26.05.2022

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO REVIEW OUR BANK STATEMENT?

Banking services are already so diverse that the use of credit or debit cards to withdraw money from ATMs, payment of utilities through Internet systems, Internet payments are now part of our daily lives. For each of these bank transactions, you must have an account from which to send or to which you can deposit funds.

The movement of your money and the available balance is important information not only for the bank, but also for yourself. By reviewing your bank statements regularly, you will be able to see if everything is OK and find out in time if a problem arises. If your bank statement seems like an unnecessary waste of paper or a waste of time, now is the time to learn about its benefits.

The bank statement is a comprehensive list of your transactions made in the last month, which shows every movement of your money. This monthly financial document provides a summary of the activities of the account holder and is prepared by the bank at the end of each month.

Your bank may send you a statement at the end of each month if you have agreed to do so (free of charge or for a fee). Another method is to go in person to a bank office, where you can always get the document from a bank employee - on paper or by email. You can also withdraw the statement from an ATM.

Bank statements can also be found through online banking. For people who do not want to bank freely through electronic devices, there is an option for inactive online banking, where they can not make online transactions, but have access to account movements. Due to their easy accessibility and storage, electronic statements are now even more commonly used than printed ones.

When a bank statement is required by regulatory authorities for supervision and fiscal control, your document will have weight before the authorities only if it is signed and stamped by the issuing bank. In all other cases, there is no need for such evidence on the document to be valid.

What does the bank statement contain?

At the top of the bank statement is usually the name of the account holder, along with confidential information such as the account number. It also contains summary information showing time period, opening balance, transfers, withdrawals and closing balance. Each transaction is displayed in chronological order together with the respective payees / recipients, dates and amounts.

When the cash flows on the user's account, the bank automatically posts the new balance and so you can receive a new bank statement every day. Convenience is the ability to check what were the movements on your account for a certain period of time. If you have online banking, you can easily set the dates for checking the balance and cash flow in your account.

The statement also contains information about the bank, which may include customer service number, BIC of the beneficiary, guidelines for reporting errors and fraud and more. You can see the type of transaction, the account number of the other participant in the transaction, all deposits in the account, including various payment methods, interest, etc.

You can clearly see a list of all withdrawals from your account, which include: purchases on the Internet and at a POS terminal, ATM withdrawals, bank fees, automatic payments, utilities and more. You can check the reference numbers corresponding to your transactions.

The code from the bank statement is used by users when registering their card on the website of an electronic payment system. The merchant's website requires such a code, and in order to receive it, you must have a registered SMS notification service for transactions on your bank account or visit a branch of the bank where you will receive a statement with the code. Card registration in the system can also be done through an ATM, and some ATMs can register debit and credit cards.

Why are bank statements important?

This document is an excellent helper when doing budgeting and financial planning. Just as a profit and loss statement is important to any business, so a personal income statement is important for analyzing and planning your household budget. If you are looking to save money, monitoring the flow of your finances is extremely important.

In addition to improving your financial habits and plans for the future, you can also check the exact dates of all transactions through the statement. This will help you monitor the correctness of the people from whom you expect payments, as well as avoid mistakes such as missed payments or double payments.

After the bank prepares the statement at the end of the month, the account holder can analyze all movements on its cash balance. The bank statement contains information on the type of each operation, together with the relevant dates, ordering parties and recipients. With this information, you can instantly identify any fraudulent activity.

If you notice suspicious costs and cannot determine what happened, you should immediately notify the bank to make an internal check of the transaction numbers. Only with the help of a bank statement can you prevent someone else's malice towards your money.

There is no way to keep accurate company records without timely statements from the merchant's account. The information in them enables the accountant to prepare accurate financial statements. This way, the owner will avoid the worries of a sudden inspection by tax inspectors and an audit.

Bank statements can also be useful for analyzing the creditworthiness of the account holder. Most banks and financial institutions require checking bank statements for the past few years before lending to their customers. This practice also applies when applying for a mortgage.