AI for optimising financial operations: an overview of tools 2025

This article has been written by Soma Roy pursuing a Training program on Using AI for Business Growth from Skill Arbitrage.

This article has been edited and published by Shashwat Kaushik.

Introduction

Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the way we live, work, travel and do business. AI is here to simplify our lives by saving time, eliminating tasks we dislike, reducing errors, or enhancing our creative abilities. AI tools are just software applications that use artificial intelligence to assist humans solve problems and perform certain tasks. AI works by using machine learning algorithms to analyse data and make decisions based on recognised patterns and current trends. This leads to outcomes that are either similar to or better than human performance.

One area in particular that has been able to greatly benefit from the use of AI tools is finance. A finance professionals job involves collecting and analysing massive amounts of financial data and information to make budgets, forecast business decisions, manage book-keeping, evaluate risks and also consult with internal and external clients. AI tools can quickly and accurately organise large amounts of data and information; hence, financial organisations are now incorporating AI tools to help not only with day-to-day financial operations, but also bring about more effective insights for key decision-makers to assist in the financial operations of organisations right from accounting, streamlining workflows, compliance and auditing, scenario modelling, financial planning and analysis, reporting, forecasting, making credit decisions, quantitative trading, financial risk management and banking.

At present, the AI landscape is as crowded as it is innovative, making the scouting for tools that genuinely offer value for money a challenging quest. The rapid pace at which new AI tools are being released also makes it challenging to come up with a comprehensive list. Nonetheless, here are a few popularly used AI tools available in the market used by organisations in various broad financial functions:

• Financial planning and analysis
• Compliance and auditing
• Bookkeeping and accounting
• Financial reporting, budgeting & forecasting
• Risk assessment
• Trading, investing and data analysis

Tools for financial planning and analysis

FP&A supports business and financial decision-making and provides management with insights into the organisation’s strategic plans and investments. FP&A is about optimising financial management, aiding executives in making informed decisions, and establishing strategies based on reliable and objective data. As AI extends beyond generative language models and includes predictive analytics, it can enhance forecasting and data analysis in finance and accounting.

Datarails FP&A Genius

Datarails FP&A Genius is a ChatGPT-style chatbot that automates data consolidation, reporting and planning using Excel spreadsheets and existing financial models, eliminating the need for comprehensive system changes and eliminating manual processes involved in data collection so finance teams can spend more time analysing data.

Datarails is one of the best tools to connect to data in real-time by connecting all of a company’s financial integrations and data sources into a single source making reporting and analysis accurate and up-to-date. It’s easy to use dashboards and visuals can be used to create custom dashboards for visualisations, perform calculations, and create formulas.

Key features:

• Uses Excel on the front end
• Compiles the organisations data in a single source and displays on a single dashboard
• Provides a robust and secure platform, minimising the chance of errors
• Provides data from secure & trusted sources
• Dashboards and visuals for reporting

Best for: innovation-forward FP&A teams of small and medium-sized businesses with 50-100 employees.

Pricing: Based on customisation.

Domo

Domo is another popular AI tool used by finance professionals. It has a single dashboard, its ease of use allows any finance professional to pull out real-time data from Excel, Salesforce, Workday, and over a thousand other apps and finance tools. Domo automates business insights through low-code and pre-code apps using intuitive dashboards for business intelligence and analytics. It can even integrate real-time data. Domo is limited on what it can do with deeper analytics.

Key features:

• Data synchronisation.
• Financial reporting and performance matrix.
• Real-time analytics.
• AI model management.

Best for: Enterprise-level businesses.

Pricing: Customised pricing based on depending on amount of data, number of users, and any additional layers of security and number of users.

Vena insights

This AI tool has the ability to handle most financial functions in an organisation. Vena Insights helps finance teams use data to make informed decisions when it comes to budgeting & forecasting, cash flow planning, workforce planning, financial close and consolidation, incentive compensation management, tax provisioning, scenario planning and more. The platform operates within Excel, allowing users who are familiar with Excel to use Vena without the need to learn a new software system. Provides a great overall experience with its simple and easy to use interface backed by a great customer support team.

