Real-Time Transactions in Acubiz – Acubiz Help Center

With the Real-Time Transactions module in Acubiz, credit card transactions are recorded in the system immediately after the purchase is made.

Prerequisites for Use

The module is an add-on and requires the following before activation:

Acubiz Setup: Activation and configuration within your existing Acubiz agreement.
Agreement with Card Provider: An extended agreement with your credit card provider for the delivery of real-time data and Smart Receipts.

Technical and Functional Value

At the moment of purchase, Acubiz receives an authorization (reservation transaction) directly from the credit card company. This means the expense is available in the employee’s app immediately.

The reservation transaction contains all necessary data and can be coded, processed, and cleared in exactly the same way as a traditional bank transaction. This eliminates waiting time and significantly optimizes the expense management flow.

Reserved and Cleared Transactions

When the module is active, Acubiz automatically handles any discrepancies between the originally reserved amount and the final cleared amount. Discrepancies are rare in daily operations but are managed according to the following principle:

Example of Value Adjustment

Reservation (Real-Time): An authorization is recorded in Acubiz for the reserved amount – e.g., 400.00 DKK.
Clearing (Final Transaction): When the bank settles the transaction finally, the amount has changed to 412.00 DKK (typically due to currency exchange adjustments or foreign transaction fees).

Impact on the Employee’s Workflow

If the employee has already cleared the expense based on the reserved amount, the transaction is automatically returned to the employee’s Inbox. The employee simply needs to re-verify that the amount on the receipt matches the updated transaction, after which the usual approval flow continues.

Finance Functions and Overview

The finance department has access to updated overviews that provide full insight into which transactions are either cleared or awaiting clearing (reserved).

Overview of Reservations

This overview shows all currently reserved transactions in the system.

Manual Deletion of Reservations

Users with finance rights have the option to manually delete a reservation—regardless of where it is in the flow. This typically happens after a request from an employee.

Since a reservation is only a temporary hold of an amount until the bank’s final clearing, deleting it does not affect the monthly bank reconciliation.

Why Does the Need for Manual Deletion Arise?

When using a card for purchases, the amount is reserved immediately. In certain situations, the reservation does not automatically match the final transaction, leaving unresolved reservations in the system.

Typical scenarios include:

Electric Vehicle Charging: When using a payment card or app at a charging station, a standard amount is reserved. If the charging station fails and the employee switches to another station, a new reservation is created. Erroneous reservations are usually deleted automatically by the bank but may sometimes remain in the system.
Hotel Reservations: When booking online, an amount is reserved. If the stay is later settled at the reception upon departure, it often happens via a new, independent transaction. Because there is no data match between the online reservation and the final payment, the reservation remains.

Note: If unresolved reservations are not deleted by the bank, the finance department can delete them manually in the overview. Alternatively, inactive reservations are automatically deleted by Acubiz after 30 days.

Automatic Deletion of Reservations

If the bank determines that a reservation should be canceled, an automatic deletion is sent to Acubiz. These deletions are recorded and displayed in a separate overview of automatic deletions.

The reasons for automatic deletions are the same as those described under manual deletion.

You can always navigate back to the active reservations directly from this overview.

Export Overview

ℹ️Important: Reservations are only exported to the accounting system once they have been finally cleared by the bank.

Real-Time Notifications

The Acubiz app sends automatic push notifications for both card transactions and receipt of Smart Receipts. Because card data and digital receipts are processed independently, there may sometimes be a slight time difference between the two notifications, even if they relate to the same purchase.

Prerequisite: The employee must have enabled push notifications for the Acubiz app in their phone’s settings.

Smart Receipts (Digital Receipt)

Selected merchants offer automatic digital receipts that are linked directly to the transaction in Acubiz. This eliminates the need to photograph a physical paper receipt.

ℹ️Smart Receipts are provided exclusively by merchants connected to the digital receipt network. Acubiz does not have a comprehensive overview of registered merchants.