How corporate treasury centres have become vital for emerging businesses venturing into new markets

Digitisation has led to a fundamental shift in the global cash management needs of large corporations. Moving beyond basic payment and collection, the cash management framework has evolved to become comprehensive, transparent, and digitised. Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited (BOCHK) is playing a leading role in creating digital solutions that power this transformation.  

In an exclusive interaction, Cynthia Ho, head of business at BOCHK, said that the bank’s approach is driven by customer demand for enhancements in financial management across three key areas:

Instantaneous data visibility: Corporate treasurers demand seamless, real-time access to a comprehensive suite of financial data – from granular transaction details to up-to-the-minute cash positions and other critical information. This visibility, combined with predictive analytics capabilities, equips treasurers with the actionable insights needed to make swift and informed decisions.

Bespoke solutions and unified service delivery: Financial institutions are expected to deliver customised solutions that are tailored to each customer’s unique industry dynamics, organisational size, and treasury management needs. This could encompass specialised cash management structures, sophisticated liquidity optimisation strategies, and comprehensive risk management frameworks – all seamlessly integrated into the customer’s pre-existing systems and workflows.

Automating manual processes with technology: By strategically deploying advanced technological solutions, corporate treasurers can liberate their teams from repetitive and error-prone tasks. This allows redirection of valuable human capital towards higher-level strategic initiatives that optimise liquidity, mitigate finance risks, and bolster financial resilience of the corporate.

To address the above evolving demands, BOCHK recommends the embrace of digital solutions and APIs (Application Programming Interfaces). The implementation of advanced digital tools can revolutionise cash flow management by minimising errors, providing real-time data-driven insights, and streamlining traditionally manual workflows. The adoption of APIs has emerged as a pivotal solution, allowing corporates to access up-to-date information on cash balances, transactions, and account activity across multiple banking partners and financial systems. This interoperability is critical as treasurers seek to leverage a diverse range of complementary services and tools to address their unique operational needs.

BOCHK has expanded its offerings to provide dynamic, one-stop-shop services that connect treasury experts from diverse backgrounds. This ecosystem includes not only the bank’s own treasury specialists, but also links corporates to critical external stakeholders such as local regulators, government agencies, tax advisors, and treasury management system suppliers. Through this holistic and collaborative approach, BOCHK has fostered valuable interactions and knowledge-sharing between the participants. As a result, there has been a growing and increasingly vocal demand from corporates for the establishment of dedicated corporate treasury centres.

For more on treasury centres, the industry size and type where they work best, the role AI is playing in improving their performance, and the most critical cash management trends over the next few years, please view the below video.

The distinct advantages of corporate treasury centres 

As businesses expand their global footprint, the need to manage financial resources and mitigate fund-related risks has become increasingly crucial. Traditional approaches to treasury management are no longer adequate to meet the demands of modernisation and digitisation.

Ho said, “In today’s rapidly evolving global business landscape, corporates are compelled to accelerate the development of treasury management systems and establish a dedicated corporate treasury centre. Treasury functions are then consolidated onto a unified platform, to enhance efficiency of fund allocation and monitoring processes, achieve tangible cost reductions, mitigate financial risks, and position the corporates for sustainable growth.” To meet these goals, corporates must use their treasury management systems to drive a more centralised approach to treasury operations. With data integration and analytics capabilities, treasurers can connect financial information with data from other critical functions, such as operations, procurement, and sales. This helps treasurers arrive at deeper insights into the corporate’s financial health, working capital needs, and emerging market trends.

Against this backdrop, global treasury systems become a necessity for multinational enterprises. This technology-driven model enables treasurers to optimise cash management and support the corporates’ growth initiatives, while ensuring funds security and centralised control. 

Preparing for an uncertain future 

Ho said, “In the future, global treasury systems will transform from traditional fund management to more refined, value-creating, and digitally-driven strategies, driven by several key trends reshaping the international business environment. The ongoing internationalisation of the Chinese Renminbi (RMB) is prompting treasury teams to take an integrated approach in managing local and foreign currencies. The rapid advancement of digital technologies including big data, AI, and blockchain, is empowering treasury to move beyond mere fund oversight and towards more insight-driven decision-making. This evolution aims to create greater value for corporates engaged in international ventures and allows them to better navigate the complexities of the global business arena.”

As an experienced provider of treasury management solutions, BOCHK is uniquely positioned to support clients through this evolution. By distilling best practices from its extensive experience with large multinational enterprises, BOCHK can deploy more standardised yet highly tailored solutions capable of addressing the diverse needs of its corporate clientele. Ho explained, “We proactively assist corporates in reorganising their broader business infrastructure, including distribution channels, partner bank relationships, and account structure. By delivering a comprehensive suite of cash management products and banking services, we facilitate corporates to establish efficient global management frameworks and optimise their financial yields. We foster an innovative culture by accelerating the development and application with advanced financial technologies in our products and services, propelling customer’s growth, and success.”