Connect counterparties, payments, and open items

The basic model

The role belongs to the event. A marketing agency may buy printing from another company and also sell consulting to it. Two separate commercial relationships can therefore exist with the same legal entity.

The open-item lifecycle

1. An invoice is issued or received.
2. Its counterparty, amount, currency, dates, and evidence are recorded.
3. The invoice remains open until payment, correction, offset, or another valid settlement.
4. Each payment is allocated to the relevant invoice or invoices.
5. Any remainder stays visible.
6. A correction changes the balance through a traceable document path.

Do not close an item merely because a similar amount appeared at the bank.

Worked example

A synthetic studio receives two supplier invoices: €800.00 and €1,200.00. It sends one bank payment of €1,900.00 with both invoice references.

The €100.00 remainder needs an explanation: later payment, discount, dispute, credit, or error. It should not be closed automatically.

The example explains allocation only. The accountant must review whether any discount, correction, or period treatment is valid.

One relationship across document, payment and open balance

A synthetic cleaning supplier appears on the bank as CleanPro Berlin, while its invoices are issued by CP Facility Services GmbH. June contains invoices for €800 and €1,200 and one payment of €1,900 carrying both invoice references. Before creating two vendors or merging names automatically, the case needs the invoice legal entity, bank beneficiary, account details, historical documents and the owner’s confirmation of the commercial relationship.

DeinHans can prepare an identity candidate, keep both names searchable, connect the two invoices to the payment and calculate the €100 residual. If another legal entity uses the same brand, or the payment recipient cannot be explained, the identity remains an owner/accountant question. A convenient merchant label never overrides the invoice entity.

Counterparty data that matters

Use legal name, relevant address, tax identifiers where appropriate, bank/payment references, and source-document history. Display names and merchant labels help search, but can change or refer to different entities.

Before merging two records, confirm:

• the same legal entity is involved;
• the historical documents belong together;
• no location, franchise, or payment intermediary creates a real distinction;
• open items and corrections will remain traceable.

Review and handoff

The owner confirms business relationship, disputed amounts, and operational context. Software can group invoices, suggest payments, and calculate remaining balances. The accountant reviews the counterparty role, accounting treatment, and any offset or correction.

DeinHans can keep documents, payment candidates, identity questions and residuals around the same counterparty visible. It can prepare a relationship; it does not certify that similar names are one legal entity or approve an offset. The goal is not a perfectly tidy vendor list; it is a reliable path from source to open balance and settlement.

Month-end questions

• Which vendor invoices remain unpaid?
• Which customer invoices remain uncollected?
• Do part payments have a clear allocation?
• Do combined payments list every included invoice?
• Are credits, refunds, and disputes linked?
• Are duplicate counterparty records masking the same balance?
• Does every closed item have evidence of how it was settled?

Reconcile the subledgers

Roll forward supplier and customer balances from opening open items through new invoices, credits, payments, refunds and corrections to closing open items. Compare those totals with the corresponding accounting balances. A difference often means one side contains an unallocated payment, direct journal, duplicated document or different cut-off.

Do not “fix” the subledger with an unexplained aggregate entry. Locate the affected counterparties and preserve the bridge. A clean control total should be the result of explained items, not a substitute for them.

Offsetting and multi-role counterparties

The same legal entity can be both customer and supplier. Keep sales and purchase evidence separately traceable and do not net receivables and payables merely because the names match. Any offset needs the contractual, legal and professional basis and a record of which invoices were settled.

Likewise, a platform may collect from customers while invoicing the business for fees. These are distinct document roles even when one payout nets the cash. Show gross customer activity, platform payable or fee evidence and settlement bridge before the accountant decides presentation.

Master-data change control

New bank details, legal names, addresses, tax identifiers or countries require dated evidence and review. Preserve the prior identity for historic documents. Restrict who can change payment-critical data and confirm bank changes through an independent channel before the next run.