AI agents for business finance: what they can and can't do
What AI agents can do in bookkeeping, close, collections and compliance today, where a person must stay in charge, and how to judge a product.
The short answer
Match three records for each trading day: the terminal's end-of-day report, the acquirer's settlement report, and the credit in your bank account. The credit should equal card sales less the merchant service charge and any reversals, usually on the next working day (Stanbic IBTC, for example, states "Settlement is T+1"). Any day that does not match is chased with the acquirer using the terminal ID, date and transaction references.
A POS terminal makes card sales easy for customers and hard to check for an owner who is not at the counter. The terminal says the shop took ₦850,000 on cards on Saturday; the bank shows ₦838,000 on Monday; and nobody in the shop is sure whether the difference is charges, a reversal, or a settlement that never arrived. Reconciling POS is not complicated once you know what each report shows and in what order money moves.
How a POS sale becomes money in your account
- The customer taps or inserts a card; the issuing bank approves; the terminal prints a receipt with references such as the terminal ID, the retrieval reference number (RRN) and a trace number (STAN).
- At close, the terminal's end-of-day or batch report totals approved transactions.
- The acquirer (the bank or processor that gave you the terminal) settles the batch, deducting its merchant service charge as set in your merchant agreement.
- The net amount is credited to your settlement account, usually the next working day.
Stanbic IBTC's POS page, for example, says "Settlement is T+1" and expects a minimum turnover of ₦1,000,000 a month for a terminal (as at October 2026). Other acquirers set their own terms, so read your merchant agreement for the settlement cycle and the charge. Weekend and public-holiday sales are typically settled together on the next working day, which is why Monday credits are often the hardest to match.
The daily match
| Record | Where it comes from | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Terminal end-of-day report | Printed or exported at close | Approved card sales total and count |
| Till or sales system | Your POS software | Card sales recorded against the same day |
| Acquirer settlement report | Merchant portal or email | Gross, charges, reversals, net per terminal |
| Bank credit | Business account statement | Net amount and settlement date |
Example only. Saturday's terminal report shows 64 approved card sales totalling ₦850,000. The settlement report shows gross ₦850,000, one customer reversal of ₦4,000 and charges of ₦8,000, net ₦838,000. Check: 850,000 − 4,000 − 8,000 = 838,000. Monday's bank credit is ₦838,000. Matched. If the charge on the report differs from the rate in your agreement, raise it with the acquirer; that is a pricing query, not a missing settlement.
When a settlement is missing or short
Common causes are a terminal that did not close its batch, transactions that were approved on the receipt but declined by the issuer, a reversal the shop did not notice, a settlement account changed without your knowledge, or a processing failure at the acquirer. Gather these before you call:
- Terminal ID and merchant ID.
- Date and time of each transaction, amount, RRN and STAN from the receipts or terminal report.
- The settlement report for the day, if it exists.
- Your settlement account details as you expect them to be.
Under revised CBN guidelines effective 8 June 2020, as summarised by Mondaq, failed POS transactions are to be refunded within 48 hours, and disputes between a merchant and a cardholder are to be resolved by the merchant acquirer within 48 hours. If the acquirer does not respond, put the complaint in writing and keep the reference; the CBN's Consumer Protection Department takes escalated complaints with proof that you first complained to the institution. The Nigeria library's guide to failed ATM and POS refund timelines covers the cardholder side.
Weekly and monthly checks
Daily matching catches missing settlements; a weekly and monthly view catches patterns. Each week, list any day still unmatched and its status with the acquirer. Each month, total gross card sales, charges and reversals per terminal and compare the effective charge with your agreement. If you have several terminals or outlets, compare them with each other: one terminal with far more reversals, or far lower sales per trading day, is where to look first.
Controls that make POS fraud hard
- Only you or your finance lead can change the settlement account; ask the acquirer to confirm in writing how changes are authorised.
- Staff must not hold a personal POS terminal at your counter. A second terminal settling to someone else's account is a known way of diverting card sales.
- Every reversal or refund on the terminal needs a supervisor and a written reason.
- Compare card sales per day across weeks; a sudden drop with steady footfall needs a question.
- Keep terminal reports for the same period as your other accounting records.
See also preventing staff fraud from abroad and reconciling Nigerian bank charges.
Where Pryme fits
Some shops reduce card volume by taking bank transfers to a dedicated virtual account per outlet, which arrives named and time-stamped. The Finance agent in a Pryme Business Account can prepare the daily match of sales reports to credits and list exceptions for a person to chase.
Questions people ask
How long does POS settlement take in Nigeria?
It depends on your acquirer. Stanbic IBTC states T+1 (next working day) as at October 2026. Check your merchant agreement for your cycle.
My POS shows successful but money did not enter my account, what do I do?
Check the acquirer's settlement report first. If the transaction is missing, contact the acquirer with the terminal ID, date, amount, RRN and STAN, in writing.
Why is my POS settlement less than my sales?
The acquirer deducts its merchant service charge and any reversals. Compare the settlement report with your agreement to confirm the charge is correct.
How long should a failed POS refund take?
Under CBN guidelines effective June 2020, as summarised by Mondaq, failed POS transactions are to be refunded within 48 hours.
Sources
- Stanbic IBTC: Point of Sale terminal (POS) · accessed Oct 2026
- Mondaq: Chargeback period reduction for ATMs, POS and web transactions (16 Jul 2020) · accessed Oct 2026
- CBN: Complaints management (Consumer Protection Department) · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.