ERP Software for Multi-Company Groups: Every Entity on Its Own Books, One Group View
For promoters, group CFOs and accounts teams running two or more companies: keep each entity's books clean and see the group in one place without a consolidation spreadsheet.
ERP software for multi-company groups has one job that single-company tools skip: keep every entity's books separate while letting the group see itself as a whole. Many Indian family groups run a manufacturing company, a trading company and perhaps an overseas arm, each with its own GSTIN or tax registration.
Usually each entity sits in its own accounting file. Intercompany sales are booked twice by hand, the two sides rarely agree at year end, and the group view is a spreadsheet someone rebuilds every quarter.
This page covers what that costs, an illustrative group, and how Apragya handles companies, intercompany invoices and consolidation.
Where separate files hurt a group
Intercompany gaps
One side books a sale, the other forgets the purchase, and balances never tie.
Duplicate masters
The same customer, item and vendor are created in every file, each slightly different.
Currency guesswork
An overseas arm is converted at whatever rate was handy that day.
Slow group close
Consolidation waits for every entity, then for a spreadsheet.
An example: a Coimbatore textile group with a Dubai arm
Take an illustrative group with a spinning mill, a yarn trading company and a small Dubai trading arm that keeps its books in dirhams. The mill sells yarn to the trading company every week, and the trading company sells some of it on to Dubai.
Three companies, one group view
Parent company
The group's consolidated trial balance and statements.
Spinning mill
Own books, own GSTIN, own users.
Trading company
Buys from the mill; the purchase invoice is mirrored.
Dubai arm
Books in dirhams, converted at each entry's date.
Elimination accounts
Intercompany balances netted out at consolidation.
Access by company
Staff see only the companies they are allowed.
At the quarter end, the group accountant did not rebuild anything. Each weekly mill invoice had already created the matching purchase invoice in the trading company, the intercompany balances netted out on the elimination accounts, and the Dubai figures arrived converted at the rates of their own dates.
How Apragya works as multi company accounting software in India
Step 1 of 5
Company tree
Set up each company with its parent, currency and registrations.
- Company tree: Set up each company with its parent, currency and registrations.
- Active company: Users switch between the companies they may access; records are stamped with the company.
- Intercompany invoices: A sale to a customer marked as a sister company creates the purchase invoice on the other side.
- Eliminations: Pairs of companies carry an elimination account that is netted out when you consolidate.
- Consolidation: Trial balance, income statement and balance sheet rolled up from a parent and its children.
What to check in group consolidation software
Most tools can hold several companies. Fewer tie intercompany entries on both sides, convert each foreign entry at its own date, and keep staff out of companies they do not work for. Test those three with a real month of your data before choosing.
Separate accounting files, against Apragya
| Feature | One file per company | Apragya |
|---|---|---|
| Intercompany sale | Booked twice by hand | Purchase side mirrored automatically |
| Masters | Recreated in every file | Shared across the group |
| Foreign entity | Converted in a spreadsheet | Converted at each entry's date |
| Group statements | Rebuilt each quarter | Rolled up from the company tree |
| Access | Separate logins per file | One login, company-level access |
Checked against public information on 16 September 2026.
What sets Apragya apart for a group
One record across apps
Sales, stock, purchase and payroll all carry the company.
GST per entity
Each company files from its own GSTIN, with e-invoice and e-way bill.
Multi-currency
Foreign arms keep their own currency and still roll up.
AI agents with review
Agents can flag intercompany balances that do not tie, for a person to check.
AI Credits by company
AI usage is metered per company, so costs can be charged back.
Audit log
Who did what, in which company, and when.
See the wider multi-company and multi-currency ERP page, the trial balance and FX revaluation features.
Getting started with a group
- Draw the company tree, with the parent at the top.
- Mark each sister company as an internal customer and supplier.
- Choose an elimination account for each pair that trades.
- Move one entity first, at the start of a period.
- Run one consolidation and compare it with last quarter's spreadsheet.
Starting with the entity that trades most with the others shows the benefit fastest.
What it costs to start
Group ERP questions, answered
Can each company have its own GSTIN and currency?
Are intercompany transactions eliminated automatically?
Can a user work in only one company?
Can we move from Tally one company at a time?
What does it cost to start?
See your group without the spreadsheet
Set up the company tree and run a consolidation on real data.