Inter-Company Transfer Detection in the Rules Engine

Inter-Company Transfer Detection in the Rules Engine

Overview

LedgerSync automatically detects inter-company transfers — transactions where money is moved between two bank accounts belonging to the same business or related entities. This is a common accounting scenario: a company withdraws from one account and deposits into another, and both sides of that transfer need to be recognized and categorized correctly in QuickBooks.

The detection runs silently in the background after each data refresh. No rules need to be created, and no manual searching is required.

How Detection Works

After each sync, LedgerSync AI scans transactions across all connected bank accounts for a client and looks for matching pairs:

  • A debit (withdrawal) in one account paired with a credit (deposit) in another account — either at the same bank or a different bank.
  • The matching amount must be equal and offsetting (one account debited, the other credited).
  • The transaction dates must fall within 2–3 days of each other to account for normal bank processing delays.

When a matching pair is found, both transactions are automatically tagged with the category label Intercompany Transfer (shown as a blue chip on the transaction row) and assigned the payee Intercompany Transfer. This tagging happens without any action required from you.

One-Time Setup: Map the "Intercompany Clearing" Category

Detection is automatic, but for tagged transfers to flow through to QuickBooks Online, you need to complete one setup step once per client: map the global category Intercompany Clearing to the correct QBO account.

This category is created automatically by LedgerSync the first time a transfer pair is detected for a client. You do not need to create it.

Steps:

  1. Go to Rules Engine → Settings → Global Categories.
  2. Find Intercompany Clearing in the list.
  3. Map it to the appropriate QBO account for that client (e.g., an intercompany clearing or due-to/due-from account).
  4. Save the mapping.

Once mapped, any newly detected inter-company transfers for that client will automatically carry the category and can be reviewed and synced to QBO through the normal transaction review flow — just like any other categorized transaction.

Important: Transfers that were tagged before the mapping was set will not pick up the category retroactively. For those transactions, assign the QBO category manually, one time.

Reviewing and Confirming Transfers

Tagged transactions appear in the Transactions tab under For Review. You can filter by typing transfer in the search bar to quickly find all inter-company transactions.

Each tagged row displays:

  • The Intercompany Transfer blue chip label
  • The assigned payee: Intercompany Transfer
  • The mapped QBO category (once the Intercompany Clearing mapping is set)

You can click on a tagged transaction to view the partner transaction details — the matching date, amount, and account on the other side of the transfer — and either Confirm or Dismiss the match.

  • Confirm — Accepts the match. Both transactions proceed through the review flow and can be synced to QBO.
  • Dismiss — Rejects the match. The transactions return to their normal uncategorized state.





Key Points to Remember

  • There is no rule to create for inter-company transfer detection. The blue chip tag is applied automatically — it is not a Rules Engine rule.
  • The global vendor Intercompany Transfer and global category Intercompany Clearing are created automatically when the first pair is detected. You only need to map the category to a QBO account.
  • Until the QBO mapping is set, tagged transactions will sit in For Review with the vendor assigned but no category — nothing will sync to QBO until the mapping is complete.
  • Detection covers transfers across different banks as well as accounts at the same bank.

Related Articles

  • Article 15: Benefits of the LedgerSync Rules Engine
  • Article 17: Working with Global Rules and Global Categories

Need help? Contact us at support@ledgersync.com.

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