Oracle General Ledger (GL) is the core of Oracle Financials, providing a central repository for financial

data and facilitating the management of financial transactions, budgeting, and reporting across an
organization. It is designed to ensure that financial data is accurate, accessible, and compliant with
regulatory requirements.

Key Features of Oracle General Ledger:

1. Chart of Accounts (COA):

o Flexible Structure: Define a flexible and customizable chart of accounts with multiple
segments, such as company, department, account, and cost center.

o Multiple Account Combinations: Set up account combinations to reflect different

aspects of your business for financial tracking.

2. Journals and Ledger Entries:

o Manual Journal Entries: Record manual entries for financial transactions that don’t
automatically flow from sub-ledgers.

o Automatic Journals: Automatically create journals for transactions from other Oracle
modules like Payables, Receivables, and Fixed Assets.

o Reversing Journals: Set up automatic journal reversals for accruals or error corrections.

3. Multi-Ledger and Multi-Currency Support:

o Manage multiple ledgers for different entities, legal requirements, or geographical

regions.

o Multi-Currency Accounting: Record and report transactions in different currencies. The

system can perform automatic currency conversions based on exchange rates.

o Secondary Ledgers: Maintain a secondary ledger for reporting in another accounting

standard (e.g., IFRS or local GAAP).

4. Period Close and Reconciliation:

o Period-End Processing: Perform period closing activities, including reconciliation and

review of account balances.

o Subledger Reconciliation: Integrate with sub-ledgers like Accounts Payable and

Receivable for automatic reconciliation.

o Intercompany Reconciliation: Automate intercompany accounting and reconciliation for

transactions between different legal entities.
5. Budgeting and Forecasting:

o Budget Management: Create, manage, and track budgets at various levels (e.g.,
department, project, or company-wide).

o Budget Controls: Enforce budget controls to ensure spending stays within approved
limits.

o Forecasting: Generate financial forecasts based on historical data and business trends to
aid in financial planning.

6. Financial Consolidation:

o Consolidate financial data from multiple entities or subsidiaries into a single set of
financial statements.

o Perform eliminations for intercompany transactions during the consolidation process.

o Support for multiple currencies and global operations.

7. Financial Reporting and Analysis:

o Real-Time Financial Reports: Generate financial statements, including income

statements, balance sheets, and cash flow reports.

o Custom Reporting: Use Oracle Financial Reporting Studio or Oracle Business Intelligence
tools to create customized reports.

o Drill-Down Functionality: Drill down from summary-level reports to transaction-level

details for in-depth analysis.

8. Segment Reporting:

o Generate reports based on specific segments of the chart of accounts (e.g., department,
cost center, or region).

o Track performance across different business units or functions.

9. Tax and Compliance:

o Ensure compliance with local tax regulations and accounting standards like IFRS and
GAAP.

o Support for VAT, GST, and other tax regimes depending on the region.

o Audit Trail: Maintain a complete audit trail of all transactions for regulatory and internal
audits.
 10. Allocations and Recurring Entries:

o Define and automate allocations for shared costs like rent or utilities across departments
or cost centers.

o Recurring Journals: Set up recurring journal entries for transactions that happen on a
regular basis (e.g., depreciation, monthly accruals).

11. Integration with Other Oracle Modules:

o Oracle Payables and Receivables: Automatically post entries from sub-ledgers like
Accounts Payable (AP) and Accounts Receivable (AR) to the general ledger.

o Oracle Assets: Integrate with Fixed Assets for depreciation and asset management.

o Oracle Projects: Post project-related financial transactions to the general ledger.

12. Closing Process:

o Manage the period close process with the capability to reopen periods if needed.

o Automate financial consolidation across multiple entities or business units, ensuring

accurate and timely financial reporting.

13. Intercompany Accounting:

o Automate the creation of intercompany transactions and ensure the proper balancing of
entries between legal entities.

o Intercompany transactions can be reconciled automatically during period-end closing.

Basic Workflow in Oracle General Ledger:

1. Transaction Entry:

o Financial transactions flow into the General Ledger from sub-ledgers or through manual
journal entries.

2. Review and Reconciliation:

o Periodic review of journals, reconciliations, and balance analysis.

3. Financial Reporting:

o Generate financial statements such as income statements and balance sheets.

4. Period Close:
 o Close accounting periods after reconciliation, and lock transactions to ensure the
integrity of financial reporting.

Key Benefits:

 Real-Time Financial Data: Provides accurate and up-to-date financial information, allowing for
better decision-making.

 Regulatory Compliance: Ensures adherence to local accounting standards and tax regulations,
helping avoid compliance risks.

 Improved Financial Controls: Through budgetary controls, approvals, and audit trails, Oracle GL
enhances financial governance.

 Scalability: Suitable for both small businesses and large multinational corporations, with
features for global operations, including multi-currency and multi-ledger support.

 Efficiency: Automates repetitive tasks like allocations, consolidations, and reconciliations,

allowing finance teams to focus on analysis and strategy.