Cell Reports · Track 1 · Tutorial 3 of 12

Bind cells to financial data

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A Financial data cell doesn’t hold a number: it holds a question, such as “Revenue, actual, this month, for this entity”. BrizoConsol answers it each time the report is opened. Ask the question the right way and the cell stays right next month.

You will needThe summary laid out, as in Lay out a Cell Report: sheets, cells and formats.
By the endRevenue, gross profit and net profit for the month and the budget, and cash at bank, all read live into Your Group’s monthly summary.

1Know the parts of the question

A Financial data cell: Entity, Data source System account type, Reporting month, Presentation currency SGD, REVENUE, Version Actual and Value Monthly movement, with a Cell reference box on Entity, Presentation currency and Version; beside it the summary grid with October revenue in B4 and the budget in C4
What to read (1), for which month (2), and the result in the grid (3).
EntityCurrent entity is the entity the report is opened for. Choose a company only when the cell must always read that company.
Data sourceWhat kind of figure: a section, a total, a tag, a KPI and so on. See step 2.
Reporting monthReporting month is the month the report is opened for. Link to a cell reads the month from a cell. Fixed month always reads the same month.
Presentation currencyThe currency the figure is shown in. It starts on the entity’s own currency.
VersionActual, Budget or Forecast.
ValueMonthly movement for profit and loss, Closing balance for the balance sheet, or Previous month closing balance.

Entity, Presentation currency and Version have a Cell reference box, and the month has Link to a cell. Use them, and the field reads its value from a cell instead — that is how a reader changes a report, in Let readers choose the entity, period and currency.

2Choose the data source

Data sourceReadsUse it for
System account typeA statement section, such as REVENUE, DIRECT COSTS or BANKSection totals, the same as on the statements
Financial statement totalNET PROFIT, GROSS PROFIT, CY EARNINGS or RETAINED EARNINGSThe statements’ own totals
Account type totalThe total of one account typeA finer split than a section
Accounting standard tagEvery account carrying a tag from the Accounting Standard pageA line of a standard’s statements, such as Administrative Expenses
Accounts by typeThe accounts of one type, as Movement, Closing balance, Debit or CreditDebits or credits on their own
KPIA KPI’s current month, year to date, target, variance to target or previous monthRatios already defined as KPIs
Exchange rateA rate between two currencies, average or closing, for a scenarioShowing the rates a report used
Profit & loss, Balance sheet, Trial balance (existing binding)A section total or one accountReports built before the sources above existed

Prefer a source that reads a section, a total or a tag. It includes every account in it, so a new account is picked up without changing the report. A single account is right only when the line really is one account.

3Bind the month’s figures

  1. Click B4. In the inspector, set Cell type to Financial data.
  2. Keep Entity on Current entity. Choose Data source System account type, then REVENUE.
  3. Keep Reporting month on Reporting month, Presentation currency on SGD, Version on Actual, and Value on Monthly movement.
  4. Click C4 and set it up the same way, with Version Budget.
  5. For B5 and C5, choose Financial statement total, GROSS PROFIT; for B6 and C6, NET PROFIT.

Each cell shows its value as soon as it is set: B4 shows 432,100, October’s revenue.

4Bind a balance

  1. Click B8. Choose Financial data, System account type, BANK.
  2. Set Value to Closing balance.
  3. Click Save.

A balance sheet figure is a position at the month end, so it is always a closing balance. A movement on a balance sheet line — how much cash changed in the month — is a different question, and a different number.

Check

Open Reports → Profit & Loss and Balance Sheet for Your Group, Oct-2026. Revenue, Gross Profit and Net Profit match B4 to B6, the budget figures match the Budget scenario, and B8 matches the bank total.

5If something goes wrong

A cell shows zeroThe Value doesn’t suit the source: a Closing balance of revenue, or a Monthly movement of the bank. Or the Version has no figures for the month.
A cell shows last month’s figure next monthIts Reporting month is set to Fixed month. Choose Reporting month, or Link to a cell.
Every company sees the group’s figureThe Entity is set to Your Group. Use Current entity.
A new account isn’t in the figureThe cell reads one account. Read the section, a total or a tag instead.

Want more detail? See the documentation