Case Study: Automating IFRS-Based Claim Evaluation
About our client
MKK Zrt. (Hungarian Claims Management Center) is a leading receivables management company in Hungary. The company purchases and manages large portfolios of retail and corporate claims, including factoring activities.
Business Challenge
Managing large portfolios of purchased claims requires continuous financial evaluation. For each claim, MKK had to estimate expected future cash flows and calculate IFRS-based valuations, including net present value (NPV). These calculations directly impacted financial reporting and required full transparency for auditors.
However, the underlying process was heavily manual and Excel-driven.
The workflow followed a multi-step, email-based collaboration model:
- Controllers extracted factual data from internal systems and exported it into Excel.
- Files were distributed to case managers via email or shared folders.
- Case managers added forecast-related data and returned the files.
- Controllers manually consolidated, edited, and recalculated the data to determine claim values.
- All calculations were double-checked manually.
This approach created several operational and compliance risks:
- No version control — it was often unclear which file was the final one.
- No protection of factual data — values could be accidentally or intentionally modified.
- No built-in validation mechanisms.
- High dependency on manual review and reconciliation.
- Significant time consumption — processing a single claim could take up to two hours, excluding additional validation checks.
With 80–100 custom claims to evaluate — especially during financial year-end — the workload became substantial and difficult to scale.
In addition, auditors expressed concerns about the openness of Excel-based workflows. The lack of controlled data handling increased the risk of unintended modifications and reduced overall process transparency.
MKK needed a solution that could automate repetitive steps, protect core data, and ensure audit-ready, IFRS-compliant evaluations — without eliminating the necessary input from case managers.
Solution
The transformation was implemented in two phases, building on a previously delivered BI foundation project. Earlier, Abylon had migrated MKK’s operational data into a centralized database as part of a classic BI implementation. This created a reliable, structured data layer that later became the foundation for automating the IFRS evaluation process.
Phase 1 – Standardizing IFRS Calculations
We developed a paginated report for group claims by re-creating all data and calculations from the initial Excel files, such as IFRS-based claim evaluations and net present value (NPV) reports, using SQL calculations.
This resulted in an Excel report displaying only the numbers, with the underlying calculations hidden. However, the auditors’ lack of SQL knowledge made this solution a but of a “black-box” to them.
The first step was to eliminate fragmented Excel logic and centralize calculations.
Abylon rebuilt the IFRS-based valuation logic — including net present value (NPV) calculations — directly in SQL. Using SSRS technology, we developed standardized paginated reports for group-level claim evaluations.
This approach ensured:
- A single source of truth for factual data
- Consistent and centrally maintained calculation logic
- Elimination of hidden Excel formulas and uncontrolled manual edits
At this stage, calculations were already automated and reliable. However, from an audit perspective, the process appeared as a “black box,” since the logic was embedded in SQL and not directly visible in Excel.
To address this, the second phase focused on controlled, transparent user interaction.
Phase 2 – Individual Claim Management with Abylon Rapid Planner
The main objective of Phase 2 was to enable structured user input while maintaining data integrity and auditability.
Using standard ETL processes (SSIS), claim-level Excel files were automatically generated at predefined times. These files were based on a customized template built with Abylon Rapid Planner.
The Rapid Planner solution introduced a controlled Excel environment:
- Factual system data was automatically populated and protected.
- Case managers could enter forecast-related inputs in designated fields.
- Core data could not be modified.
- Calculations were generated from the centralized SQL logic and inserted into the Excel template as visible formulas and references.
This ensured that:
- All calculations remained transparent and traceable.
- Business users worked in a familiar Excel interface.
- Controllers no longer had to manually consolidate and validate multiple file versions.
- The process became standardized and scalable.
Rapid Planner effectively bridged centralized financial logic and distributed business input — combining automation, transparency, and control in a single workflow.
Results
By automating and restructuring the IFRS evaluation workflow, MKK replaced a manual, email-based process with a controlled and scalable solution. The new setup reduced operational burden while strengthening transparency and audit readiness.
With the new solution in place:
- Automated data extraction and template generation
- Significantly reduced manual processing time per claim
- Protected factual data with controlled user input
- Eliminated version control issues
- Transparent and traceable IFRS calculations
- Simplified audit process with system-generated data
- Scalable workflow for 80 to 100 claims, even at year-end
About our Financial Planning Solution
If your company relies on Excel for financial planning and forecasting, consider our solution, Abylon Rapid Planner. It enhances the familiar functionality and flexibility of Excel, scaling it to meet enterprise-level needs, ideal for spreadsheet-based financial planning, budgeting, forecasting, and control across businesses of all sizes.
More on Abylon Rapid Planner – our FP&A solution:
