The Accounting Trend for 2020 is digitisation. STP has already pushed businesses and individuals to online platforms of reporting, so it makes sense that those small businesses and individuals adopt real-time digital solutions that optimise accuracy, security and time.

Small business accounting

Xero has announced an increase in subscription fees of $2 per month from 18 March 2020 for its Starter, Standard and Premium members for the automatic integration of HubDoc. This is a welcome change, and will enable users to cut out manual data management and adopt a real-time accounts payable and receivable process. Here’s a word from Xero on the offering:

• Easy bill and receipt capture – Hubdoc makes it easy for clients to upload bills and receipts using their desktop, mobile device, email or scanner – giving you access to the documents you need, when you need them.
• Automated data entry – Once documents are uploaded to Hubdoc, the key data is automatically extracted and synced to Xero as accurately coded transactions.
• One-click bank reconciliation – Xero then matches these transactions to the bank feed for one-click reconciliation.
• Secure and centralised document management – All client documents are searchable and easy to access from anywhere in the world.

Automatic Xero payments with NAB

Xero and the NAB are piloting an optional payment program that will enable the automatic and immediate payment of business bills. This has the potential to simplify cashflow and reduce manual handling of accounts and remove the timely process of uploading ABA files, meaning that you will be able to pay multiple bills from your smart phone.

The centralisation and digitisation of account management, especially through cloud technology is the biggest accounting trend and opportunity of 2020. It is also the biggest risk and it is essential for our clients to optimise cyber security options and protections. It is something we take incredibly seriously in our own business. Let us know if you’d like to talk more about this.