A report of all transactions in an account during the time from the previous statement to the current statement is called the bank statement. It could be report of monthly transactions or even annual transactions. The opening balance of previous period (month or year) along with account of all transactions and the closing balance of the account are included in the report.
Bank statements are typically printed on one or several pieces of paper or mailed directly to the account holder’s address.
Earlier days, bank statements were produced quarterly or annually only. Since the introduction of computers in banks the frequency of these increased. Lesser frequencies are nowadays reserved for accounts with small transaction volumes, such as investments or savings accounts.
Depending on the financial institution, bank statements may also include certain transaction charges, facility providing charges, processing fees etc. For example, charges of bounced cheque, charges of obtaining bank statement, any default penalty etc.
Especially in the current technological era of electronic transactions, bank statements have become very essential to track all the electronic payments and other transactions done from your account say it be your home loan repayment, or car loan repayment or e- booking payments etc…