What is Bank Statement Converter Software: Benefits, Best Practices, Choosing the Right One

The manual process of extracting and organizing data from bank statements can be tedious and error-prone. Inefficient conversion methods can lead to reconciliation delays, inaccurate financial reporting, and wasted time. 

Businesses are turning to bank statement converter software to address this pain point. These tools automate the conversion process, making it faster, more accurate, and less labor-intensive. 

This article will explore the best bank statement converters available, highlighting their features, benefits, and how they can streamline your business's financial operations. 

What is Bank Statement Converter Software?

A bank statement converter software converts bank statements into Excel, CSV, JSON, or other preferred formats and extracts and processes data from structured, unstructured, and semi-structured documents. 

The following two stages require human intervention: 

1. Uploading the bank statements

2. Final review of the converted data

The software streamlines data extraction and data processing for businesses by handling these repetitive manual tasks. 

Use cases for bank statements converter 

Lending institutions

Lending institutions receive bank statements from thousands of borrowers for loan applications. They can convert PDF bank statements into Excel formats to easily access the borrowers' income, check the accuracy of data, and reduce the turnaround time for loan approval. 

Financial auditors

Auditors must reconcile bank statements, analyze taxes, and scrutinize their client's finances. Under a tight deadline, converting PDF bank statements into JSON formats helps them verify the data quickly to file taxes for their clients.  

Business owners 

Business owners must track income, expenses, and payroll to manage finances effectively. Bank statement converters streamline this process by digitizing statements, enabling easy reconciliation, tracking cash flow, and integrating accounting software.

Use Document AI for Automated Data Extraction

Automate banking with 99% accuracy & cut costs by 80% using Document AI.

Benefits of using bank statement converter software

a. Reduces the processing time from days to 30-60 seconds 

Investing in an automation tool for converting bank statements can be time-saving. For example, financial professionals who help clients with tax filing at the end of the financial year have limited time. The situation gets tough with multiple clients. 

Depending only on humans to convert bank statements in Excel formats is prone to errors and time-consuming. Using a tool with humans in the loop can save time. Instead of spending days or weeks manually inputting this data, the bank statement converter processes documents in 30-60 seconds. 

b. Converts data with 99%+ accuracy

Distractions from the work environment and boredom due to monotonous tasks might lead to manual data conversion errors. 

Automated data extraction offers more than 99% accuracy in data conversion. Hence, your team can verify the extracted data and flag discrepancies to reduce data errors and fraudulent changes.  

c. Adaptability

Bank statement formats may vary bank-wise. Though humans adapt to different formats and types of bank statements, extracting data from a different format is time-consuming. They must understand the documents, locate the information, and convert them. 

On the other hand, the bank statement converter extracts data from different formats and information within seconds. 

d. Reduces operational costs by 60-70% 

Document-heavy businesses require significant human resources for data processing. Document processing software operates 24/7 to extract data, regardless of document volume. This reduces operational costs by 60-70%. The ROI increases and the staff can focus on more strategic tasks. 

e. Versatility 

Bank statement converters are versatile tools that go beyond conversion. They integrate with various applications, facilitating real-time data flow and reducing errors. They support multiple file formats, ensuring compatibility with accounting software. 

f. Improve customer satisfaction

A bank converter software extracts data and processes information faster than manual efforts. 

For example, automated document processing using IDP (Intelligent Document Processing) in the lending industry helps process documents faster, allowing the loan officer to get faster loan approvals. Customers can immediately hear back about their loan application, thus improving the overall customer experience.   

How to choose the right bank statement converter software?

The key things to look for in bank statement converter software are: 

• Conversion accuracy - The accuracy rate at which the tool converts the data is critical. Ideally, a software solution must convert data with more than 95% accuracy, and an advanced data extraction software has more than 99% accuracy. 
• User interface and ease of use: Look for a bank statement converter with a manageable learning curve for maximum user adoption. 
• Compatibility with different bank statement formats - Choose software that can read, scan, and extract data from multiple bank statement formats. The tool must also be able to convert statements into Excel, CSV, and JSON formats. 

• The technology used -  Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology finds wide-ranging use in converting bank statements. But there's a catch. A template-based OCR technology can convert only a specific type of bank statement. Your team would need to create templates constantly to convert different types of statements. 

This process can get time-intensive. So, invest in an automation tool that integrates OCR with artificial intelligence (AI) or uses IDP technology to learn and adapt to different modifications of bank statements by itself.  

• Integrations - Ensure your bank statement converter software integrates with other departments' third-party software. 
• Security and data privacy compliance - Does the document AI software offer enterprise-grade security, considering bank statements are highly confidential sources of customer information? Look for features such as role-based access and cloud storage. Also, the system should comply with national, industry-specific, and international regulations, such as GDPR, to avoid regulatory fines.  
• Customer support and software maintenance services - Downtimes can affect business continuity. Your bank converter software should offer 24/7 customer support, backup, and maintenance for downtime. 
• Pricing models - If you’re starting with bank statement conversion, a fixed price may not be the best option. Also, look for scalable pricing (such as pay-as-you-go) to suit your business needs. 

Best practices for using bank statement converter software

Here are some best practices for using a statement converter software to its full potential. 

• Optimize settings: Customize the software settings to suit your specific requirements, such as date formatting, currency symbols, and category tagging, to streamline the conversion process and improve efficiency.
• Backup data regularly: Create backups of converted bank statements and associated data to prevent loss in case of software malfunctions or system failures.

• Monitor performance: Regularly validate the bank statement converter software's performance, including processing speed, accuracy rates, and user satisfaction, to identify areas for improvement and optimization.
• Validate the extracted data - Validate the extracted data. Review the fields that need human correction. 

• Integrate into existing workflow - Integrate the data into accounting and other applications after converting the data.

Summary Table: Bank Statement Converter Software

Choosing the best bank statement converter software

Investing in a bank statement converter software has many benefits. For businesses handling thousands of bank statements, this software improves accuracy to 99%+. But the key here lies in choosing the right software for your business. 

Choose a tool that doesn't require time to create templates for OCR technology. Docsumo integrates OCR technology with AI to further reduce human efforts. Additionally, it offers integrations into software to make the decision-making process as easy as possible. 

Sign up for a free trial of Docsumo to convert bank statements into different formats with minimal effort.  

FAQs: Bank statement converter software

1. How does bank statement converter software facilitate financial management?

With bank statement converter software, statements are converted into Excel formats in minutes. The extracted data can then be integrated into accounting software. This makes analyzing and reporting the income and expenses process much more efficient. 

2. Can bank statement converter software integrate with other financial tools?

Bank statement converter software can integrate with other financial applications like QuickBooks and Xero. But only some tools offer integrations. Check your industry-specific integrations and then finalize the tool. 

3. What are the essential features to look for in bank statement converter software?

Some essential features to look for are the ability to validate data automatically and train different ML models. Additionally, also look for integrations into different software. 

4. What are some benefits of using a bank statement converter software? 

The two major benefits of using a bank statement converter are cost reduction and improved efficiency. Moreover, it saves thousands of hours and offers a high accuracy rate. 

5. How to convert PDF bank statements to Excel formats using Docsumo? 

Upload PDF bank statements in the Docsumo tool and select the preferred format for conversion. The tool converts the data into Excel format automatically. Download it and then integrate it into other applications.