Key features:

• Easy-to-use dashboards
• predictive analytics
• anomaly detection,
• data analysis expressions.

Best for: Enterprise-level businesses.

Pricing varies for professionals and non-profits. Exact pricing depends on the plan. There are additional fees on top of the quoted price that you will receive.

Planful predict

Planful Predict is another FP&A tool based on cloud software that integrates AI and machine learning to help make accurate and fast financial decisions. Planful aims to streamline diverse business processes such as planning, budgeting, consolidations, reporting, and analytics with the ultimate goal to accelerate process cycles, boost productivity, and enhance overall accuracy. Provides good customer support and the platform does not require extensive coding knowledge, though integrating ERP data into Planful remains challenging in comparison to other FP&A software.

Key features:

• AI-driven anomaly detection to identify suspect differences and unusual data
• Uses historical data to provide an accurate starting point for planning and budgeting
• Seamless integration with ERPs and other platforms

Best for: Enterprise-level businesses.

Pricing: There is no designated price stated for Planful Predict on the Planful website. Individuals who want to use Planful Predict must receive a customised AI tool quote from the company.

Tools for compliance & auditing

Compliance and auditing AI tools are helping businesses ensure adherence to rules, regulations, and standards while scrutinising financial and operational processes. In an environment where regulatory requirements are increasingly complex and evolving, AI-driven tools offer a proactive and transformative approach to risk management and regulatory compliance. Below are some compliance and auditing tools for businesses.

Trulliion

Trullion is an AI-powered accounting and auditing software built on a SaaS platform for compliance. It connects structured and unstructured data together to reduce workflow times considerably, minimises cost inefficiencies, keeps compliance up-to-date, and saves time. The audit function compares financial documents and transactions to supporting documents anywhere, anytime. It can extract data from lease contracts of any format and quickly convert it to audit reports. Trullion can boost revenue collection and reporting by collecting and managing a person’s customer relationship management, billing, and contract data while simultaneously automating workflow and handling revenue recognition.

Key features:

• Audit function.
• Data extraction from lease contracts of any format and quickly and easily make them into audit reports.
• Revenue collection and reporting.

Best for Enterprises and accounting firms.

Pricing: Trillion offers a free trial version, the full product starts from $3000 per year.

Caribou

Caribou Is an AI automation tool for international tax compliance that generates documents and facilitates intercompany activities (like cash transfers) across different entities, thus eliminating the need for lawyers and accountants for every transaction. It compiles and organises large amounts of data into clean packages. Eases the financial complications for companies expanding abroad
Key features:

• 24/7 tax-expert support.
• Centralised dashboard for files and documents.
• Live activity feed.
• Automatic document parsing.

Best for: Global businesses.

Pricing: Packages start at ~$166 a month.

Ascent

The ascent RLM platform is the first of its kind integrated, global regulatory lifecycle management platform for financial services. provides the financial sector with an AI-powered platform automate the compliance processes for regulations their clients need. It analyses regulatory data, customises compliance workflows, constantly monitors for rules changes and sends quick alerts through the proper channels. The company aims for financial firms to have increased accuracy and efficiency. Ascent RLM delivers actionable insights with unparalleled efficiency across the spectrum of regulatory activities. From identifying early signs of regulatory developments, to shifts in regulatory approach evidenced by new guidance or enforcement activity, right through rule adoptions and ongoing rule amendments.

Key features:

• Global Horizon Scanning to monitor regulatory developments worldwide
• Automates regulatory mapping lists tailored inventory of regulatory obligations.
• Change management automation empowers legal, risk and compliance teams to take prompt action.

Best for: businesses across the finance industry create new guidelines and manage risks.

Pricing: available on request.

