • A first-time opening anchor also does not create a journal entry. It creates a posted reconciliation record so future reconciliations have an opening balance reference.

If Something Looks Wrong

What You See What To Check What To Do Next
You are about to take an action that may affect the result Starting on the wrong bank or credit card account Confirm the visible company, page, and workflow state before continuing
The entered value or selection does not produce the expected result Choosing the wrong opening balance journal entry for the first reconciliation Correct the value or selection before continuing
The entered value or selection does not produce the expected result Entering a positive ending balance for a credit account Correct the value or selection before continuing
The entered value or selection does not produce the expected result Typing a statement date in a different order than your saved date-format preference Correct the value or selection before continuing
The page does not show the expected result Expecting SPRK to let you edit the opening balance from a prior posted reconciliation Review the visible action or related workflow before continuing
The result looks ready, but a key check is unresolved Assuming the statement ending date alone hides every later-dated confirmed row Account, confirmed status, unreconciled state, and statement judgment still matter

Practice And Examples

Use the practice file and screenshots to review selected statement rows, a zero difference, and posting the reconciliation.

Reconciliation selected rows with a zero difference before posting

Reconciliation completion confirmation after posting

Selected statement rows can tie to the entered ending balance. Posting the reconciliation creates history for later report review.