Multi-Currency Handling

Before I let a CFO in Dubai sign an ERP contract, I ask 7 questions about multi-currency and FX rules. (Most vendors can’t answer even 3.) And that’s exactly why 90% of ERP finance teams end up with workarounds, Excel patches, or fire drills every month-end. Here’s what I ask every single time: (1) How does the system handle revaluation gains/losses across ledgers in real-time? (Or are you manually booking journals at month-end?) (2) Can FX rates be pulled live from central banks or is it still a static upload via CSV? (3) What happens to historical FX rates when you reopen a prior-period transaction? (4) Can you tag currency exposure by project, vendor, or contract in reporting? (5) Does multi-entity consolidation auto-adjust for intercompany FX differences? (Or do you have to “explain” the ₹6.2M gap to auditors every year?) (6) How does the ERP treat rounding off in multi-currency AP/AR aging reports? (7) Does the ERP allow dual base currencies? (say, for reporting in USD and AED natively?) If your vendor can’t answer these, walk away. Because the moment your business hits scale or enters new geographies… Your ERP won’t just fail. It’ll cost you millions in lost visibility and manual firefighting. Want the full 23-question FX audit checklist I use before every ERP project? Just comment “FX Checklist” below and I’ll send it across. ♻️ 𝐑𝐄𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐓 so others can learn.

The Bookkeeping mistake that costed an e-commerce seller $18,000 in one quarter (CURRENCY CONVERSION) Selling internationally can explode your revenue. But it can also destroy your profit margins if you handle multi-currency accounting wrong. Last month I audited books for an online retailer doing $450K across European markets. They thought they were crushing it with 40% margins. Reality check: After proper currency accounting, their actual margin was 12%. The hidden profit killer? Exchange rate fluctuations they weren't tracking properly. Here's what most international sellers get wrong: They treat all currencies like not real money and convert everything at random rates. One day they use Amazon's rate. Next week they use their bank's rate. Month-end they panic and guess at the differences. This creates phantom profits that don't exist and real losses they can't explain. The 6-step system that fixes currency chaos: 1.Pick one primary currency for all financial reporting and stick to it religiously 2.Track every transaction in its original currency before converting anything 3.Use consistent rate sources instead of whatever's convenient that day 4.Record conversion fees separately so you know what international sales really cost 5.Reconcile platform reports against bank statements weekly, not monthly 6.Revalue foreign currency balances at month-end to catch unrealized gains and losses Real example of how this works: EUR Sale: €100 at 1.10 rate = $110 revenue recorded Three days later settlement at 1.12 rate = $108 actually received after fees Without proper tracking: Missing $2 loss per transaction With 5,000 transactions monthly: $10,000 phantom profit vanishing The difference this makes is staggering. Instead of discovering surprise losses during tax season, you know your real margins daily. Instead of guessing at profitability by country, you can make data-driven pricing decisions. Instead of reconciliation nightmares, your books actually balance. Smart international sellers understand this truth: Currency management isn't about perfect predictions. It's about accurate tracking and consistent processes. When your multi-currency system works properly, you can price confidently, forecast accurately, and scale internationally without financial surprises. At Ottit, we help e-commerce businesses master international accounting and protect their profit margins from currency volatility. Ready to clean up your multi-currency mess and see your real international profitability? Book a strategy call through the link in my bio. What's your biggest challenge with international sales accounting?

𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗺𝗻 𝗜𝗻 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲 The 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗺𝗻 in Dataverse is used for storing monetary values. It is tightly integrated with 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 capabilities, which allow users to define and work with multiple currencies. When organizations have multiple currencies, they typically want to be able to perform calculations to provide values using their base currency. 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗺𝗻 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀? • When a currency column is create, Dataverse automatically creates an accompanying column with a 𝘀𝘂𝗳𝗳𝗶𝘅 _𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲 (e.g., Amount and Amount_base). • A decimal column called 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 that provides the exchange rate for a selected currency associated with the table with respect to the base currency. If this column is added to the form, people can see the value, but they can't edit it. The exchange rate is stored with the currency. • The _base column stores the value in the 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻’𝘀 𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆, calculated using the 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝘀𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀. • Dataverse uses the exchange rates defined in the 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 table to convert amounts between the record’s currency and the base currency. • Exchange rates can be updated in the currency settings, but historical records do not get updated automatically with new rates (𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗲𝘅𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗣𝗜 𝘁𝗼 𝘂𝗽𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆). • The precision of the currency column is determined by the organization’s currency settings or the specific currency's precision. 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗿 𝘂𝗽𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀, 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘂𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗳 𝗺𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶-𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱. 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘀? 1)Go to Advanced setting-> Business Management->Currencies->New 2)Define Currency Code, Currency Name, Symbol, Precision and exchange rate 𝗘𝘅𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗨𝘀𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 I have base currency as USD. I have a table payment, User can add payment in different currencies like 𝗣𝗞𝗥 , 𝗚𝗕𝗣 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗤𝗔𝗥. While adding new record user simply add amount in local currency and select currency. System will automatically convert this local currency into base organization currency which is (USD). 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 1)Simply create a amount column in payment table of type currency. 2)Add amount, amount base ,rate, currency columns into form 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝟭: User enter amount as 13,890.00 PKR the Amount Base value will be calculate as Amount/Exchange rate 13890.00/277.80 = 50$ (base value). 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝟮: User enter amount as 23.55GBP the Amount Base value will be calculate as Amount/Exchange rate 23.55/0.78000 = 30.19$ (base value). #PowerPlatform #Dataverse #Currency

𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗟𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗟𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗢𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗹𝗲 𝗙𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗟𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲𝗿 – 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱 Scenario: ABC Retail Inc., headquartered in the United States, operates multiple stores across different countries, including the UK, Canada, and India. Each country has its own tax regulations, reporting requirements, and currency. 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: ABC Retail Inc. maintains a Primary Ledger for its US operations, using USD as the ledger currency, US GAAP as the accounting method, and the US financial calendar. The transactions recorded in the US stores are posted to this primary ledger. Why? The primary ledger ensures that the company meets US regulatory and taxation requirements. It acts as the official financial record for corporate reporting and compliance. 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗟𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲𝗿 – 𝗔𝗹𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 Scenario: XYZ Manufacturing Ltd. is a multinational company based in Canada. It follows 𝗜𝗙𝗥𝗦 (International Financial Reporting Standards) for global reporting but needs to comply with 𝗨𝗦 𝗚𝗔𝗔𝗣 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗨𝗦 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗿𝘆 because it is listed on the US stock exchange. 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: The Primary Ledger is set up in CAD (Canadian Dollar) following IFRS standards. A Secondary Ledger is created in USD following US GAAP to meet regulatory requirements for US investors. The secondary ledger maintains an adjustment-only level where only specific US GAAP adjustments are posted. Why? This allows XYZ Manufacturing to report financial results to Canadian and US regulators efficiently without duplicating all transactions. The company minimizes reconciliation efforts while ensuring compliance with multiple regulatory bodies. .𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 – 𝗠𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶-𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 Scenario: Tech Solutions GmbH, a German software company, operates in Germany (EUR) but has a significant investor base in the United States. The company must provide financial statements in both EUR and USD for investors and management reporting. 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: The Primary Ledger is in EUR, as most transactions occur in Germany. A Reporting Currency Ledger in USD is created at the Balance level to facilitate US-based financial reporting. Every month, when closing the books, Tech Solutions GmbH translates EUR balances to USD for investor reports. Why? This allows real-time financial reporting in multiple currencies without affecting the accounting method or financial structure. The company avoids setting up a secondary ledger while meeting US investor expectations.

🌍💳 Multi-Currency in Cards & Payments – Enabling True Global Commerce In today’s borderless economy, customers expect the ability to transact, travel, and trade globally without friction. This is where multi-currency capabilities in the cards and payments ecosystem come into play. 🔹 What is Multi-Currency in Payments? It allows cardholders, merchants, and financial institutions to process transactions in different currencies, ensuring smoother cross-border payments, better FX handling, and transparency for customers. 🔑 Why It Matters ✅ Customer Experience – Travelers and global shoppers can pay in their preferred currency. ✅ Transparency – Reduced surprises from hidden FX charges and conversion fees. ✅ Efficiency – Real-time conversion and settlement across borders. ✅ Flexibility – Businesses can price in local currency while managing multi-currency settlements. ✅ Innovation – Supports digital wallets, prepaid travel cards, and fintech apps designed for cross-border lifestyles. 🛠 How It Works in the Cards Domain 🔸Multi-Currency Cards (Debit/Prepaid): Customers preload multiple currencies in one card for seamless usage worldwide. 🔸Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC): ATMs and POS terminals offer the choice to pay in local currency or home currency. 🔸Settlement Layer: Acquirers, issuers, and networks (Visa, MasterCard, UnionPay, etc.) ensure FX rates, compliance, and accurate fund flows. 🚀 The Future of Multi-Currency Payments 🔸 Integration with real-time FX engines for instant conversion. 🔸 Blockchain and stable coins for cross-border settlement. 🔸 Expansion of multi-currency wallets to support e-commerce and gig-economy payouts. 🔸 Smarter AI-driven FX optimization for consumers and businesses. 💡 Bottom Line: Multi-currency capabilities are no longer a luxury – they are a core enabler of global financial inclusion, digital banking, and cross-border commerce. As travel, e-commerce, and gig work continue to grow, multi-currency innovation will define the next era of payments. #DigitalBanking #APIBanking #RealTimePayments #BlockchainPayments #Tokenization #ContactlessPayments #FinancialTechnology #FutureOfPayments #PaymentsEcosystem #CrossBorderPayments #MultiCurrency #Remittances #VisaDirect #MasterCard #MoneyTransfers #GlobalCommerce #InternationalPayments #FinancialConnectivity