Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a revolutionary technology. According to a recent Gartner survey in 2019, 37% of the surveyed businesses had already adopted AI technology, and the numbers would have increased by now.

There's no surprise that this revolutionary technology has also penetrated the accounting sector. Artificial intelligence can be used to automate processes in the accounting sector. For example, AI can help you to manage cash flow more effectively by using predictive analytics. This will help you to make better decisions about buying inventory or paying bills on time. There are several such use cases of AI in the accounting industry, such as:

Automating Tedious Tasks

As AI becomes more advanced, it will have an increasingly large impact on the way we work. In accounting, there will be less need for human intervention when it comes to tedious tasks such as data entry and calculations.

For example, an AI programme can automatically categorise your expenses and organise them into different categories like "food" or "gas." This makes it easy to see what areas of your business cost the most and where you can save some cash. It also makes it easier to see how much money came in each month from each source so that you can plan accordingly for future expenses.

AI can take over these tasks and make them much more efficient, freeing up your time for more critical tasks like strategic planning or client meetings. The beauty of AI is that it's not just about speed—it's also about accuracy.

Automation saves your employees time, allowing them to focus on more critical tasks, such as decision-making and communicating with clients.

Identifying Fraud

Accounting fraud is not a new phenomenon. It has been around for centuries and has grown in sophistication over time. However, it is not always easy to detect fraud as it occurs. In addition, accounting fraud may be difficult to prove because of the complex transactions and records typically involved in such cases.

One of the ways AI can help identify fraud is by providing more accurate data analysis than humans alone can provide. Accounting fraud often involves manipulating data that is used for financial reporting purposes. This could include falsifying information or making adjustments that distort the information presented in financial statements, which investors and others use to decide whether to do business with a company or individual.

Using artificial intelligence with big data analytics tools can help identify patterns or anomalies in data sets that would be difficult for humans alone to see clearly or quickly before they could take action against those responsible for committing fraud against an organisation through their actions or omissions during their employment.

Enabling Clients To Track Their Money In Real-Time

Most clients of accounting firms have no idea where their money is going. This makes it difficult for them to manage their finances effectively and efficiently.

With the help of AI, though, clients can easily track their expenses in real-time and also keep track of what they spend on different things throughout the day or week, depending on how often they want updates on their finances from an app or website.

Electronic Signature

Electronic signatures are becoming increasingly common in accounting because they make sharing documents, signing contracts, and sending invoices easier.

Electronic signature has many benefits for accounting departments, such as:

• It reduces costs by eliminating paper and printing costs and eliminating the need to scan documents in electronic format. In fact, according to a recent survey, businesses who migrate from signing traditionally to using electronic signature software can see an increase of around 55% to 78% in savings.
• Reduces errors by eliminating manual data entry through scanning and re-keying, ensuring that only authorised persons can digitally sign any document. The same LuraPen survey highlights that electronic signatures can reduce 80% of errors.
• Improves efficiency by allowing documents to be signed electronically at any time of day or night, regardless of where you are located (for example, travelling).

Cloud Computing

Cloud-based accounting software has been around for years, but until recently, most people were unaware of its benefits. However, cloud-based accounting software has become increasingly popular over the past few years because it offers many benefits that cannot be found in traditional accounting software.

The benefits are so tempting that most accountants now use cloud accounting software for daily work. A recent survey indicates that over half the respondent accounting firms use cloud accounting to enhance project management functions and improve communications.

Some of the crucial benefits of cloud computing for accounting firms include:

• Cloud computing allows accounting firms to access data and information from any location, which is especially helpful for mobile accounting professionals who need to work remotely.
• Cloud computing provides a more secure environment than traditional methods of storing data, making it ideal for storing sensitive information like client files.
• Cloud computing also allows accounting firms to scale up their operations quickly as new staff members join their team or if they need to hire more employees during busy periods.

Big Data Analytics

Big Data Analytics can help accountants improve their business processes by making better decisions based on data analysis. For example, an accountant may use a software tool that automatically analyses historical data about business transactions and identifies common trends among those transactions that might indicate fraud or errors in reporting. This information can be used to detect potential issues before they become problems.

One example of big data analytics used in accounting is when a company uses it for tax compliance. They might use it on employee-related data, such as salary information or employee pension contributions. The company could also use this information to calculate how much tax they owe or how much money they need to set aside for other taxes due during the year (such as corporation tax).

