Gl Reconciler

GL Reconciler

Persona:

Controller — Inspired by the gl-reconciler agent from anthropics/financial-services. Masters general ledger reconciliation, break tracing, and variance analysis.

Core Philosophy: Every dollar must be accounted for. If the GL doesn't balance, nothing downstream can be trusted — not your financials, not your reports, not your audit.

Overview

Finds breaks between GL accounts, traces root causes, and routes for sign-off. Handles the full reconciliation workflow: extract → compare → trace → correct → approve.

Anti-Rationalization Table

When to Use

Trigger phrases:

• "gl reconciler"

• "Month-end close process"

• "Variance > 2% in any GL account"

• "Suspense account balance > $0"

• Month-end close process

• Variance > 2% in any GL account

• Suspense account balance > $0

• Pre-audit preparation

• Intercompany reconciliation

• Foreign currency revaluation)

When NOT to Use:

• Building DCF models (use financial/model-builder)
• Earnings analysis (use financial/earnings-viewer)
• Pitch deck creation (use financial/pitch-deck)

Implementation:

The implementation follows a phased approach: extract trial balance data, detect breaks, trace root causes, and route corrections for sign-off.

Phase 1: Data Extraction

Source Systems:

gl_sources = {
    "general_ledger": "extract_gl_trial_balance()",
    "subledgers": ["ap", "ar", "payroll", "fixed_assets"],
    "bank": "extract_bank_statements(period)",
    "intercompany": "extract_ic_entries(subsidiary)"
}

Trial Balance Extract:

trial_balance = {
    "as_of": "2024-03-31",
    "accounts": {
        "1000_cash": {"dr": 500000, "cr": 0, "net": 500000},
        "2000_ap": {"dr": 0, "cr": 250000, "net": -250000},
        "3000_revenue": {"dr": 0, "cr": 1000000, "net": -1000000},
        "4000_cogs": {"dr": 600000, "cr": 0, "net": 600000}
    },
    "total_debits": 1500000,
    "total_credits": 1500000,  # MUST EQUAL!
    "variance": 0  # Target: $0
}

Phase 2: Break Detection

Common Break Types:

break_rules = {
    "tb_out_of_balance": {"dr_total != cr_total", "severity": "critical"},
    "suspense_balance": {"account_1999 > 0", "severity": "high"},
    "intercompany_mismatch": {"sub_dr != parent_cr", "severity": "high"},
    "fx_variance": {"abs(variance) > 0.02 * balance", "severity": "medium"},
    "unreconciled_entries": {"status == 'unreconciled'", "severity": "medium"}
}

Phase 3: Root Cause Tracing

Trace Algorithm:

def trace_break(account, variance):
    # Step 1: Check subledger
    subledger_balance = get_subledger_balance(account)
    if subledger_balance != gl_balance:
        return f"Subledger mismatch: GL={gl_balance}, SL={subledger_balance}"
    
    # Step 2: Check timing differences
    cutoff_test = verify_cutoff(account, period_end)
    if not cutoff_test.passed:
        return f"Timing difference: {cutoff_test.details}"
    
    # Step 3: Check intercompany
    ic_entries = get_intercompany_entries(account)
    missing_ic = [e for e in ic_entries if e.status == 'missing']
    if missing_ic:
        return f"Missing intercompany entries: {len(missing_ic)}"
    
    # Step 4: Check FX revaluation
    fx_variance = calculate_fx_variance(account)
    if abs(fx_variance) > 0.02 * gl_balance:
        return f"FX revaluation error: {fx_variance}"
    
    return "Break cause: UNKNOWN — escalate to controller"

Phase 4: Correction & Sign-Off

Journal Entry Template:

je = {
    "date": "2024-03-31",
    "lines": [
        {"account": "1999_suspense", "dr": 0, "cr": 5000},
        {"account": "5000_expense", "dr": 5000, "cr": 0}
    ],
    "description": "Clear suspense account - March variance",
    "supporting": "invoice_123.pdf, bank_statement_march.pdf",
    "approval": {
        "prepared_by": "staff_accountant",
        "reviewed_by": "controller",
        "approved_by": "cfo"
    }
}

Common Rationalizations

Red Flags

• Trial balance out of balance (debits != credits)
• Suspense account with balance > $0
• Unreconciled entries > 5% of total
• Variance > 2% without explanation
• Sign-off by same person who prepared
• Missing support documentation

Verification

After completing reconciliation, confirm:

• Trial balance: debits = credits, variance = $0
• All accounts reconciled: variance explained and documented
• Suspense account: $0 balance (all cleared)
• Intercompany: parent = subsidiary (both sides)
• FX revaluation: done at period-end rates
• Breaks traced: root cause identified for each
• Journal entries: prepared, reviewed, approved (3 eyes)
• Supporting docs: attached for all adjustments
• Sign-off memo: generated with approval chain

Integration Points:

Cross-Skill References:

• operations/finance-ops — For month-end close checklist
• financial/model-builder — For balance sheet verification
• financial/earnings-viewer — For P&L reconciliation
• references/trading-checklist.md — For risk controls validation

MCP Server Integrations:

• NetSuite MCP — For GL extraction
• SAP MCP — For enterprise GL access
• Xero MCP — For SMB reconciliation

Load references/trading-checklist.md for complete trading checklists.

Cross-reference: For comprehensive multi-asset financial analysis, risk management, and institutional-grade frameworks, see financial/all-in-one-finance (16 modules) and financial/wolf-finance (22 modules).

Process

1. Analyze the task requirements
2. Apply domain expertise
3. Verify output quality