Reading and interpreting the Revaluation Preview report

What it is

The Revaluation Preview report is a detailed table that shows you, account by account, how much each multi-currency holding will gain or lose if you revalue today at current exchange rates. It is a "preview" because the amounts shown are not yet in your ledger—they become real only when you commit a revaluation transaction.

Why it matters

Foreign exchange (FX) movements—changes in the value of currencies relative to your home currency—create paper gains and losses on accounts you hold in other currencies. Accounting standards require you to recognize these unrealized gains and losses on a regular basis (often monthly or at year-end). The preview report lets you see the full picture before you post, so you can verify the amounts are correct and make sure the posting will hit the right accounts.

How it works in Usystems

When you run the report, Usystems scans all your accounts in the chart that hold balances in currencies other than your home currency. For each account, it:

1. Finds the current balance in the foreign currency.
2. Looks up the exchange rate you have recorded for the revaluation date.
3. Calculates what the account's value would be in your home currency at that rate.
4. Compares it to what the account currently shows in your home currency (the "original carrying amount").
5. The difference is the unrealized gain or loss.

Reading the columns

• Account: The name and code of the asset, liability, or equity account in your chart.
• Currency: The currency in which the account holds its balance.
• Original balance: The balance in the foreign currency as it stands today.
• Exchange rate (as of [date]): The rate used to convert the foreign amount to home currency.
• Carrying amount (original): The home-currency value you currently have recorded for this account.
• Revalued amount: What the home-currency value would be if you used today's exchange rate.
• Gain/Loss: The difference—positive means a gain (the foreign currency has strengthened), negative means a loss (the foreign currency has weakened).

What the gains and losses mean

• Unrealized gains (positive numbers in the Gain/Loss column): The foreign currency has become more valuable relative to your home currency. When you post the revaluation, these accounts will be credited (increased if they are assets, decreased if they are liabilities) and a gain account will be debited.
• Unrealized losses (negative numbers): The foreign currency has become less valuable. When posted, the accounts will be debited and a loss account will be credited.

Where you see it

You can access the Revaluation Preview report from Reports → Revaluation Preview Open in Usystems. Most teams run it monthly or before closing the accounting period, to ensure all FX movements are reflected in the financial statements.

Example scenario

Suppose you have a bank account in USD and your home currency is AFN (Afghan Afghani). The account shows a balance of 10,000 USD.

• On the revaluation date, you recorded an exchange rate of 1 USD = 78 AFN (so 10,000 USD = 780,000 AFN).
• Today, the rate has moved to 1 USD = 79 AFN.
• The current carrying amount in your ledger still shows 780,000 AFN (from the old rate).
• The revalued amount is now 790,000 AFN (10,000 × 79).
• The unrealized gain is 10,000 AFN—the USD has strengthened.

When you post this revaluation, the bank account will be credited 10,000 AFN and a FX gain account will be debited, bringing your ledger into line with current market rates.