Tools for accounting and bookkeeping

AI-powered accounting tools help accountants, chartered analysts and auditors extract insights from large volumes of datasets in real-time and make data-driven decisions instantaneously. They also facilitate repetitive accounting processes and lead to better cash flow management and financial planning, and elimination of errors. AI can definitely boost efficiency and turnaround time in invoice management where automated systems process invoices faster, reduce errors and flag potential issues or discrepancies for human review.

FloQast

FloQast positions itself as an accounting automation platform created by accountants for accountants. It is reviewed as a category leader in close management software. A cloud-based platform equipped with AI tools designed for financial controllers, internal auditors, accountants, CFO’s and CAO’s. FloQast, enables organisations to automate a variety of accounting operations, enabling efficient close management, automated reconciliation workflows, unified compliance management and collaborative accounting operations. With FloQast, teams can utilise the latest advancements in AI technology to manage aspects of the close, reduce their compliance burden, stay audit-ready, and improve accuracy, visibility, and collaboration overall. FloQast is consistently rated #1 across all user review sites as the easiest to use with the highest rate of user adoption. Trusted by more than 2,800 global accounting teams, including Twilio, Los Angeles Lakers, Zoom, and Snowflake.

Key features:

• Out-of-the-box integrations across the systems and tools accounting.
• Simple and intuitive user experience.
• Cloud architecture allows quick feature updates.

Best for: businesses across the finance industry create new guidelines and manage risks.

Pricing: available on request.

Booke.ai

This AI tool automates bookkeeping tasks for small and medium businesses, improving accuracy in accounting, improving client communication, data collection & organisation, and streamlining the month-end closing process.  Booke automates the bookkeeping aspect of the month-end close, finds and fixes bookkeeping errors, and connects to important bookkeeping software like Xero, QuickBooks, and Xoho Books. Streamlines collaboration with clients to get faster responses. Booke.ai has been improving its AI 13driven categorization over time, and has been able to improve its transaction categorisation by over 80%.

Key features:

• Combines OCR AI and client interaction in the same user-friendly platform.
• Regularly reviews new bank transactions.
• AI-driven categorisation of transactions.
• Continuously self improves with human support.

• Advanced error detection technology.
• Better client communication.

Best for: Small and medium businesses

Pricing: Two pricing plans- The Data Entry Automation Hub plan costs $20.00 a month, and the Robotics AI Bookkeeper plan costs $50.00 a month.

Nanonets flow

This AI tool makes completing finance tasks simple. Nanonets Flow automates complex processes by extracting and organising important financial data from unstructured data sources like documents, emails, invoices, purchase orders, ID cards, receipts, bills of lading, and passports to bank statements. The Nanonets Flow AI for accounting tool also automates workflows and integrates existing financial systems with accounting software. Nanonets provides solutions for banking and insurance, healthcare, logistics, insurance and commercial real estate sectors. Overall, a very user-friendly and easy-to-use interface. According to their website, Nanonets “processes invoices 10 times faster” and has “no fees for Automated Clearing House (ACH) or card payments.”

Key features:

1. Data extraction
2. Workflow management.
3. Seamlessly integrates with existing financial systems and accounting software.

Best for: Small and medium businesses

Pricing: The pay as you go starter plan is free for the first 500 pages, then $0.3/page. The Nanonets Flow Pro and Enterprise plans pricing are available on request.

Stampli

The Stampli financial automation platform is regarded as one of the key forms of AI for finance for several reasons: it streamlines invoice processing and accounts payable processes, extracts and organises data from digital invoices, and improves a company’s collaboration and transparency. Stampli even provides audits in real time, improving oversight and accuracy. Stampli’s automation platform helps finance professionals optimise invoice management along with advanced tools for vendor management. Stampli also provides in-built ERP integration with Microsoft, SAP, Oracle, QuickBooks and a few more. Stampli is quick and easy to deploy and has good customer reviews.

Key features:

• Extracts & organises data from digital invoices.
• Conducts real-time audits.
• Invoice management.

Best for CFOs looking to automate AP & invoicing.

