Request to add CUSIP to Securities (edit back)

Jim Harmans: Thanks for the response.

»When you say "Quicken database", that is the online database of
securities that Quicken uses when you add a security to your file,
right?«

Yes.

»Quicken uses the ticker symbol to retrieve quote data. This is different
from downloading transactions from a financial institution (FI).«

Indeed.

»When you download a transaction, Quicken uses the CUSIP ID in the
download to look for a matching security in your list. The name in the
transaction download may be different from the one in your Security
list. «

Yes. That is the problem. Quicken's name is often different than those of Fidelity. (Fidelity seems to like slightly abbreviated names compared to those provided to the SEC.) When I import from a QIF file, if the ticker symbol is the same and it is the same security but the name is slightly different (or was changed by the institution)—as I mention in the discussion I referenced about discrepancies—Quicken ends up making a separate securities with the same ticker symbol, and my transactions are not merged, but put into these two separate different securities, when, in fact, they are the same security.

I have found no easy way to merge the two securities into one. I have spent hours having to undo QIF imports to try to figure out why the names are different, find the best and latest name, and to correct the files that have a name different than the "best name." I wish Quicken would notice the names are different and act appropriately to address the problem and make it easy to correct if there are two separate securities that should be merged.

» If no matching CUSIP ID is found, it displays a dialog suggesting a
match based on the name and also allowing you to select another
unmatched security or add the security to you file. «

I have never seen this dialogue box for QIF imports or QXF imports. That would be really helpful! I hope this feature is added.

»Quicken uses the presence of a CUSIP ID for a security in the Security
List to indicate that that security is matched to a downloaded one.«

For me it functions just the opposite: It guarantees that securities with nearly identical names are NOT matched, because there is no CUSIP to match them. Why not include the CUSIP in the online database, so that users know exactly what security they selected?

Quicken already indicates whether a security is matched online with the checkbox "Matched with security online." So I don't see any advantage to using the presence or absence of the CUSIP to indicate that. As a user, I never assumed the CUSIP was meant to communicate that—although I vaguely recall that I might have read that somewhere. After a while, I did figure out that since it was impossible to add a CUSIP myself from the "add security" online database or by hand, it had to have come from the financial institution. Still, the "matched online" checkbox is really all that is necessary. IMHO.

»How would your proposal improve this process?«

Any of these would have made the process much easier:
(1) Provide the dialogue box you mentioned for importing QIF files.
(2) Add the CUSIP to the online database.
(3) Allow users to add the CUSIP to securities entered by hand.
(4) Make a function to merge two securities into one. It could be similar to re-categorize function or move transactions function.
(5) Provide an option to export investment transactions to QFX (the way ImportQIF does). Then a user could possibly add the CUSIP to the text file, because there is no provision for CUSIP in QIF files.
(6) Provide a way to import a security list with CUSIPs that is in text form.

Thanks for considering this.

I sent this report:

Please change title back to "Request to add CUSIP to Securities". Two of the three people responding mistakenly believe this is primarily a QIF issue--It is not. CUSIPs are important in uniquely identifying a security in Quicken. The ticker symbol and security name are not sufficient. You cannot add a CUSIP by hand and you cannot add them by selecting a security with "Add Security" and selecting a security from Quicken's online database. Quicken's online database should have the CUSIP. I have explained it repeatedly, yet the title keeps having QIF added. Perhaps I need to start a new topic with the correct title so the discussion is back on track?

Thanks!