iPhone Import · Apple Shortcuts

Your financial messages, inside Verge.
Even on iPhone.

iPhone doesn't let apps read SMS in the background. Verge works around this using Apple Shortcuts — a free, built-in iOS tool that securely routes your bank and mobile money messages into the app.

MessageFrom your bank or mobile money sender
ShortcutRouted securely via Apple Shortcuts
VergeProcessed into your transaction feed

This is an iPhone-specific setup. Transaction review, categorisation, and sync still happen entirely inside Verge.

Get started — takes about 3 minutes
Setup

How to set it up

Seven steps. No technical knowledge needed.

01

Open Shortcuts

Open the Shortcuts app on your iPhone. It comes pre-installed with iOS — no download needed.

02

Create a Personal Automation

Tap the Automation tab at the bottom, then tap New Automation and choose Personal Automation.

03

Choose Message as the trigger

Scroll through the trigger list and select Message. This tells the shortcut to watch for incoming texts.

04

Filter by your sender

Add a filter for your bank or mobile money sender name — for example, GTBank or MTN. This prevents unrelated messages from being imported.

05

Add the Verge action

Tap Add Action, search for Verge, and select Queue Financial Message from the results.

06

Map the message text

In the Message field inside the action, tap and select Incoming Message Body from the shortcut variables.

07

Turn off Ask Before Running

Toggle off Ask Before Running so the automation runs silently in the background without interrupting you.

Optional: You can also map the Sender field if your shortcut exposes it. This can improve how Verge matches messages to the right account.

Verification

What a correct setup looks like

Here's exactly what your shortcut should show before you save it.

Shortcut Configuration
Trigger
Message
Filter
Sender or Message Contains

e.g. "your bank or mobile money name"

Action
Verge → Queue Financial Message
FieldsMap shortcut variables to action inputs
MessageIncoming Message Text
SenderIncoming Message Senderoptional
Ask Before Running
Off

Keep your filters narrow. If you leave the filter empty, every text message on your phone will be sent to Verge — most of which won't be financial.

In-App Experience

What happens after the shortcut runs

You don't need to do anything. Verge handles it from here.

When you open Verge, any messages queued by the shortcut are processed automatically. Verge reads each message, extracts the transaction details, and adds it to your feed.

Saved transaction

The message described a clear financial movement. Verge creates a transaction row in your feed.

Needs review

Verge wasn't fully sure about the details. The item is flagged for you to confirm or dismiss.

Quietly removed

The message wasn't financial. The placeholder disappears cleanly with no action needed from you.

You may see skeleton loading rows briefly when Verge opens and processes a batch. This is normal and clears in seconds.

Transactions · Processing imported messages

Imported
Review

If a message is not financial, its placeholder quietly disappears when processing ends.

Troubleshooting

Common questions

If something doesn't look right, here's what to check.

Ready to bring your finances together?

Download Verge and complete the iPhone setup in about 3 minutes.