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Reconciling PDF bank statements without a bank feed

Not every bank sends transactions straight into accounting software. When the statement arrives as a PDF or on paper, here is what reconciliation looks like, and how AI reads it for you.

2026-10-01 · Invoreg · 2 min read

Bank feeds are the easy path: transactions flow from the bank into the accounting software every day, and reconciliation starts with the data already there. But not every bank, and not every account, connects that way. Smaller banks, savings accounts, foreign-currency accounts and older client set-ups often don't.

What happens without a feed

The statement arrives as a PDF, a CSV export or a printed page. Someone then does one of three things:

  1. Imports a file, if the bank offers a format the accounting software accepts and the columns line up.
  2. Types the lines in, one by one, from the PDF.
  3. Ticks them off on paper, against the ledger, and posts the differences by hand.

Each is slow, and the typing step adds errors before matching has even started. For an accounting firm, the problem multiplies: every client company can bank somewhere different.

Formats you will meet

  • PDF statements: the most common for small businesses. Readable for people, not for software.
  • Scans and photos: a PDF that is really a picture of paper.
  • CSV or spreadsheet exports: structured, but every bank lays them out differently.
  • MT940 and CAMT.053: the structured formats banks use between themselves; useful when a bank provides them.

Reading the statement with AI

Invoreg treats a bank statement the way it treats an invoice: upload it, and the AI reads every line, even from a PDF or a scan. For each line it captures the date, amount, reference and counterparty, then matches the payment to the invoices it settles. Lines it can't match with confidence are flagged for review.

The result is the same whether the statement came through a feed or as a PDF: a list of matched lines and a short list of exceptions.

What it costs

A bank statement uses the same credits as an invoice: one credit covers a document of up to three pages, and longer statements use one credit for every three pages.

Where to start

Take one client and last month's statement. Upload it, see what is matched and what is flagged, and compare that with how long the month took by hand. The bank reconciliation page has a one-minute video, or book a demo and bring the statement with you.