Continuous close means month-end work happens as the month goes. RareMargin posts revenue, amortization, accrual reversals and scheduled invoices the day they fall due, checks 11 controls continuously, and leaves a review for month-end.
| Month-end close | Continuous close in RareMargin | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue and amortization | Booked from spreadsheets after the month ends | Posted from schedules the day each line falls due |
| Accruals | Found by reading through last month’s bills | Suggested when a regular vendor hasn’t billed, and reversed the next month |
| Bank matching | Done in a batch at the end | Suggested for each bank line, with a score and the reasons for it |
| Controls | Checked once, during the close | Eleven checks that run continuously |
| Month-end | Catching up | Review and sign-off |
01What is continuous close?
Continuous close keeps the books closed through the month: entries post as their dates arrive and controls run all the time, so month-end is a review, not a catch-up.
The smaller the gap between when something happens and when it reaches the ledger, the less is left to do when the month ends, and the sooner the numbers can be trusted.
02What does RareMargin post automatically?
Scheduled contract invoices, recognized revenue, prepaid amortization and the reversals of last month’s accruals, each as soon as its date arrives.
A background job finds each company’s due lines and posts them, claiming each line in the same transaction that posts it, so running the job twice never posts anything twice. A line dated in a closed period posts in the current period instead of reopening the books.
03Which controls does RareMargin check?
Eleven, from the trial balance and subledger tie-outs to the hash chain and stale approvals; each reports pass, warn or fail with the evidence behind it.
| Control | What it checks |
|---|---|
| Trial balance balances | Debits equal credits across the ledger |
| Report balances match posted lines | The balances reports read from equal the sum of the posted lines |
| Ledger hash chain intact | No posted entry was changed after it posted |
| AR subledger ties to the general ledger | Open invoices less unapplied cash equal the receivables balance |
| AP subledger ties to the general ledger | Open bills equal the payables balance |
| Deferred revenue ties to billings less recognition | The deferred revenue balance equals billed less recognized revenue |
| Bank accounts reconciled | Each bank account’s imported balance matches the ledger, with unmatched lines listed |
| No postings into closed periods | Nothing has posted into a period after it closed |
| Suspense account is clear | Nothing is left parked in suspense |
| Intercompany balances net to zero | Balances between subsidiaries cancel out |
| Approvals decided within 3 days | No approval request has waited longer than 3 days |
04What is on RareMargin’s close checklist?
Eleven tasks, from matching bank lines to the management reporting package; eight of them tick themselves when the books show they are done.
| Task | Ticks itself |
|---|---|
| Match all bank transactions | Yes |
| Record customer payments and review AR aging | No |
| Issue all invoices for the period | Yes |
| Revenue recognition posted | Yes |
| Enter and approve all vendor bills | Yes |
| Prepaid amortization posted | Yes |
| Book accruals for unbilled spend | Yes |
| Approve pending journal entries | Yes |
| Review flux analysis | No |
| All controls passing | Yes |
| Management reporting package | No |
05How does RareMargin suggest accruals?
When a vendor that billed in at least 2 of the last 3 months has no bill dated this month and no accrual booked, RareMargin suggests accruing its average monthly spend.
Each suggestion lists the bills it is based on. You or the assistant can turn it into an accrual entry, which goes through approval like any other entry and reverses itself on the first day of the next month.
06What does RareMargin’s flux analysis flag?
Accounts that moved against the prior period or prior year by at least a quarter of your materiality, or by 20% and at least 5% of materiality.
Materiality is a company setting. Each flagged account names up to three vendors, customers or entries that drove the change, in a sentence that explains it.
07Can a closed period change?
Nothing can post into a closed period: RareMargin posts late items in the current period instead, and a control checks that nothing slipped through.
A period can be reopened, and reopening is recorded as an event, so it stays visible to reviewers and to webhook subscribers.