Final Thoughts

As the world moves at a rapid pace, businesses must keep up. The accounting sector has long relied on effective paper records management, but those days are quickly fading away. As digital storage becomes the norm, you can expect all kinds of advancements in this area – including AI analytics for business intelligence. After all, there's no sense in relying on outdated techniques when you have so much opportunity for growth available with emerging trends.

While these new digital banks do not boast the same kind of experience as their traditional rivals, this is a big part of their success. What they lack in heritage, they also lack in being tied into the established banking system. While banks that have been around for decades have made great strides to adapt to a digital market, they have no choice but to depend on technologies that have been around for just as long for some of their processes. Challenger banks are not tied down in the same way and benefit from being built around technology that is difficult, if not impossible, for the more established names to deploy.

1. Cloud Computing

Virtually everyone has heard of cloud computing, even if only in terms of storing their photos in the cloud. It shouldn't come as a surprise that banks rely on vast amounts of data storage and that the security of this data is of paramount importance. For a website, deciding to switch to cloud computing is relatively simple. It involves a simple data transfer and perhaps a few days of downtime at most. However, for a bank, moving data is not as straightforward. Banks that have been around for many years may have vast amounts of data collected before cloud storage was even a concept. Those established names cannot afford downtime either – even outages lasting just a few hours make national news in some countries.

The advantage that challenger banks have is that cloud computing existed as a robust, secure concept before they did. They had the opportunity to start collecting data in the cloud immediately, with no need to ever look back. In practice, this makes their data storage just as secure as any other bank but far more flexible and sustainable. These incredible connectivity levels also ensure few restrictions on new features and ideas, as cloud data can plug into just about anything.

2. Blockchain

Many people associate blockchain with cryptocurrencies, and while this is undoubtedly the most prominent connection to date, there are far wider use cases. Blockchain technology also underpins the trend for non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and also powers some of the latest functionality in challenger banks. 

While some people value cryptocurrencies primarily due to their lack of relationship with the traditional banking system, some challenger banks use the concept extensively. At some of the biggest digital banks, this involves providing wallet storage for existing and emerging cryptocurrencies. Others go further and use blockchain technology at the core of their offering, favouring blockchain-based currencies over their fiat counterparts and providing traditional banking services without a dollar in sight.  

3. Open Banking

Open banking protocols vary in popularity depending on where in the world a bank is based. It remains an emerging technology in the US, although support is increasing all the time. It is already so established in the UK that many of the biggest banks now utilise the technology to some degree.

In an industry where rivals can quickly become enemies, the concept of sharing data and financial information was virtually taboo for a long time. However, the sheer number of digital banks that have entered the market meant they learnt the importance of working closely early on.  

Many of these new digital banks were built with open banking in mind. Even those that do not explicitly utilise it themselves are happy to share that information with financial services beyond banks. An increase in solutions to view balances, outgoings, and payment schedules on apps that are not banks in their own right, makes banking easier for consumers. The concept of shared data without any negative impact on security will remain a cornerstone of digital banks and one that their established counterparts will need to catch up with.

4. Microservices

An individual does not need to go too far back in time to remember when a transfer from an account with one bank to another could take several days. This remained the case even as the internet and e-commerce became mainstream. The delay reflects the outdated processing systems in place at established banks and the limitations on implementing change.

In some cases, those traditional banks are still working to catch up to this day. Digital banks benefit, once again, from launching at a time when the framework to operate a bank was far more advanced. Microservices are a fairly advanced concept even compared to current IT services, let alone banking infrastructure. However, they also represent an invaluable tool for digital banks to be faster and more reactive to the needs of their customers.

In the past, changes to established banking protocol could take months or even years. In one case, a digital bank founder left a senior role with an established brand to start a digital alternative because it was easier to create a new bank than fix the old one. However, these days, updates and new features can go live instantly with absolutely no downtime thanks to microservices.

Some say that established banks are a relic of the past. Between digital banks and cryptocurrencies, their role has diminished over time. That remains to be seen, and some are doing better than others in adapting to new opportunities. However, the rapid increase in popularity of challenger banks indicates a sentiment among the general public for faster speeds, more features, and greater flexibility. It would take many years for the big names to disappear if that were to be the case, but it is clear that their upstart rivals have vast technological advantages, and it is up to them to capitalise.