How Cooltra automated over 50,000 accounting entries to drive business growth and scalability

The customer

Cooltra is Europe's leading company when it comes to two-wheeled sustainable mobility solutions, with the largest fleet of scooters and electric bicycles on the continent, totalling 28,000 vehicles, 85% of which are electric. Cooltra’s mission is to improve people's quality of life through efficient and environmentally friendly mobility. In recent years, Cooltra has grown significantly in the B2B and B2C markets, expanding to 9 countries and 30 European cities, always with a focus on sustainable development.

This growth led Cooltra to operate through a complex corporate structure, comprising 18 different entities, which presented significant challenges for its finance team, especially in treasury management. CFO Francesc Madurell and his team identified inefficiencies in key processes such as bank balance aggregation, reconciliations and payment control.They also faced challenges in cash pooling, which involves consolidating balances from different group companies onto a single platform to optimise liquidity. In addition, operational accounting consisted of tens of thousands of entries that were recorded manually, eating up time and resources. These manual tasks prevented an accurate view of the cash position and affected debt management and investment planning.

To address these issues, Cooltra partnered with Embat to provide a consolidated view of their cash and debt position, automate accounting and bank reconciliations, optimise the cash pooling system and centralise payment processes. These actions aim to improve operational efficiency, provide accurate and up-to-date financial data, and allow the finance team to focus on higher value-added tasks, thus aligning financial management with the pace of business growth.

The challenge

For Francesc and his team, enabling and adding value to the business is essential, ensuring that each internal supplier perceives them as a strategic ally. They are also very committed to profitability, which involves constantly improving financial processes and closely overseeing the company's growth and sustainability.

In this context, Cooltra's finance team set a number of challenges for Embat:

1. Align financial growth with business expansion

Adapt the capabilities of the finance team to the rapid growth in new markets and maintain the pace of expansion.

2. Consolidate the cash and debt position

Obtain a clear and consolidated view of the group's cash and debt positions to improve financial management.

3. Automate accounting and bank reconciliations

Eliminate the manual work required to download bank statements from multiple entities, upload them to the ERP and perform reconciliations, which would normally involve recording thousands of accounting entries manually.

4. Reduce the administrative burden of the cash pooling system

Effectively manage the consolidation of bank balances from different group companies to maximise liquidity.

5. Motivating and empowering the finance team

Provide the team with the necessary tools, resources and technology to maximise their potential and focus on strategic activities that add value.

The solution

Automated reconciliations with rules + AI

Embat's Automated Accounting and Bank Reconciliation module has enabled Cooltra to automate more than 50,000 accounting entries using automated rules and artificial intelligence, eliminating manual tasks such as downloading bank statements and categorising transactions.

Centralised cash and debt positions

Cash and debt positions are consolidated in an automated way, providing a global and real-time view of the company's liquidity. This data centralisation allows for cash flow and treasury position control, providing reliable metrics and indicators to make informed and strategic decisions.

Optimisation of the cash pooling system

The automatic consolidation of bank balances from the company's various companies into a centralised cash pooling platform not only optimises liquidity management, but also eliminates the need for manual transactions between accounts, thereby significantly improving operational efficiency.

Centralised and automated payments

Centralised and automated payments eliminate the need for manual reconciliations. Payments are approved and executed in an accurate and timely manner, reducing the risk of duplication as well as manual errors.

A scalable solution with continuous improvements

Embat offers a scalable treasury management solution that adapts to the evolving needs of Cooltra's finance team. By incorporating customer feedback into our continuous improvement process, we make frequent updates that constantly increase efficiency and performance.

The impact

Accurate and streamlined bank reconciliation

The automation of more than 50,000 accounting entries has significantly improved Cooltra's accounting accuracy and has freed up time for the finance team to focus on more strategic tasks.

Business growth and scalability

Real-time liquidity insight and optimised cash pooling have facilitated Cooltra's expansion, enabling more agile and efficient growth.

Reduced operational risk

The elimination of manual reconciliations and the centralisation of payments have significantly reduced the potential for errors and duplications, increasing the reliability of financial operations.

Motivating and empowering the team

The implementation of automation processes and the continuous upgrades brought by Embat have empowered Cooltra's finance team. By reducing manual and repetitive tasks, the team can focus on high-value activities, which has significantly improved their motivation and productivity, contributing to the sustained success of the company.