The SBA Wants to Rewrite Who Counts as "Small" — and You Have Until September 21 to Weigh In
SBA's proposed rule cuts 995 size standards to 338, raises some thresholds tenfold and makes ~114,000 more firms 'small'; comments close September 21, 2026.
Blog
Plain-text accounting insights, tutorials, and updates from the Beancount.io team.
Reading Your First US Term Sheet: Valuation, Liquidation Preference, and the Control Terms Founders Miss
A $10M pre-money valuation with a 15% option pool values the founders' shares closer to $8.5M. A clause-by-clause walk through a priced-round term sheet — the option pool shuffle, 1x non-participating preference, full-ratchet anti-dilution, board seats and veto lists — with the math worked out.
Product Liability Insurance for Makers, Manufacturers, and Resellers
The average small business liability claim now costs $97,200, while $1M/$2M product liability coverage averages about $1,192 a year. What the policy pays, who in the distribution chain can be sued, and five mistakes that leave sellers exposed.
Ask Your AI Assistant What You Owe and Who Owes You: AP Data Inside AI Workspaces
Ottimate's June 2026 MCP integration lets you query live AP data from Claude or ChatGPT; Billtrust followed for AR. Start read-only, with audit logs on.
Opening a Montessori Preschool: Startup Costs, Staffing, and the Bookkeeping That Keeps Tuition Honest
A leased three-classroom Montessori preschool needs $350,000-$600,000 to open, and spring tuition deposits are deferred revenue, not cash for summer construction. Startup ranges, staffing math, and the two entries founders get wrong.
Nacha's September 2026 ACH Rules: New IAT Definition and 9 A.M. Funds Availability
On September 18, 2026, Nacha makes standard ACH credits available by 9 a.m. with no receipt cutoff and rewrites the IAT definition in Section 8.55. What changes for cross-border payments, payroll timing, and the 2027–2028 follow-ons.
Your Processor Is Holding 10% of Every Sale: Rolling Reserves, Payout Holds, and How to Book Them
A rolling reserve is your revenue held as restricted cash, not a fee: book the gross sale, debit Funds Held in Reserve, and post releases as asset transfers.
Kicked Off Your Merchant Account? The MATCH List, Its Reason Codes, and the Three Paths Off
A MATCH listing follows a terminated merchant for five years and nobody has to tell you. Here are the reason codes, the high-risk cost, and three paths off.
Only 8 States Tax Manufacturing Equipment: How to Claim Your Machinery Exemption
Thirty-eight states exempt manufacturing machinery from sales tax, but the break works through exemption certificates you hand vendors, not automatic refunds. Alabama, Hawaii, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, and the Dakotas tax equipment in full or at reduced rates, while repair parts, utilities, and missing paperwork trip up makers everywhere.
Mandatory Vacations Catch Fraud: The Two-Week Control That Cuts Your Losses in Half
Organizations with mandatory vacation and job rotation report roughly 50% lower fraud losses — here is how small teams run the control.
Malaysia E-Invoicing in 2026: The RM3 Million Exemption, Phase 4, and the RM10,000 Rule SMEs Must Get Right
As of September 2026, Malaysia exempts businesses under RM3 million from e-invoicing; those above must issue individual e-invoices for sales over RM10,000.
Live Scan Fingerprinting Service Bookkeeping: Per-Roll Fees, Pass-Through Billing, and the Mobile vs. Storefront Math
DOJ and FBI live scan fees are a liability, not revenue — book only the rolling fee as income, and capitalize the $7,000 scanner or elect Section 179.