Calculating and reading the SYSCOHADA balance sheet

This guide shows you how to generate the SYSCOHADA balance sheet — the snapshot of your company’s net worth at a given date T — and how to read it: what the company owns (Assets), how it is financed (Liabilities) and the key ratios. SynkriaOps calculates the balance sheet automatically from your posted accounting entries — no manual input is required.

Understanding the balance sheet structure

Assets — what the company owns

Section	SYSCOHADA accounts	Examples
Fixed assets	Class 2	Computer equipment, vehicles, land
Inventories	Class 3	Merchandise, raw materials
Receivables	Class 4 debit balances	Customers (411xxx), Tax credits (44xxx debit)
Cash and equivalents	Class 5	Bank (521xxx), petty cash (571xxx)

Liabilities — how the company is financed

Section	SYSCOHADA accounts	Examples
Equity	Class 1	Share capital (101), Reserves (11xxx), Net result (12)
Long-term financial debt	Class 16	Long-term bank loans
Short-term liabilities	Class 4 credit balances	Suppliers (401xxx), VAT payable (4431)
Overdrafts	Class 5 credit balances	Bank overdrafts

Tip

Absolute rule: Total Assets = Total Liabilities. If this is not the case in SynkriaOps, your trial balance is not in equilibrium — consult the trial balance first to correct the discrepancy.

Accessing the balance sheet

From the navigation bar: Financial Statements → Balance Sheet.

Select the fiscal year for which you wish to generate the balance sheet. SynkriaOps automatically displays columns N (selected year) and N-1 (previous year) for comparison.

The generated balance sheet: N and N-1 columns, balanced asset and liability totals.

Checking the prerequisites before generating

Before generating the balance sheet, verify the following:

1. Balanced trial balance — Open the trial balance and confirm that ΣDebit balances = ΣCredit balances.

2. All documents posted — Documents in DRAFT status are not included in the balance sheet. Post them before generating.

3. Up-to-date matching — Matched (cleared) receivables and payables do not distort outstanding balances.

4. Correct opening balances — If this is the first year after a data migration, verify that the opening balances of classes 1–5 are accurate.

5. Depreciation posted — Depreciation charges must be recorded before the balance sheet date (otherwise fixed assets will be overstated).

Reading an example balance sheet

Simplified balance sheet for a distribution SME at 31/12/2025, total balance sheet: 45,000,000 XAF.

ASSETS

Line item	N (31/12/2025)	N-1 (31/12/2024)
FIXED ASSETS
Equipment and tools (net)	8,500,000	10,200,000
Transport equipment (net)	4,200,000	5,600,000
Sub-total fixed assets	12,700,000	15,800,000
CURRENT ASSETS
Merchandise inventories	6,800,000	5,100,000
Trade receivables	11,400,000	8,700,000
VAT recoverable	950,000	600,000
Sub-total current assets	19,150,000	14,400,000
CASH
BICEC bank account (521001)	11,200,000	9,500,000
Petty cash (571000)	1,950,000	1,200,000
Sub-total cash	13,150,000	10,700,000
TOTAL ASSETS	45,000,000	40,900,000

LIABILITIES

Line item	N (31/12/2025)	N-1 (31/12/2024)
EQUITY
Share capital (101000)	10,000,000	10,000,000
Legal reserves (1111)	1,200,000	850,000
Retained earnings (12x)	2,350,000	1,500,000
Net result for the year (12)	7,500,000	5,200,000
Sub-total equity	21,050,000	17,550,000
LONG-TERM FINANCIAL DEBT
Bank loans (162xxx)	8,200,000	11,400,000
SHORT-TERM LIABILITIES
Trade payables (401xxx)	12,350,000	9,800,000
VAT payable (4431)	1,475,000	1,150,000
Social security payable (422xxx)	1,925,000	1,000,000
Sub-total short-term liabilities	15,750,000	11,950,000
TOTAL LIABILITIES	45,000,000	40,900,000

Reading the key financial ratios

Working capital (WC)

Working capital measures long-term financial stability:

WC = Permanent capital − Fixed assets

Permanent capital = Equity + Long-term debt = 21,050,000 + 8,200,000 = 29,250,000 XAF

WC = 29,250,000 − 12,700,000 = 16,550,000 XAF ✓ (positive = fixed assets are financed by stable resources)

Working capital requirement (WCR)

WCR represents the financing needs tied to operations:

WCR = Inventories + Trade receivables − Trade payables

WCR = 6,800,000 + 11,400,000 − 12,350,000 = 5,850,000 XAF

A positive WCR means operations consume cash. It must be financed (by WC or overdraft facilities).

Net cash position

Net cash = Cash assets − Cash liabilities

Net cash = 13,150,000 − 0 = 13,150,000 XAF ✓

Verification: Net cash = WC − WCR = 16,550,000 − 5,850,000 = 10,700,000 XAF (slight difference due to the simplified example — in a complete balance sheet, all three ratios always reconcile).

Tip

A positive net cash position and working capital that exceeds WCR are signals of financial health for a growing SME.

Fixing common errors

Error	Likely cause	Solution
Total Assets ≠ Total Liabilities	Unbalanced trial balance	Correct the discrepancy in the trial balance
Balance sheet result ≠ income statement result	Draft document or incorrect opening balances	Post all documents, verify opening balances
Fixed assets overstated	Depreciation not posted	Record depreciation charges before generating the balance sheet
N-1 column empty	No previous fiscal year in SynkriaOps	Normal for the first year — enter opening balances via data migration

See also

• Viewing the trial balance — An essential prerequisite before generating any balance sheet.
• Calculating the income statement — Detail of the net result that appears in account 13 of the balance sheet after year-end closing.
• Closing a fiscal year — Closing automatically calculates the result and records it in account 13.