Asia Treasury members discuss how advanced technology may boost satisfaction with forecasting tools. A quick poll at a fall meeting of the Asia Treasury Peer Group sponsored by Standard Chartered underscored both the dissatisfaction of members with their cash forecasting tools and the intensifying scrutiny of cash positions by senior management since the beginning of the pandemic. None of the treasurers polled are highly satisfied with their current set of tools: 60% have low satisfaction and 40% said medium. All of…
How Cashforce built a stronger foundation for one member’s cash flow forecasting and working capital optimization.Covid-19 shook the foundations of cash flow forecasting and working capital management for companies facing uncertainty about revenues, vendor payments, appropriate inventory levels and adequate cash reserves. At a recent NeuGroup virtual interactive session, one participant impressed others by describing how a fintech solution provided by Cashforce a year earlier allowed his company to dig into the weeds of business operations, examining line-item details of…
MUFG presents a working capital road map for technology companies at NeuGroup’s AsiaTech20 pilot meeting. At the inaugural meeting of NeuGroup’s AsiaTech20 Treasurers’ Peer Group, sponsor MUFG led a session titled “Optimizing Working Capital (in Uncertain Times)” and participants discussed challenges including how to get vendors to extend payment terms, the need for efficient collections processes and developing KPIs around working capital.Working capital cycle. MUFG’s presentation identified four areas, and goals for each, in the working capital cycle. Big Picture. The…
November 17, 2020
Game Plan: Flexible Buybacks on the Open Market vs ASRs
Meeting sponsor SocGen sees corporates growing comfortable with flexible, open market buybacks amid recovery.During the global pandemic, many corporates have slammed the breaks on share repurchase programs to save cash and avoid criticism from politicians as Americans lost jobs and some companies sought government bailouts. At a recent NeuGroup meeting of treasurers at life sciences companies, Societe Generale’s David Getzler, head of equity capital markets for the Americas, forecast an increase in share buybacks in 2021 as the economy recovers and…
November 10, 2020
Taking a Hard Look at Structure, Resources and Where to Rationalize
A cash manager with staff across the globe considers how technology may reshape and resize his team. Strategically important goals are the new organizational focus for one NeuGroup member who leads a cash management team of nearly 50 people at a sprawling global company that has a new CEO. At a recent meeting, the member described the structure and responsibilities of his staff today and how rationalization and an increased focus on technology may change his use of resources in the future.…
November 5, 2020
Policies Resembling Guardrails That Withstand Trigger Events
Key takeaways from the Assistant Treasurers’ Leadership Group 2020 H2 meeting, sponsored by Chatham Financial.By Joseph NeuPolicy and procedures off the back burner. The pandemic put a wide range of policy and procedure review projects on the back burner and more members are starting to refocus on them now as immediate liquidity concerns recede. A session on risk policy reviews, for instance, highlighted how valuable a review can be after an event trigger from a change in business, such as…
October 27, 2020
Why Parking Cash on the Balance Sheet May Trump Bigger Revolvers
Key takeaways from the NeuGroup for Capital Markets 2020 H2 meeting, sponsored by Deutsche Bank. By Joseph Neu Bond issues are the new RCF. Discussion on the topic of how to divvy up extra liquidity in terms of cash on the balance sheet vs. a bigger revolving credit facility (RCF) yielded the recommendation that most firms with the ratings capacity are better off issuing bonds and parking cash on their balance sheet. The bond market is supportive, and bank credit…
October 22, 2020
Cash Pooling: What Treasury Teams at Multinationals Need to Know Now
An update of a story—one of NeuGroup’s most-read articles—about physical and notional cash pooling. By Susan A. Hillman, Partner, Treasury Alliance Group LLC Eight months into the global pandemic, liquidity and cash remain top-of-mind for many multinational corporations coping with uncertainty over the shape and timing of economic recovery. That makes this an opportune time to reexamine a critical liquidity management tool that has been around for decades but has always required careful evaluation before implementation: cash pooling. Further due…
October 20, 2020
How Corporates Are Measuring Counterparty Risk as Cash Builds
Companies reviewing limits amid Covid have varied approaches to calculating risk thresholds.The abundance of cash corporates have collected on their balance sheets to deal with pandemic-related volatility has prompted some to review their counterparty risk limits.Participants at a recent NeuGroup meeting of large-cap companies described a variety of approaches to the issue, which should remain especially relevant for treasury teams reducing the size of bank groups, a trend discussed in recent meetings. A member explained that higher deposit rates at…
October 20, 2020
Helping Treasury See Beneath the Payment Iceberg
TIS makes the case for treasury as gatekeeper of payment processes.Nearly half the members at a recent meeting of NeuGroup’s Global Cash and Banking Group (GCBG) said treasury at their companies is responsible for treasury payments only—not for, say, accounts payable (AP) or payroll. Just 15% of those surveyed said treasury completely owns payment processes and tools. Treasury Intelligence Solutions (TIS), sponsor of the meeting, made a case for making treasury the overall “gatekeeper” of all payment processes—with the help…