Tech News: Intuit introduces subscription-free QuickBooks Money

By Chris Gaetano September 15, 2023 11:26 AM

Intuit introduces the new, subscription-free QuickBooks Money; TaxBuzz launches AI-powered “vertical” search engine powered by professionals; and other accounting technology news.

Intuit introduces the new, subscription-free QuickBooks Money

Intuit has unveiled QuickBooks Money, a payment and banking solution with no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements, available to small businesses in a mobile and web-enabled experience without a subscription. The product is aimed at small business owners who may not initially need the QuickBooks platform’s full range of financial management and accounting capabilities but are still seeking a tool to get paid and manage their money. Once someone opens an account, they gain the ability to send a personalized invoice or payment request and let customers choose a payment method that’s convenient for them — credit or debit, ACH bank transfer, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal or Venmo. Eligible payments can land in the user’s bank account the same day, on nights, weekends and holidays. They can use the free QuickBooks Visa business debit card, which enables access to over 19,000 Allpoint ATMs nationwide; use envelopes in QuickBooks Money to save for expenses and earn 1.75% APY on envelope balances; FDIC insurance coverage of up to $5 million via a deposit sweep feature, which works in the background to sweep balances above $250,000 to a network of FDIC insured banks; and track business income and expenses in one place to view how their business is doing and make financial decisions. Future planned enhancements to QuickBooks Money include subscription-free access to other QuickBooks small business solutions such as bill pay, in-person payments and lending. QuickBooks Money customers can upgrade to QuickBooks’ subscription-based services such as accounting, payroll and more anytime.

TaxBuzz launches AI-powered “vertical” search engine powered by professionals

Artificial intelligence virtual reality

Cole Burston/Bloomberg

Online accounting and tax community TaxBuzz announced TaxBuzz AI, touted as a “vertical” search engine designed to answer tax and accounting questions for both American taxpayers and industry professionals. TaxBuzz AI is an artificial intelligence-powered generative search tool that identifies answers to both basic and complex tax queries using material sourced from trusted sources, including a community of over 700,000 CPAs, EAs and tax professionals within TaxBuzz’s network. TaxBuzz AI was trained by a database of over 150 tax guides based on the U.S. tax code, thousands of articles, and a library of insights authored by industry experts. Each search result generated through TaxBuzz AI is vetted and peer-reviewed for accuracy. If a topic is not yet in the TaxBuzz library, TaxBuzz AI will scour the web for accurate, authoritative responses that will be fact-checked by human experts. TaxBuzz began developing TaxBuzz AI in the fall of 2022 and has been working closely with industry experts to create a vertical search system in the tax and accounting space.

BlackLine announces AI-enabled intercompany accounting capabilities

Financial transformation solutions provider BlackLine added AI-enabled intercompany accounting capabilities. Intercompany Predictive Guidance will be integrated into BlackLine’s family of financial management solutions. BlackLine’s Intercompany Predictive Guidance uses artificial intelligence, built upon a machine learning model, to analyze an organization’s transactional data. The applied AI then predicts where issues are likely to arise and pose a risk to financial close processes and data accuracy before the transactions are booked. It highlights high-risk transactions, explains risk factors, shows accounting teams where immediate corrections are possible, and provides guidance for future transactions. Intercompany Predictive Guidance will initially be available for BlackLine’s Intercompany Non-Trade solution, which manages and automates services-related transactions.

FloQast announces souped up Accounting Operations Platform

FloQast, an accounting workflow automation software provider, made new additions to its cloud-native Accounting Operations Platform, which enables customers to manage the financial close, finance and accounting operations, and compliance programs. New additions include: FloQast Variance Analysis, for finance and accounting teams who need to monitor and manage business and budgetary performance through flux and budget variance analysis; free public CPE/CPD courses from FloQademy, FloQast’s learning portal, which for the first time are available at no cost to everyone, whether or not they’re a FloQast customer; and strengthening compliance management for greater audit readiness through central management and integration of compliance into business processes. The solutions were announced at TakeControl, FloQast’s annual user conference this week. The announcements come as FloQast also unveiled its vision for the future of generative AI and accounting during the conference. By using generative AI, routine accounting tasks such as data entry, account reconciliations and financial statement preparation can be further automated.

Diligent introduces custom dashboard solution

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Governance, risk and compliance solutions provider Diligent released its Diligent One product. The new release builds on the last six months where Diligent has launched board and leadership reporting dashboards for ESG, audit, cyber risk and investor engagement. The new Diligent One solution provides the ability to customize and create dashboards using company data and systems. Combined with Diligent’s other solutions across governance, risk, compliance, audit and ESG, customers now have a connected view of risk management and the ability to capture and contextualize data and insights and report to the board. Diligent announced the release during the Modern Governance Summit. The solution is available in pilot phase now.

NordVPN’s releases cybersecurity browser extension, “Sonar”

Ivelin Radkov/Ivelin Radkov – Fotolia

Virtual private network provider NordVPN debuted its first experimental project under the NordLabs platform: an AI-enabled browser extension called Sonar that aims to help internet users detect phishing emails and protect themselves from cybercrimes. Sonar will warn users on how likely the email they received is a phishing scam. It will also point out which aspects of the email affected evaluation results and explain what signs to look out for. Sonar is currently available for Gmail users on Google Chrome, with more platforms to follow. NordVPN also plans to launch another project in the NordLabs platform in September. An AI-enabled tool called Pixray will help distinguish AI-generated images from those created through traditional means.

