Troubleshooting Guide for Common Import and Reconciliation Issues

Overview

Custodian interfaces provide a means for electronically populating client data in the Office product. However, no interface is perfect, and there will always be some situations that must be manually corrected. The Import Blotters highlight items that should be reviewed and corrected before adding the data into your system. This topic will cover some of the most common issues that arise during the import and reconciliation process.

Reconciliation Issues and Instructions on How to Fix Them

Helpful Tools to Assist with the Reconciliation Process

What is reconciliation and Out of Balances (OOB)?

Reconciliation is the process of comparing the share balance in Morningstar to the custodian. Ultimately, you want your Morningstar accounts to reflect the same share balance and activity that occurred at the custodian. An Out of Balance (OOB) is when there is a share balance discrepancy.

How often will I get reconciliation issues?

During the import process, it is expected that you will, from time to time, have reconciliation OOB. This is due to the translation process involved to get the data from one platform to another. You should account for this and should expect to spend time on a periodic basis reconciling your data. The amount of time that you will need to spend on reconciliation issues will depend on how many accounts you are importing, the complexity of the accounts that you import, and the Custodian that you are importing from.

Why do I get reconciliation issues?

Reconciliation issues result from the translation process. This process is stated below.

1. The transactions are recorded at the custodian.
2. These transactions are then translated by the custodian and given transaction codes to represent the transaction\event that occurred. This process occurs during the file creation process, which usually takes place daily.
3. Morningstar will then translate the transaction codes provided in the custodian files into the most appropriate transaction type available within the Morningstar Office program.

Due to this double translation process there is room for error. Sometimes the same transaction code is used to represent multiple scenarios or there is not a great transaction code to represent a unique situation. Morningstar will use the most popular transaction type for each transaction code, however, this may not be accurate in all instances where this transaction code is used. Morningstar uses all of the information available within the files to choose the best transaction type, including the transaction code and comments provided. If you feel that a transaction is not being imported correctly based on the information provided, please call Morningstar Support at 1-866-215-2503 and we will investigate the specific scenario.

Are there certain transactions\events that are more likely to cause reconciliation issues?

There are certain transactions\events that are unique and often cause reconciliation issues due to the inability to capture all of the details within the files that are required to correctly process the transactions within Morningstar Office. The most common scenarios include corporate actions, reversals, tender offers, and symbol changes.

How can I reduce the reconciliation issues I receive?

The best way to reduce reconciliation issues is to import daily. This will reduce error by ensuring that you receive the needed files each day. This will also allow you to research out and resolve reconciliation issues on the day they are received, thus reducing the amount of data to look through to determine the resolution.

Note: Pershing should be imported weekly and DST fund companies can only be reconciled monthly.

What do the colors red and blue signify in the Failed Blotter?

Both colored OOB are share discrepancies between Morningstar and the Custodian that need to be resolved. Below is a description of what each color represents.

Red - Items in red indicate that the custodian recognizes a position but Office recognizes a different position (either no position or just different).

Blue - Items in blue indicate that Office has a position in the holding but the custodian has a zero position in the holding.

Reconciliation Issues and Instructions on How to Fix Them

Cash OOB - Refer to these steps when you only have a Cash OOB for an account.
Holding OOB - Refer to these steps when you have a Holding OOB (except Cash) for an account.
Tender Offers – Follow these steps when a Tender Offer occurs.
New Accounts – Follow these steps when you have a new account that transferred into your custody.
Fatal Error – Follow these steps if you received a fatal error while importing or posting.
Closed Accounts – Follow these steps when you have a closed account that has transferred out of your custody.
Long/Short Option Issues - Follow these steps if you receive a long/short position type issue for an option.
Spin-offs - Refer to the Corporate Action Spin-off Wizard for step by step instructions on how to handle a spin-off.
Mergers/Exchanges - Refer to the Merger/Exchange Wizard for step by step instructions on how to handle a merger or exchange.
Splits - Refer to Split/Reversal Split Wizard for step by step instructions on each screen within the Split/Reverse Split Wizard.
Ticker/CUSIP Changes - Follow these steps when a Ticker/CUSIP change occurs.
Security Mapping Issues - Follow these steps when there is a Security Mapping issue.

Helpful Tools to assist with the Reconciliation Process

Viewing and Removing Your Post History - Morningstar keeps a record of your post history for each custodian and interface type from which you import. You can view information about the transactions you posted, and you can remove transactions you have posted.
Reconciling Historically - Use the Reconcile Historical Date function to reconcile as of a date that is within the date range you are currently importing. This function is helpful if you are importing a large date range and need to determine when the OOB first occurred or if you are importing missing files.
Microsoft Excel Import - The Excel Import can be used to fix common OOB due to missing transactions when you are unable to download the needed transactions from the custodian. It is often quicker to use Excel than manually adding them. Click here to see how to do this.
1. From within the Import Blotter, go to the Failed blotter. Select the desired OOB and click the Export button. Note: The OOB should be due to missing one common transaction and the same transaction type should be needed to fix all of the OOB.
2. Add any needed columns, such as a transaction type and price column in the Excel spreadsheet. Click here for a list of required columns.
3. Import and Post your data via Microsoft Excel - Transactions.
4. Import via the original custodian and Reconcile to verify that the OOB were resolved.
Find Transactions - Use the Find Transactions utility if you need to find transactions globally, throughout your practice. This is helpful if you need to edit, delete, or export transaction to Excel for a certain security or within a certain transaction type that spans across many accounts.
Importing Duplicate Transactions – There may be unique scenarios when you need to import data that has duplicate transactions in it. Refer to Removing Duplicate Transactions when Posting for step by step instructions on removing these duplicate transactions.
Importing Missing Files – Refer to Importing Missing Files for step by step instruction on importing missing files when you have imported and posted data after the file date you are missing.
Exclusions
- Use the Excluding an Account from Importing and Reconciliation instructions to exclude an account from importing for a custodian.
- Use the Import Security Exclusion instructions to exclude a security from importing for a custodian entirely or from just one account at that custodian.
- Use the Exclude Holding from Reconciliation instructions to exclude a holding that is held in the Morningstar account but that you do not want to show up during reconciliation - Example: an unmanaged asset.