Linking Bank Accounts in the Accounts List

In this article:

• Adding a Link to a Bank Account
• Deleting a Link to a Bank Account

You can create banking contacts in your Practice Management system and then link them to accounts listed in your Accounts List. You must complete these tasks before creating any document or transactions requiring a bank.

Creating a Banking Contact

Before you can link a bank account to a bank, you must first make sure bank has a contact record in your system.

To do this:

1. In Practice Management, in the global search box, enter the text bank and then select Enter Your Bank Name from the list of contacts that appears.
   
2. Edit the contact information to reflect the customer’s bank information, making sure Bank is selected as the Default contact type. (See Creating a Contact and Editing a Contact for complete instructions on doing this.) 
3. Save your work when you're finished.

Adding a Link to a Bank Account

This workflow should be followed to link a physical bank account number to an account set up in Actionstep Accounting (for example, your current trading bank account, business account, or savings account). It is only available to accounts that have an Account Type of Bank.

To link accounts to a bank:

1. In Actionstep, go to Accounting > Accounts > Account List. The Accounts List page appears.
2. In the account list, find an account that has an Account Type of Bank. 
3. In the corresponding Additional Info column, click Link Bank Account. 
   The Create Bank Account window appears.
4. Provide the following information:
   • GL account: This shows the account you have selected to add a bank account to.
   • Bank contact record: Select the name of the bank the account is held with from the drop-down list. The bank must already be set up as a contact with a contact type of "Bank" for it to appear in the list. (See the instructions in "Adding a Link to a Bank Account", earlier.
   • Bank account number: Enter your bank account number. If you use any import/export formats, ensure this is correct; otherwise, it is for display purposes only.
     TIP:  You may not want the bank account number to be visible. Even though it is required, you can enter a random number, like 12345-678.
   • Account display name: Enter a name or description of the bank account. This name must be unique. It will be shown throughout Actionstep when viewing bank account information. 
   • Print template: Select the template you want to use for deposit slips.
   • Branch name: If your bank requires a specific branch name to appear on deposit slips, enter it here. Most banks do not require this. 
   • Transit code: If your bank requires a transit code (i.e., SWIFT or BIC code) to appear on deposit slips, enter it here. Most banks do not require this.
   • Electronic banking - Enable: Toggle this option to on to enable electronic banking. Electronic banking allows you to export direct credit or direct debit payments to your bank using a bank-approved File Format. Not all banks are currently supported.
5. When you're finished making changes, click Save. The account details will now appear in the Accounts List for the selected bank account.

Deleting a Link to a Bank Account

You can delete the link between an account in the Accounts List and its associated bank. For example, if you change banks, you will need to update the bank account details.

To do this:

1. In Actionstep, go to Accounting > Accounts > Account List. The Accounts List page appears.
2. In the account list, find an account that has an Account Type of Bank. 
3. In the corresponding Additional Info column, click the bank account name. 
   The Edit Bank Account window appears.
4. Click Delete link in the bottom-left corner of the window. The Delete Bank Account window appears.
5. Confirm the removal by selecting the account you want to delete and providing a reason. 
6. Click Delete Selection.  The link is removed. 

Once the link is removed, you can set up the new link for a new or different bank account. 

Related Articles:

• Entering an Opening Balance for an Account
• Correcting an "Out of Balance" Balance Sheet (Troubleshooting)