M&A, partnerships and integrations

AP automation solutions provider Quadient announced a technology partnership with Atlanta-based Repay Holdings Corporation, a payment solutions provider. With the new Repay integration, Quadient AP generates a payments batch that can be submitted to signing authorities for approval. … Crypto accounting platform Bitwave announced a strategic alliance with Big Four firm Deloitte. The Deloitte-Bitwave alliance offers clients a suite of digital asset offerings, including connecting blockchain data to the ERP system, accelerating monthly close with automated accounting, and streamlining crypto payments. … CPA.com and ESG solutions and consulting provider Good.Lab, announced a new ESG practice development program that will enable accounting firms to respond to growing client demand for ESG advisory services. The program launched with an initial cohort of five firms from the AICPA Major Firms Group that are receiving educational content, hands-on training, enablement tools and insights. Good.Lab was a participant in the 2022 AICPA and CPA.com Startup Accelerator program. Training and enablement will focus on building a revenue-generating practice and defining service offerings, sales approach, revenue model, how to engage with existing clients on the topic, and client delivery tools. … First AML, a global scaleup which streamlines the anti-money laundering onboarding and compliance process, is partnering with Mercia Group LTD, a provider of continuing professional development training, assessments, compliance and marketing services to the U.K. and Ireland accountancy profession. Through the partnership, Mercia’s clients will gain access to First AML’s ICAEW-accredited platform, which offers a solution for AML onboarding including: matter risk assessments, ID verification, beneficial ownership & corporate structures, screening and more. Simultaneously, First AML will endorse Merica as its trusted partner for accounting client requirements around staying up-to-date with regulatory compliance, support and training. … Bitwave, a crypto accounting platform, acquired Gilded, a crypto payments and reporting platform. The acquisition allows users to manage crypto payments and invoices to various stakeholders while tracking expenses. Gilded’s clients will gain access to Bitwave’s platform and customer success team to set up a transition plan. All Gilded products will continue to operate as normal for now. … Digital identity management solutions provider Trua is integrating its Smart Wallet with the Apple Wallet, providing users an added way to securely share their verified digital identity. Leveraging Trua’s authentication technologies, users can store their reusable verified identity either in their Apple Wallet, Trua’s Smart Wallet or a third-party wallet.

New hires and appointments

Datamatics Business Solutions, Inc., a global provider of outsourced accounting, bookkeeping, finance, tax preparation, audit and assurance; payroll and demand generation; and data services, has appointed of Hitendra Patil as president of its global F&A and CPA outsourcing services. He will drive the CPA and FP&A outsourcing business growth for Datamatics Business Solutions Inc. The CPA business spans across the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand and is poised for customer growth in other key geographical markets. … Cybersecurity platform Plixer announced the appointment of Tom McNamara as its new Chief Executive Officer. Before joining Plixer, he had been chief operating officer at Avetta; chief revenue officer and, later, chief operating officer at Viewpoint; and senior vice president of global sales, then chief revenue officer, at NAVEX Global. … Right Networks, a cloud solutions provider aimed at accounting firms and professionals, has appointed Piyum Samaraweera as the new chief product officer. Samaraweera will report directly to Michael Bird, president of Right Networks, and will drive the company’s product strategy and identify opportunities to serve new markets. Samaraweera joins Right Networks with more than 25 years of experience in developing web, mobile solutions and services for global SaaS and cloud companies. Samaraweera recently served as chief product officer for Greenlight Guru, a company specializing in cloud-based quality management software.

Other news

Wolters Kluwer has published a Countdown to Compliance guide to educate and provide clarity for reporting companies under new “beneficial ownership” financial rules that are set to take effect in the U.S. in January, requiring companies to collect, document and monitor previously unreported data on a company’s primary owners via completion of a Beneficial Ownership Information report. FinCEN estimates the rule will impact approximately 32.6 million reporting companies in 2024 alone, and 5.5 million new reporting companies that are formed and registered every year going forward. … Biz2Credit and CPA.com have updated the CPA Business Funding Portal, a cloud-based platform that helps accounting firms secure financing on behalf of their clients, to reflect the Small Business Administration’s new lending regulations announced on Aug. 10, 2023. Those using the new funding portal can expect faster eligibility checks on loan submissions, and a centralized place to handle the new collateral and affiliation requirements. … FYIsoft, a provider of cloud-based solutions for financial reporting, analytics and budgeting, announced the availability of its flagship product, financial reporting automation solution ReportFYI, on Microsoft AppSource, an online cloud marketplace providing line-of-business solutions. … Tax compliance automation software provider Avalara announced that its Avalara AvaTax solutions for SAP Business One and SAP S/4HANA & SAP ERP are now SAP Endorsed Apps, available for purchase on SAP Store. Avalara AvaTax for SAP Business One is an SAP Endorsed App in the ERP for Small and Midsize Enterprises category. For SAP S/4HANA & SAP ERP, Avalara AvaTax is an SAP Endorsed App in the ERP and Finance category.