I'm trying to enter a mutual fund that I've had for several years, tracking activity from the 01/01/2012 when the rest of my KMyMoney accounts begin. This is a fund paid-into via direct deposits from a checking account at another institution, so there's no associated cash/brokerage account.

How can I add a starting balance of shares, being the amount I was holding on 01/01/2012? The only option I can see is to "buy" the shares, but this requires that I nominate an account. And if I did nominate the correct checking account, this would require me to either fudge the numbers in that account or else enter data into it going back to the initial fund purchase (several years - not going to do it).

Isn't there a way to enter a "beginning balance" when establishing an investment, much as one enters a "beginning balance" of some other account (not specifying where it came from)?

Thanks in advance.

I think you are right that you need to "buy" the shares on 01/01/2012. You can buy them at a price zero, but I would not do that: when you sell them, you'll get a huge gain, which will be totally incorrect and useless for tax purposes. Moreover, your Net Worth will be unrealistic at all times.

The only way is to create a fictitious cash account with an initial balance on 01/01/12 equal to the true cost of the shares (what you actually paid for them). You can then close that account right away, as it will sit empty immediately.

In general, make sure that your total Net Worth is correct on 01/01/12, and you should be OK.

You should use the Add Shares transaction type

Thanks guys, I'll give each a try!
Cheers