Price available only on request.

VIC.ai

An AI-driven solution vic.ai uses machine learning algorithms for invoice processing resulting in high accuracy rates. Vic.ai extracts important insights from documents, identifies duplicates, and seamlessly initiates an automated approval workflow. Manages the accounts payable workflow approval process by intelligently assigning each step to the relevant team member, ensuring a streamlined workflow and eliminating the need for endless, repetitive tasks. Vic.ai compiles all invoice data from PDFs and image files using proprietary computer vision, and the data is then analysed and coded by AI with no templates involved.
Key features:

• ERP integrations.
• Real-time insights.
• Autonomous invoice processing.
• PO management.

Best for: Midsize to enterprise-level businesses.

Pricing: Price available on request.

Tools for financial reporting

AI tools for financial reporting pull together financial data and information from across teams, geographies and integrate real-time data for collaborative reporting, along with existing ERP systems and more.

Workiva

This is a cloud-based AI collaborative reporting platform with solutions for banking, energy & utility, higher education, insurance & investment sectors in the areas of finance & accounting, corporate reporting, ESG, audit risk & compliance, sustainability and legal. Workiva supports financial reporting from a centralised platform with real-time reporting using generative AI for collaborative reporting. This makes the analysis and sharing of insights much faster.  The Workiva platform is secure and audit-ready and saves time for internal teams in switching between numerous applications, reducing the risk of errors. Workiva is used by thousands of organisations worldwide, including over 70 percent of the Fortune 500®

Key features:

• ESG reporting.
• Internal audit management.
• SEC reporting.
• SOX compliance.

Best for: ESG, audit and risk.

Pricing: Price available on request.

Rephop

This AI-based platform makes ‘group reporting simple’ with “Up to 52% shorter reporting cycle and 68% of time saved!” Rephop focuses on streamlining the financial consolidation process by storing the organisations’ financial information in a single database. Whether your finance teams span various accounting systems or entire continents, Rephop helps simplify consolidations and ensures that you maintain compliance. The planning module helps manage and view the entire planning process, create multiple budgets and forecasts, import Excel models, calculate minority interests and compare intergroup transactions. Makes the financial closing process smooth by consolidating all financial information from multiple geographies.

Key features:

• Audit trail.
• Customisable reports.
• Forecasting.
• Data import/export.

Best for: Internal accounting departments of companies of all sizes and industries of outsourced finance and accounting firms.
Pricing: Free trial available; package plans start at $299 a month for 3 entities.

Tools for investing, trading & data analysis

AI can provide valuable insights by analysing huge volumes of diverse data for investment and trading decisions. For example, AI algorithms can analyse market trends, economic indicators and company-specific data to forecast future performance with high accuracy.

Macroaxis

Macroaxis Wealth Optimization Platform is one of the top AI Tools for Financial Analysts that combines artificial intelligence with portfolio theory to help investors discover sustainable opportunities in different markets and asset classes for financial growth in different investment environments. It is simple and efficient to use due to its smart UI. It is a practical AI-powered tool that allocates assets according to your investment objectives and reduces risk in investment.  This AI tool leverages machine learning, statistical analysis, and predictive modelling; the system optimises for both risk-adjusted returns and diversification. This enables Macroaxis to offer tailored investment strategies that adhere to the principles of modern portfolio theory, a framework for assembling a portfolio of assets such that the expected return is maximised for a given level of risk. Its drawback being that it does not offer any features for account aggregation

Key features:

• Generates personalised optimal portfolios with the help of AI.
• Offers features like economic indicators.
• Finds good investment opportunities through AI investment finder.
• Has a correlation function, unlike its competitors.

Best for use by small corporations.

