What is Marketplace receivable?

What it is

When a marketplace order is delivered, you have earned the sale, but the marketplace pays you later, on its settlement cycle, after deducting its fees. Until then, the amount is owed to you. That is your marketplace receivable: a debtor account, one for each marketplace.

It also holds:

• reserves the marketplace holds back against returns or disputes;
• claims for lost or damaged stock that have been accepted but not paid;
• adjustments for returns still in transit.

How it moves

1. Sale delivered: the receivable goes up by the sale value.
2. Fees charged: the receivable goes down by the marketplace's fees and the GST on them (the GST is booked as input tax credit).
3. TCS and TDS deducted: the receivable goes down, and separate recoverable accounts go up.
4. Settlement received in the bank: the receivable goes down by the amount paid.
5. Return or refund: the sale is reversed and the receivable goes down.

At any date, the balance should equal what the marketplace shows as owed to you, after timing differences.

Why it matters

• Cash: a growing receivable means sales are growing faster than cash, or that money is stuck.
• Errors: an old balance that never clears often hides missing settlements, unclaimed reimbursements or fees charged twice.
• Accounts: lenders and auditors look at the receivable and its ageing.

Routine

Each month, for each marketplace, list the receivable by age (under 15 days, 15 to 30 days, over 30 days). Anything older than the settlement cycle needs a reason: a reserve, a pending claim, or a dispute to raise with the marketplace.