Financial Statement Helper

It’s time for more fun with uncomfortably personal documents! As per usual, this one won’t be everybody’s cup of tea, but for certain people who are too self-conscious to admit the financial world is confusing as hell (*raises hand uncomfortably*) it can be helpful.

If you’re not financially minded, or perhaps new to the world of credit cards, having a tool like ChatGPT look over your statement can be invaluable. Those who are financially minded are often surprised that many don’t know the difference between a statement balance and a current balance (I Google this more than I’ll ever admit publicly), what the interest rate is on their credit card, or what the penalty might be for not paying. 

Aside from those valuable-to-know basics, a bank statement can have tons of small pitfalls that are worth asking. Are there any cashback opportunities that make one card better over another? What is this odd charge that I don’t recognize? Why is this balance so high, I thought I paid this down? 

I remember when I first moved out on my own, the world of financial management was foreign, scary, and boring all at the same time (a dangerous triple-threat). What I wouldn’t have given to have a little robot buddy walk me through some of the strategies. Let’s ensure nobody has to live my nightmare.

ISN’T THIS INSANELY STUPID?

I know some people who don’t like their computer to know their real name, so obviously opinions are going to vary on this. Ultimately it comes down to your level of comfort with sharing this type of information. Some people won’t care, some will, and all that matters is where you land on that spectrum. You do you. I still get ads for obscure purchases made years ago, so it’s not as though my spending habits are overly secure anyways.

CREATING A HELPER

This one won’t require a custom GPT because for most needs you can just drop a pdf from your bank into it and ask away. We’ll take it a step further though and make a small one. Perhaps we want something that takes the statement and provides a report spoken in your native tongue of Not-a-Banking-Nerd. Let’s outline some goals and confusions, and provide a sample of how we want the response to be delivered. 

I’m going to want a rundown on:

• How much I need to pay to keep from having to pay interest
• What happens if I miss the payment
• What were the top 5 most costly expenses
• What is the general status of this card

INSTRUCTIONS

RUNNING SOME FINANCIALS

As mentioned, this GPT is largely unnecessary unless you want the run this monthly and don’t want to have to remember the 4 takeaway points in the instructions. I was able to feed it a pdf, ask for a report and got all the same information, so a GPT may be overkill in this instance. 

It was able to tick all the boxes for me. It told me the difference between the statement balance and the account balance (and which one to pay off), what my penalty would be for failure to pay, what one mystery charge was that I didn’t recognize, and what items got me some cash back. 

All in all, it was incredibly useful for someone who sees mostly greek on a financial statement. It was able to toss up a flag if something seemed off, and was able to dumb down a lot of the language. 

ALTERNATE USES

This GPT focuses on financial literacy and simplification, providing insights into bank statements and financial management for those not well-versed in finance. These skills could also be leveraged to create GPTs such as:

Investment Simplifier

This GPT would demystify the world of investing for beginners. By inputting their financial goals and risk tolerance, users could receive straightforward advice on types of investments to consider, how to diversify their portfolio, and explanations of complex investment terms and concepts in simple language.

Debt Management Coach

Offering strategies and support for managing and paying off debt, this GPT would analyze a user’s debt situation and suggest the most efficient repayment plan. It could explain the impact of different repayment strategies on overall financial health and how to avoid common pitfalls in debt repayment.

Expense Tracker and Analyzer

An AI tool that categorizes expenses from uploaded receipts or bank statements, identifying spending trends and areas for potential savings. It could also flag unusual expenses or recurring subscriptions that a user might want to cancel, providing practical tips for managing day-to-day finances more effectively.

Insurance Policy Decoder

A GPT to help users understand the jargon-filled world of insurance policies. Whether it’s health, auto, home, or life insurance, this tool could translate complex policy documents into straightforward summaries, highlighting coverage details, exclusions, and the claims process in an easy-to-understand format.