Balance sheet report in Bokio

The balance sheet report shows the balance sheet of the company’s financial position at a certain point in time. Which assets are financed by equity and what proportion are liabilities. The sum of equity and liabilities is always the same as the total assets. As the assets and equity/liabilities must be balanced, this is called the balance report.  

In the balance sheet report, the company reports its assets and its equity and liabilities. Here you can see the opening balance for the fiscal year, profit or loss (movement in the balance sheet), and the closing balance. Here it is a good idea to make sure that the opening balance for the first fiscal year is completely accurate.

The balance sheet report is used to compare the company’s assets at the beginning and the end of the year in order to analyse changes.

The first year of operation

If this is your company’s very first fiscal year, it’s possible that the opening balance for the year is zero. If this is the case, you don’t need to enter an opening balance. If, for example, you have injected equity or share capital into the company before the company was started, this should be recorded at the start date.

If this isn’t the first year of operation

If your company has been operating for one or more years you should ensure that the correct figures are entered for the opening balances. If you’ve chosen to start bookkeeping for 2017, for example, then you should use the closing balance for 2016 as the opening balance for 2017 in Bokio. You enter this in Settings → Set the opening balance for the first year. Find out more about how to check opening balances here.

How do I read the balance sheet report?

Fixed assets
These are assets that are expected to remain in the company for more than one year. These include financial funds such as shares and tangible assets like equipment and machinery or intangible assets like patents.

Current assets
These are assets that are expected to be consumed in the business within one year. This is where things like cash, bank balances, stock, and accounts receivable are recorded.

Equity
Where did the profit for the year end up? You can check under equity. Here you record things such as share capital, equity, accumulated profit or loss (retained earnings), and the profit or loss for the year, depending on the type of company you have.

Long-term liabilities
Any loans you have in the company are listed here.

Current liabilities
This includes tax liabilities and accounts payable. If there are accounts payable in the opening balance, you have invoices from the previous year that you have yet to pay.

In the balance sheet report in Bokio, you can click on each category and account to see exactly which journal entries fall under which account and which category they are in (assets, liabilities, and equity). The bookkeeping accounts that relate to the balance sheet report are 1XXX (current assets), XX Fixed Assets, 2XXX (liabilities) or 3XXX (equity).