Import Bank Statement Files
Now let's take a look at what import options we have when I want to process a bank statement. And there are a whole range of opportunities that SAP provides us with in this context. We have defined formats, and in the next step, we go into the options when we receive the bank statements as to how they can be imported.
For banks with a Multi-Bank Connectivity connection, bank statements are handled by Multi-Bank Connectivity. Multi-Bank Connectivity maps from the local bank statement format to an ISO CAMT.053 format, and SAP S/4HANA pulls the ISO CAMT.053 bank statement from Multi-Bank Connectivity and then imports it automatically. The SAP S/4HANA system schedules a background job, for example, every 10 minutes to retrieve the bank statement file from Multi-Bank Connectivity, and the file is automatically imported into the SAP S/4HANA system.
After the CAMT.053 bank statement is pulled from Multi-Bank Connectivity, the postings in bank accounting and subledger accounting are performed. When importing bank statements to the SAP S/4HANA system, several programs are used to read out statement information, to interpret this information, and finally come to a conclusion on how to post the interpreted data.
At the point of time the electronic bank statement reaches the SAP S/4HANA system, the note to payee information is analyzed. Here, the customer would normally provide some kind of reference information about, for example, the invoice or customer number. In the system configuration, the interpretation algorithm is defined. Based on that, the system uses a standard algorithm or, for example, the document number, to assign the note to payee information to internal business partner related transactions. If the system is able to find a match, for example based on the document number provided in the bank statement, it will perform the subledger accounting posting and, thereby, clear the open item of the business partner. If there is no match possible, the reprocessing of items is needed.

If there is no connection to SAP Multi-Bank Connectivity, you can manually import this electronic bank statement file into the SAP S/4HANA system after receiving the bank statement file from the bank. This procedure can be used for different files formats, such as the BAI formats in the United States or the more general CAMT.053 format. In the case of the manual upload of electronic bank statements to the SAP S/4HANA system, several programs are used to read out statement information, to interpret this information, and finally come to a conclusion on how to post the interpreted data.
The Manage Incoming Payment Files app facilitates the manual upload of electronic bank statements. Here again the note to payee information plays a vital role in the matching of bank statement items to transactions in the system. The customer would normally provide some kind of reference information about, for example, the invoice or customer number. In the system configuration, the interpretation algorithm is defined per external transaction type. Based on that, the system uses a standard algorithm or, for example, the document number to assign the note to payee information to internal business partner related transactions. If the system is able to find a match, for example based on the document number provided in the bank statement, it will perform the subledger accounting posting and, thereby, clear the open item of the business partner. If there is no match possible, the reprocessing of items is needed.

The Manage Bank Statements app offers two possibilities on how to enter data from the statement. Either with Payment Transaction Type Group or without, as a manual transaction. If the Payment Transaction Type Group is used and the external transaction types indicate which logical business transaction is associated with the entered item, the system behavior is pretty much the same as with the upload of the electronic bank statement. Again, the note to payee information plays a vital role in the matching of bank statement items to transactions in the system. The next steps are then the same as for the two previous import options.