Managing bank fees is a major concern for treasurers because it requires a significant amount of effort. This is not a new problem, and it's not going away. Signatories to numerous and varied banking service contracts, companies are navigating blindly through a fog of bank fee bills . In addition to the announced and identified costs, there are underlying or implicit fees, the explanations for which are sometimes unconvincing. The bank advisor tends to hide behind the lines of the service contract, which can only increase the client's frustration.
Faced with this reality, businesses are not on equal footing: the largest have the human and IT resources to track, document, and negotiate; smaller entities must endure and pay. There's no escaping this bill, which often remains opaque.
But electronic bank invoicing (BSB) only solves part of the problem...
By encouraging banks to produce electronic invoices with a standardized structure, large international groups have done everyone a favor. After becoming widespread across the Atlantic, this electronic invoicing, known as BSB (Bank Services Billing), arrived in Europe a few years ago. For those who possess the structure key to this camt.086 XML file, the fog lifts somewhat. It becomes possible to understand the multitude of billing lines and navigate more easily, within Excel, this rather daunting environment. That's already a definite improvement! Because NEOFI's experience, accustomed to deciphering these files, allows us to draw two important lessons:
- The BSB offer proposed by the banks does not make them infallible, which is why NEOFI provides the means to detect possible errors and demand the correction of overvalued fees or even the cancellation of imaginary fees.
- Businesses, large or small, can overcome the traditional fear of the banker. The balance of power is rebalanced, thanks to this tool of transparency, which allows for exchange and negotiation.
How can we read, but also analyze, such a large amount of data?
Despite the BSB (Bank Statement), many points of reference remain unclear. While more reactive, the treasurer is not necessarily proactive. In theory, the BSB format presents expense items, unit prices, and volume. However, in practice, inconsistencies emerge. The presentation of bank charge invoices is not standardized. Volume may be missing, with items being recalled as many times as the event occurred. Sometimes, this volume is stuck at 1 and must be deduced by identifying the multiple of the base price. Add to that the fact that item names vary from one bank to another… How can we compare, how can we analyze?
Equipped with powerful algorithms, NEOFI Bank Fees solves these difficulties by reading and processing all available information. Based on a comprehensive database of banking terms and conditions, it retrieves and compiles data, taking into account the standardized descriptions of charge categories. With its clear presentation, verification of amount consistency, and ability to search for fees not mentioned in the terms and conditions, its capabilities extend beyond simply reading the camt.086 form. Thanks to its business intelligence , it allows users to customize the graphs by modifying the analysis periods and selecting specific services, accounts, or entities. This enables the treasurer not only to observe but also to interpret and analyze the discrepancies between the volume of bank fees they have identified and the actual charges billed. Since NEOFI Bank Fees also allows them to examine, item by item, what an invoice would look like if applied to another bank's terms and conditions, the treasurer can now be both reactive and proactive. They can then engage in meaningful discussions with their advisor. The stakes are high because substantial savings are at stake, through the reduction of costs, but also thanks to the reduction of personnel costs related to the tedious sorting, entry and reading of data.
