This episode is sponsored by Fathom - fathomhq.com

In this episode of the Digi-Tools in Accrual World podcast, Ryan Pearcy and John Toon dive into the latest shifts in the accounting technology landscape, following John’s return from his annual ski trip. The duo explores significant new software integrations and the evolving role of AI in professional workflows.

Key topics covered include:

Platform Integrations: The hosts discuss Fathom's new official integration with FreeAgent, enhancing reporting capabilities for small business users.

Xero Updates: A deep dive into Xero’s full rollout of Syft for advanced analytics and visual reporting. They also discuss the UI alignment of credit notes with invoices and speculate on a strategic "new user segment" hinted at in recent high-level job postings.

Regulatory Alerts: Ryan flags a critical gap in major payroll software (including BrightPay, Sage, and Xero) regarding the automatic calculation of maternity pension contributions, which currently requires manual intervention to maintain compliance.

Embedded Accounting: A look at Sage’s strategic partnership to embed its technology directly into HSBC UK’s business banking platform, a move aimed at sole traders and MTD readiness.

The Rise of MCPs: John explains the significance of Scoro launching a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server, allowing users to interact with their business data through natural language via LLMs like ChatGPT or Claude.

Enterprise AI: An overview of Acumatica’s heavy investment in AI-driven workflows, anomaly detection for "real-time audits," and voice-interface assistants.

Industry Reflections: The episode concludes with insights from the "Finance Takes the Peace" trip, reflecting on the diversity of opinions regarding offshoring, the "firm of the future," and the professional responsibility of using AI-generated advice.

Chapters

00:00 Ski Trip Adventures and Industry Connections 01:59 Fathom launches FreeAgent integration 03:33 Payroll Software Challenges 08:08 Xero's New Features and Enhancements 12:25 Xero's Credit Notes Upgrade 14:39 Speculation on Xero's future 18:52 Sage and HSBC partner to deliver MTD tools to Sole Traders 24:48 Scoro's MCP Server and Natural Language Integration 30:06 AI Integration in Acumatica 35:38 Accountero utilises AI agents to help firms 41:02 Regulatory Challenges in Fintech: The Airwallex Investigation 45:11 Insights from Finance Takes the Piste: The Future of Accounting

In this episode of the Digi-Tools in Accrual World podcast, hosts Ryan Pearcy and Leigh Stallard dive into the latest in accounting and fintech news. They discuss the impact of new technologies on the industry, highlight key updates from companies like A2X, iplicit, and Crezco, and explore the strategic moves of Briefcase and FYI. The conversation also touches on the importance of automation and innovation in accounting practices.

00:00 - Welcome to Digi-Tools in Accrual World 6.03 - Sponsored by Scoro

04:23 - A2X Innovations and E-commerce Solutions

08:12 - iplicit's Growth and Focus on Education

11:17 - Acumatica's New Leadership and Market Positioning

14:36 - Crezco's Pay by Card Feature

17:29 - Briefcase's New Sales Processing Feature

21:52 - Briefcase adds Line Item Categorisation

25:16 - FYI's Adds Forms Feature

31:14 - Digital Disruptors Updates

Scoro - www.scoro.com

Reuben’s Website post: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/reuben-steenkamp_over-christmas-i-spent-2-weeks-782-million-activity-7417541719820238848-PsSE

In this episode of Digi-Tools in Accrual World, Ryan and Indi dive into the start of 2026 with a breakdown of the biggest accounting tech news and fintech news hitting the market.

The conversation headlines with Xero’s major platform shift, moving to usage-based pricing and restricting API data for AI training. Is this a move for security or a strategy to build a "walled garden"? The hosts also explore the rising "slop" in accounting books caused by generalist AI chatbots, with new data from Dext highlighting the cost of these errors for firms.

Plus, we cover the latest updates from Scoro (retainer watchdogs), FloQast’s push for deterministic AI, and WorkflowMax’s focus on capacity forecasting. Finally, we look at how niche firms are using tech stacks to target the construction boom.

In this episode, we cover:

Xero’s Platform Shift: The end of the 15% revenue share and new data usage costs.

Data Ownership: The debate over who owns client data - the platform, the accountant, or the business.

Scoro Updates: New "Watchdog" alerts for retainer metrics and resource booking improvements.

FloQast & AI: Why "deterministic" AI might be the future for reliable accounting workflows.

AI Hallucinations: Dext reveals how much money clients are losing due to chatbot errors.

WorkflowMax: Using AI for staff capacity forecasting and handling subcontractor approvals.

This episode is sponsored by Xledger, the mid-tier accounting system perfect for those moving to the cloud. www.xledger.com

00:00 – Intro & Welcome

00:03:41 – Xero’s Data Ownership & Pricing Shake-up

00:10:45 – Scoro Releases: Watchdog Alerts for Retainers

00:14:07 – FloQast’s Deterministic AI Strategy

00:20:36 – The Cost of AI Errors: Dext Data on Chatbot "Slop"

00:25:12 – WorkflowMax Updates: Capacity Planning & Fraud Detection

00:31:12 – Solving the Subcontractor Approval Headache

00:34:15 – Niche Focus: Tech Stacks for Construction

00:37:41 – Awards, Academy & Closing