Ledger account is a way of the current interconnected reflection and grouping of property on structure and placement, on sources of its formation, and also economic operations on qualitatively homogeneous signs expressed in natural, monetary, and labor measures.
The nature of economic impacts on the object of accounting has only two directions: increase or decrease, the essence of which is considered in the balance sheet generalization of information. In this regard, the ledger account is divided into two informative zones (accounting coordinates) – debit and credit. Each side (depending on the object of accounting reflected in the account) is intended to account for changes aimed at increasing or decreasing the initial indicator of the state of the accounted object. Now, you know, “What is a ledger account?” and why it is necessary.
What is a general ledger account?
A general ledger account is any account included in a general ledger. It is a journal where the main summary data on all accounting reports and statements are collected. In other words, General ledger is the main systematic register of synthetic accounting. The golden rule of accounting sounds as: “nothing comes out of nowhere and does not disappear into nowhere.” This rule is reflected in economic operations.
Until recently, all accounting was done manually. A lot of magazines contained information about the movement of funds, materials, personnel, and absolutely everything happening in the enterprise in terms of value and processes. Now, financial statements and reports, as well as some journals on operations, production, and accounting warehouse, exist in an electronic form in the programs. But until now, much more experienced accountant duplicate information in writing. So, every accountant knows, “What is a general ledger account?”.
A feature of General Ledger is a specific order of the accounts, which allows each column to reflect one corresponding account. This allows you to control the correctness of the corresponding accounts and to control the account receivable ledger. In General Ledger, transactions are recorded on both debit and credit sides, but the balance is not displayed. The simplest ledger account example is easy to find in any ledger. The reverse statement is based on the data of the “General Ledger”. Two statements-cash and payroll serve as a source of basic data control statements. Mandatory filling in the cash register in large organizations is carried out every day, in smaller ones – once every three to five days. After that, the generalized data is entered in the ledger account.
The rules of work with account ledger
Accounting for financial transactions in enterprises of different status is a complex, multifunctional process. A comprehensive system and rules have been developed for it, according to which the turnover of economic activity is recorded. In the course of work, the balances of tangible assets are constantly changing, and funds are received, goods are sold. To make management decisions, the manager must know the financial condition of the product and must learn how to use an account ledger template. Creating a balance sheet every day is not rational, and no one needs it when you can reflect the movement of cash, materials, products on the account ledger.
Inside the company, there are many different economic operations: receipt of funds and their disposal, payment of taxes, and much more every day. Standard features usually group all these operations. Each group belongs to a specific ledger account.
Applying a double-entry accounting method, the accountant indicates the occurrence of a relationship in the course of economic activity. The instrument that is used for such records is called the corresponding account. Elements represented in a digital code or cipher are designed to reduce and automate records of the ledger account. This method allows organizations to:
- monitor the movement of funds;
- group assets;
- express the structure and distribution of funds;
- reflect the sources;
- classify the turnover by homogeneous indicators in different units of measurement.
Financiers reflect each homogeneous group on separate accounts, indicate how many elements came and went during the reporting period, what remained on balance. Financial transactions are recorded in the form of debit and credit turnover; as a result, the balance of the accounting period is calculated. Based on records, there is a formation of the balance sheet — the main statement in the reporting.
