A firm that bills under multiple legal or operating entities can have Aiwyn route each payout to the bank account associated with the entity that raised the invoice. This configuration keeps deposits separated by entity, but it also changes the payment experience, reporting workflow, and implementation requirements.
The problem this configuration solves
Most firms bill under one entity and receive payments in one bank account. Some firms, including those with an alternative practice structure, operate distinct business entities that maintain separate banking.
For example, a firm might have:
- A Learning Network entity that deposits into Bank of America account 1000
- A Valuations entity that deposits into Bank of America account 2000
With multiple-business-entity routing, payments for Learning Network invoices go to account 1000, while payments for Valuations invoices go to account 2000. The finance team does not need to divide a combined deposit manually after the fact.
The routing key is determined during Payments Implementation and depends on the firm's practice management system and preferences. Depending on what the system supports, Aiwyn may route an invoice based on the client entity or the invoice type from the practice management system. Aiwyn works with the firm to select, configure, and test the appropriate method.
The deposit follows the invoice's entity, not the client. A client billed by multiple entities can therefore generate payments into multiple bank accounts.
This configuration is unnecessary when the entities share one bank account or when the firm is comfortable splitting deposits after they are received.
What the client sees
When a client has invoices from more than one business entity, the portal displays the entity with the account name and invoice number. The client is also notified that outstanding invoices belong to multiple entities.
Clients can pay invoices from only one entity in a single transaction. A transaction must flow to one bank account, so Aiwyn prevents invoices associated with different entity bank accounts from being paid together. A client with invoices from two entities must complete at least two transactions to pay them all.
This adds steps for clients and may result in multiple card entries or authorizations and multiple surcharge line items. Firms should make client-facing staff aware of this limitation before enabling the configuration.
The entity split does not change client portal login or account linking. It affects only how invoices are identified in the invoice list and which invoices can be combined in one payment.
What remains consistent across entities
The entities share the same broader payment and client experience. The following settings cannot differ by entity:
- Surcharge rate
- Merchant rate
- Collections cadence
- Email branding and logo
- Client portal branding and logo
There is no hard or practical limit on the number of business entities and bank accounts a firm can configure.
What it means for banking and reporting
Each entity's bank account requires a separate Stripe setup. The same responsible person can be used for multiple bank accounts.
Each connected bank account also receives its own set of daily payment reports. A two-entity firm therefore reconciles two report sets against two deposits each day, instead of reconciling one combined report and manually splitting the deposit by entity.
Daily reports are configured per bank account, but all report sets must be sent to the same recipient or group of recipients.
This is not a self-serve setting
Multiple-business-entity routing cannot simply be enabled in the Firm Portal. Aiwyn must determine the routing method, map each entity to its bank account, complete the separate Stripe setups, configure reporting, and test the routing before the firm relies on it.
The configuration can be added after a firm is live, but it requires implementation work. Firms should allow approximately two weeks for the change.
Contact Aiwyn Support to begin the configuration and testing process.
Related
- How payouts work
- How Aiwyn payments work
- How transaction sweeping works
- Link client entities to client portal users