One of the most important functions of the finance department is closing the books at the end of reporting periods and fiscal years. And it’s also a function that hasn’t changed much through the years. Everything needs to be accounted for, figured out, double-checked and rebalanced.

It’s not exactly an ideal job for generative AI—a technology that is good at drawing conclusions and making inferences. A close is dependent on careful math, which is not subject to interpretation. But there are ways AI can help with the analysis and processes surrounding the financial close. I spoke with Jordan Weitzen, CFO of AI-powered ERP software platform Acumatica, about how to use AI to make the close more accurate and efficient—and let the finance team spend more time evaluating and less time calculating. An excerpt from our conversation is later in this newsletter.

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The economic impact of the war in Iran is becoming clearer in terms of actual numbers and trends, and none of it is positive. In just one month, inflation rose by almost a full percentage point, lifted by the largest single-month increase in energy prices in decades. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, March’s consumer prices were 3.3% higher than a year ago—and 0.9% higher than in February. The main factor in last month’s higher inflation is the war—annual inflation in February was actually on the decline, based on the core consumption expenditures index.

Consumers are feeling the pain in many ways, with the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment survey hitting an all-time low of 47.6 in April. And it’s all about the war’s impact on their finances again—respondents said they expect prices to increase 4.8% in the next year, and their assessment of personal finances dropped 11%. Forbes’ Mary Whitfill Roeloffs listed some of the places that consumers are paying more through new fees: credit card use surcharges, new fuel surcharges for delivered items, vague service fees tacked on to restaurant bills, and higher costs for checked baggage on airplanes.

The falling economic indicators could usher in one positive: According to minutes released last week from March’s Federal Reserve Open Market Committee meeting, some members think that the war in Iran may continue to disrupt the economy significantly enough that an interest rate cut could be necessary.

Tomorrow is tax day, so the finance department (and financial employees themselves) might be frantic with last-minute calculations, deductions, depreciations and forms to file. This year is seeing new changes designed to put more money back in taxpayers’ hands, and individual taxpayers are seeing 11% higher average refunds, writes Forbes’ Kelly Phillips Erb. But as of April 3, fewer people had filed their taxes than a year ago—though traffic to the IRS website is up 58%, presumably as taxpayers research the many changes this year.

But the doors are opening for businesses to get more out of the IRS website. As of this month, the department expanded access to its online Business Tax Account platform to partnerships, governments and tax-exempt organizations, Erb writes. The Business Tax Account is designed to be an online hub for tax information and payment, and should reduce telephone calls to the agency for the information. Upgrading the IRS has been a slow process—Erb writes this is the most significant expansion to business tax access since 2023—but it’s definitely in motion.

The Trump Administration recently reaffirmed its commitment to a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency and to defending the rules overseeing prediction markets. The FDIC Board of Directors officially started the rulemaking process for financial institutions issuing stablecoins as payment currency, writes Forbes senior contributor Jason Brett. The FDIC issued proposed rules governing the issuance and redemption of payment stablecoins, the management of reserve assets for payment stablecoins, and the provision of limited or safekeeping services. The proposal includes 144 specific questions for people to engage with, as it is open for public comment for 60 days.

Also in the realm of cryptocurrency, earlier this month the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granted Coinbase conditional approval to be a de novo non-insured national trust company charter—essentially the next step toward making the cryptocurrency exchange platform federally regulated, Brett writes. Over three years, Coinbase will migrate its operations from its current New York-chartered trust company to a federal platform—which will also classify it as a trust company. At the end of 2025, Coinbase held $376 billion worth of assets, representing 12% of the global crypto market cap.

Meanwhile, the federal government is asserting its rights to regulate online betting markets, including Kalshi and Polymarket. Earlier this month, Brett writes, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Justice Department sued the states of Connecticut, Arizona and Illinois over their laws aimed at regulating the viral betting websites. The CTFC, which maintains that it has exclusive jurisdiction to regulate online betting markets as event contracts, said the lawsuits are necessary to protect the responsibilities delegated by Congress “from unprecedented overreach by some States.”

Days after these cases were filed, Kalshi won a regulatory victory in court when a federal appellate panel upheld an injunction preventing New Jersey gaming regulators from subjecting the platform to state gambling laws, Brett writes.

How AI Can Improve Your Financial Close

Every company needs to close its books, and AI can be a tool to make the process go more smoothly. I talked to Jordan Weitzen, CFO at AI-powered ERP platform Acumatica, about how to utilize the technology to improve your closing process—and what you need to do to make it work well.

This conversation has been edited for length, clarity and continuity.

How can a quick close become a competitive differentiator?

Weitzen: Historically, financial close was more of an accounting exercise and the focus was how do we make sure we produce the financial statements accurately after the fact?

Today, having a fast financial close gives you real-time insight in how the business is performing, so you can surface issues earlier.

How can AI help with the close, and what can’t AI do?

A lot of time in close is spent reconciling data across systems: reviewing different transactions, investigating anomalies across the system. AI is very effective at pattern recognition and automation, so it can help with the reconciliation, anomaly detection, preparing first-draft financial reports. It really allows the finance team to focus more on validating results and understanding what they mean for the business rather than having to reconcile themselves.

AI is not going to clean your data for you. AI can only generate useful insights if it has reliable information to work with. Many organizations have their financial data spread across multiple systems, and that makes automation harder. AI is not going to be able to reconcile that data if it’s not clean. The biggest enabler of AI in finance is the data foundation.

How do most CFOs and finance departments feel about bringing AI into their systems to help with the close and everything else? Are they enthusiastic or wary about it?

I think a little of both.

The best way to do it from my perspective is start with the practical use cases that reduce manual work. Things like reconciliation or financial analysis are good places to begin, because those are the areas where automation can deliver immediate value, that tackles some of the lower-hanging fruit. Once teams see that value, they can expand automation more broadly.

A lot of CFOs who are wary about AI don’t know where to start because it can be overwhelming, but the most successful AI adoption in finance is going to start with the practical workflows.

Construction and mining equipment manufacturer Caterpillar promoted Kyle Epley to its chief financial officer role, effective May 1. Epley has been with the firm for nearly three decades, and currently works as the company’s senior vice president of global finance services. He will succeed Andrew Bonfield, who is retiring.

Infrastructure and agricultural technology firm Valmont Industries appointed John Schwietz as its new chief financial officer, effective April 9. Schwietz joined the company in 2009, and most recently worked as the company’s president of international agriculture. He succeeds Thomas Liguori.

Oilfield services provider Calfrac Well Services selected Scarlett Crockatt as its new chief financial officer, effective April 9. Crockatt joins the firm from Roynat Capital and Scotiabank where she held senior leadership roles. She succeeds Mike Olinek, who is retiring.

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