Businesses and bank accounts

Businesses and bank accounts form the structure underneath Simple-C bookkeeping. A transaction belongs to a bank account, and each bank account belongs to a business. Setting up that relationship correctly is required before you can import a statement or enter most records.

Before you begin

You need a client record before creating a business. If the person or organization is not in Simple-C yet, start with Managing clients.

You also need the following business information:

• Legal or working business name
• EIN
• NAICS industry code
• Business contact information and address
• Start date and office assignment
• Owner or owners
• Bank name and the account’s last four digits

Create a business from a client

1. Open Tax Files → Clients.
2. Find the client and open the client profile.
3. Start the business setup flow.
4. Enter the business name, EIN, and NAICS code.
5. Add the business email, phone, address, start date, and office.
6. Select or add the business owner information.
7. Add one or more bank accounts.
8. Review the completion screen and open the new business or continue to bookkeeping.

The setup flow keeps business information, owners, and bank accounts together. If you do not have the bank details yet, you can finish the business and add a bank later.

Choose the NAICS code carefully

The NAICS code describes the business’s industry. Search by code or industry title and choose the closest valid match.

This choice is more than descriptive: company features such as Classification Rules can use the NAICS sector to find similar businesses when you clone rules. Correct industry data makes those suggestions more useful.

Add a bank account

You can add banks during business setup or from Config → Banks.

1. Select the business in the header.
2. Open Config → Banks.
3. Select Add New.
4. Confirm the business shown in the form. When you arrived with a selected business, that field is fixed to the current context.
5. Enter the Bank name.
6. Enter only the last four digits of the account.
7. Save.

Use a clear name that distinguishes similar accounts, such as “Chase Checking” and “Chase Business Card.” Never put a complete bank account number in the name or last-four field.

Manage existing bank accounts

The Banks page lists the business, bank name and last four digits, status, and available actions.

• Use the Status filter to show active or inactive accounts.
• Toggle the status when an account should no longer be used for new work but its history must remain available.
• Use Edit to correct the bank name or last four digits.
• Use Delete only when you are certain the account is not needed.

Simple-C can block deletion when an account has related data. In that situation, leave the account in place and make it inactive. This preserves historical entries and reports.

Understand business and bank context

Different screens scope data differently:

Screen	Business	Bank	Year
Manual Entry	Required	Required	Required
Entry Workflow	Required	Required	Required/import period
Summary	Required	Required	Required
Most reports	Required	One bank or all accounts	Year or date range
Assets	Required	All business banks	Depends on report

The business selector in the header controls the broad context. Bank and year selectors inside a page narrow the records further.

When to use “all accounts”

Reports that offer Consolidate all accounts combine eligible bank accounts for the selected business. Use it for a business-wide financial view. Choose one bank when you are reconciling a statement or investigating a specific account.

Assets are business-level records, so the Assets area and asset reports do not require you to select one bank.

Common setup problems

Problem	What to check
A business is missing from the header selector	Confirm the business belongs to your company and your role or office can access its client.
No banks appear on an entry screen	Add an active bank account to the selected business.
A report has no data	Confirm the business, bank or all-accounts option, and year/date range.
The wrong business keeps appearing	Clear the header selection, choose the correct business, and reopen the page.
A bank cannot be deleted	It likely has related records; make it inactive to preserve history.

Once the structure is ready, continue with Adding your first expense.