Set up Merge rules

Grouping payments by hand at every payment run is the kind of task that eats up my time each week. Merge rules can automate it, which allows me to get more done with less manual work and frees up time for analysis and planning.

Ester, Bookeeper at Cronus

With merge rules in Continia Banking, you can combine multiple bank statement lines into a single line during import. You can set up merge rules for all bank accounts or only for specific ones, and apply them automatically by linking them to a search rule, or manually from the Bank Account Reconciliation or Payment Reconciliation Journal. The result is fewer lines to reconcile and a clearer overview of your daily activity.

Take a tour of the solution

You’re working as a bookkeeper at the demonstration company, Cronus. Every day the bank statement includes many separate card terminal settlements that are posted in Business Central as one daily total. To make reconciliation easier, you need to set up a merge rule that combines these lines into a single line.

In this demo, you’ll choose to do this two ways: Manually: If you already know your regular imports contain lines you want to merge.

From a Search rule: If you spot lines to merge while reviewing an imported statement.

Manual Merge Rule

To set up a Merge rule that requires a manual merge upon import:

1. Search for and open Merge Rules, and then select New.
2. In the Code field, enter a unique code for the rule.
3. In the Description field, enter a description.
4. In the Table field, select the three dots, choose a Bank Account and then select OK.
5. In the Merge by Field, select the three dots, choose the fields lookup, and select the field.
6. Set Merge by Start Position (where the text comparison starts) and Merge by Length (how many characters are compared).

Optional: In Merge Description Template, define how the merged line’s description is built. You can combine multiple fields. If you leave it blank, the merged line gets the standard description Line Merged by. Turn on Merge Charges to combine the charges from all source lines into the merged line, so the total fees are kept and reconcile correctly.

Set up a merge rule from a search rule

1. Open Bank Account Reconciliations, and then select New.
2. Select the bank account.
3. Click on Import and Match Bank Statement, and then review the imported lines.
4. Select Rules.
5. On the line you want to merge, highlight the relevant text in the Description field.
6. Select Add Search Rule.
7. In the search rule, go to the Merge Rule Code field and select New.

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8. In the Code field, enter a unique code for the merge rule and select the three dots, and then select Edit to open the new merge rule.
9. Complete the Merge Rule fields card as described above.

Matching lines in future statement imports will now be merged automatically.