What are Final Accounts?

Explanation

Initially, the transactions are recorded in the Journal of the company, which is then reflected in the individual ledgersLedgersLedger in accounting records and processes a firm’s financial data, taken from journal entries. This becomes an important financial record for future reference. It is used for creating financial statements. It is also known as the second book of entry.read more maintained for the relative transaction type & party. The closing balance of this ledger is maintained in the Trial BalanceTrial BalanceTrial Balance is the report of accounting in which ending balances of a different general ledger are presented into the debit/credit column as per their balances where debit amounts are listed on the debit column, and credit amounts are listed on the credit column. The total of both should be equal.read more, which shows equal debit and credit side for the period. Then for providing the status & performance of the business organization for the specified period (i.e., a year, half-year, quarter, etc.), Final accounts are prepared which included Trading Account for calculation of Gross profitCalculation Of Gross ProfitGross profit formula is calculated by subtracting the cost of goods sold from the net sales where Net Sales is calculated by subtracting all the sales returns, discounts and the allowances from the Gross Sales and the Cost Of Goods Sold (COGS) is calculated by subtracting the closing stock from the sum of opening stock and the Purchases Made During the Period.read more (now generally inclusive with the statement of profit & loss), Statement of Profit & Loss for net profit earned during the period and Balance Sheet which provide the Assets & Liabilities of the entity at the period end.

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Features

  • The final account is legally required for the entities. The financial accountingFinancial AccountingFinancial accounting refers to bookkeeping, i.e., identifying, classifying, summarizing and recording all the financial transactions in the Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Statement. It even includes the analysis of these financial statements.read more and preparation of Financial statements are obligatory for the entities and getting those accounts audited.These accounts are prepared to present and provide the entity’s financial performance and status to the stakeholders, users, investors, promoters, etc.The presentation of comparable figures for the current period from the previous period increases the utility of the statements of accounts.It presents an accurate & fair view of the organization’s financial performance by providing accurate & full information regarding the business with proper notes and disclosures of the real facts.

Objectives of Final Accounts

  • They are prepared to calculate Gross profit & net profit earned by the organization for the relevant period by presenting the Statement of Profit & Loss.The Balance sheet is prepared to provide the company’s correct financial position as of the date.These accounts use the bifurcation of direct expensesDirect ExpensesDirect cost refers to the cost of operating core business activity—production costs, raw material cost, and wages paid to factory staff. Such costs can be determined by identifying the expenditure on cost objects.read more to obtain the gross profit & loss and bifurcation in indirect expensesIndirect ExpensesIndirect expenses are the general costs incurred for running business operations and management in any enterprise. In simple terms, when you want to buy grocery from a supermarket, the transportation cost to get you to the supermarket and back is the indirect expenses.read more to ascertain the organization’s net profit & loss.Through the Balance sheet, these accounts bifurcate the assets & liabilities as per the holding & usage periods of the same.

Example of Final Accounts

ABC Inc. shows the following balances in its ledger:

Prepare the final accounts based on the given data.

Solution:

Importance

  • As the size and the business of the organization grows, it becomes necessary for the organization’s management to take proper steps to maintain the growth of the organization and create the appropriate internal controlInternal ControlInternal control in accounting refers to the process by which a company implements various rules, policies, or procedures to ensure the accuracy of accounting and finance information, safeguard the various assets of the business, promote accountability in the business, and prevent the occurrence of frauds in the company.read more in the organization for the prevention of fraud & errors. It helps the management find the possible weak areas of the entity and identify the major areas that need special attention.Final Accounts is the source for the external components like shareholders and investors to study the status of the entity and the entity’s business. Based on the entity, the investors decide whether to invest their funds in the same business industry or not.It provides authenticated information to the public, which is the company’s judgment based on who its future lies. Ultimately the company aims to satisfy its consumers. Final Accounts provide just enough data and information to the users to assess the entity’s worth.

Advantages

  • The preparation of Final Accounts increases the accuracy and effectiveness of the accounts.During the preparation, any innocent mistakes or fraud can be discovered and could be rectified quickly.This account shows the status of the entity and business for the period, and the audit of the same creates a check on the entity and its processes, which reduces the risk of fraud and misstatement.Provide the information for the valuation of the business and evaluation of the real worth of the business.

Disadvantages

  • Final accounts are mainly prepared based on historical & monetary transactions. This only provides the presentation and status of the money transaction to the users and public but does not provide the information relating to the work environment of the entity, customer satisfaction for the services & goods supplied by the company.It cannot be assured that the Financials are entirely free from any misstatements as there are inherent limitations in the audit of the financials, which cannot ensure the 100% guarantee that the financials are free to form any inaccuracies.There are substantial chances that the financials are influenced due to the personal judgment of the accountant or the judgment of the management personnel.

Conclusion

The final accounting is the final step of the accounting processStep Of The Accounting ProcessThe accounting process is the series of steps followed by the business entity to record the business financial transactions, which includes steps for collecting, identifying, classifying, summarizing, and recording of the business transactions in the company’s books of accounts so that the entity’s financial statements can be prepared and the profits and financial position of the business can be known at regular intervals of time.read more. Final accounting includes the Statement of Profit & Loss and Balance SheetBalance SheetA balance sheet is one of the financial statements of a company that presents the shareholders’ equity, liabilities, and assets of the company at a specific point in time. It is based on the accounting equation that states that the sum of the total liabilities and the owner’s capital equals the total assets of the company.read more, which provide the presentation of the financial status and position of the entity. They are prepared for the specified period and are legally obligated. The financial statementThe Financial StatementFinancial statements are written reports prepared by a company’s management to present the company’s financial affairs over a given period (quarter, six monthly or yearly). These statements, which include the Balance Sheet, Income Statement, Cash Flows, and Shareholders Equity Statement, must be prepared in accordance with prescribed and standardized accounting standards to ensure uniformity in reporting at all levels.read more is the basis for the shareholders and investors to decide on the investment of their funds in the entity’s securities.

This article has been a guide to what is final accounts, their definition, and meaning. Here we discuss features, objectives, practical examples of final accounts, and advantages and disadvantages. You may learn more about Accounting from the following articles –

  • Financial Accounting ObjectivesCreative AccountingAccounting TerminologyRules of Accounting