Pricing: Macroaxis offers a free trial. Two plans, silver and gold, are available at $39.40 and $79.95 a month

Telescope AI

Telescope AI is a plug-and-play integration for stock broking apps. Users can create curated stock portfolios and increase trading volumes with the help of cutting-edge AI technology. Telescope AI provides an API that developers can use for programmatic access, which makes it easy to integrate with other broker apps, finance platforms, publishers, and startups, enabling rich and entertaining user experiences. Telescope AI also enhances project management and automates data analysis and productivity. Automates and simplifies stock portfolio organisation. The API is user-friendly and quick. Concerns related to data privacy have arisen.

Key features:

• Creates portfolios based on themes, future events, radar.
• Has customisable options for more productivity.
• Collects, compiles and analyses data effectively.

Best for: use by stock traders, investors and financial analysts.

Pricing: Telescope AI has a free version available. The pro version costs $200 a month, and the price for the enterprise version depends on the level of customisation needed.

Derivative path

Derivative Path’s cloud-based AI platform, Derivative Edge, helps financial organisations manage their derivative portfolios for interest rate derivatives, commodities, and foreign exchange to hedge accounting. Features automated tasks and processes, customisable workflows and sales opportunity management. Streamline front-, middle-, and back-office functionality, complete with connectivity to DTCC for swap data reporting and to Market for cleared trade affirmation. DerivativeEDGE is integrated with real-time market data, allowing users to price a wide range of interest-rate derivative products seamlessly and accurately. Users have the ability to generate and analyse various reports, and the back-office functionality reduces the time spent on operational activities by up to 90%. Founded by a team of industry veterans from the banking, trading, private equity and real estate sectors, the company is now democratising access to the capital and liquidity of Wall Street firms.

Key features:

• Provides last mile services and specialised guidance for trade structuring, execution & post-trade servicing.
• Automated their pre- and post-trade requirements.
• Organisations can use the platform for loan management.
• All-in-one risk management tool.

Best used: By financial institutions, buy-side, and commercial end users in executing and managing their over-the-counter interest rate derivative transactions.

Pricing: Price available on request.

Challenges and ethical implications

• Despite AI’s numerous advanced capabilities, it is also possible for AI-driven tools to make mistakes. Human supervision and intervention will always be required to review errors as well as check output quality to determine if they fit specific use cases.
• The quality of AI reports and analysis depends on the quality of data used. AI tools can acquire unintended biases through the data that is used, leading to discriminatory or faulty responses.
• AI tools use complex algorithms and machine learning models, hence, tracking and determining how decisions are made can be challenging for humans over time.
• Most AI systems collect user data and use it for further processing and evaluation to improve through predictive learning. This raises concerns about data privacy and security about accessing personal data or misuse of sensitive information.

Conclusion

AI is indeed revolutionising the financial sector in remarkable ways. AI finance tools bring unique strengths to various aspects of finance, reshaping existing workflows and setting new standards for what finance teams can accomplish. By leveraging AI-driven tools, finance professionals can go beyond traditional constraints, embracing a future where automation and AI-driven insights drive unprecedented growth and innovation. The breadth of applications ranging from algorithmic trading, financial planning and analysis, invoice management, and SEC filing analysis are recent examples of how AI is touching nearly every aspect of financial operations.

These advancements are not just incremental but are fundamentally reshaping how finance teams work. AI tools will play a pivotal role in enabling companies to stay competitive, manage complexities, and capitalise on opportunities in an increasingly data-driven world. It will be interesting to consider how this will evolve over time to see which areas of finance might see the most dramatic AI-driven changes in the near future.

Here are some upcoming AI trends and innovations likely to reshape the way organisations work with finance:

• Integrating emotions into machines, often referred to as affective computing or emotional AI, is an emerging field that aims to enhance human-machine interactions by enabling machines to recognise, interpret, and respond to human emotions and is still in a nascent stage.
• Integration of blockchain technology into AI tools will help improve the security and transparency of verifying financial transactions for auditing purposes.
• Organisations will be able to generate more personalised and comprehensive custom content, including financial statements and reports.
• Artificial intelligence will increasingly play an active role in decision-making with improved decision support systems, helping stakeholders make more logical data-driven choices.

References

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