Foreword - Global Liquidity and Cash Management Corporates Guidebook for Treasurers
HSBC
I would like to introduce this guidebook with a wealth of interesting and informative articles featuring HSBC’s work across the globe, to help treasurers keep up to date with some of the most vital elements of their world today – digitisation and technology. HSBC’s extensive global footprint as well as some of its innovative product developments are highlighted in the range of areas covered in these articles, across the continents of Europe, North America, Latin America, India and Asia Pacific, and validated by recent case studies provided by clients.
India is already well on the way to becoming a digitally-empowered country. Many key milestones achieved since the 2015 launch of the government’s Digital India initiative are described within, including the Smart Cities project, aimed at increasing the sophistication of India’s urban infrastructure and services. The city of Hangzhou, China, is the home of technology giant, Alibaba, and the payment service provider, Alipay. Almost everything including utilities, public transport and retail services can be, and increasingly more often are, paid for by smartphone, rendering Hangzhou a virtually cashless city. In Asia-Pacific generally, liquidity management is proving a particularly dynamic feature, as regulatory changes within the region, shifts in US tax legislation and interest rates all present corporate treasurers with a wide range of opportunities.
Cybersecurity is frequently at the top of corporate treasury agendas and in Latin America it is a ‘fast-growth priority’. This booklet examines the current cybersecurity landscape in the region and explores some of the best practices for cyber risk mitigation. Indeed many of the articles on this subject demonstrate how HSBC, with its breadth and depth of security expertise and ability to effectively operate globally across all client sectors, can offer invaluable assistance to companies in safeguarding their finances data.
Partnership with our clients is of enormous importance to HSBC, and we are constantly expanding the range of solutions available to our customers. One featured here is our new Liquidity Management Portal (LMP), developed to help treasurers maximise liquidity visibility by streamlining the underlying data management.
Other articles illustrate valued partnerships in action, with case studies provided by OceanaGold and AkzoNobel. OceanaGold, a fast-growing multinational gold producer, decided in 2012 to refinance its debt facilities and review its banking relationships; at the time it had mining operations in New Zealand and was opening a mine in the Philippines managed from its Melbourne HQ. For its new primary cash management bank the company chose HSBC. The success of the partnership validated the view taken by its Group Treasurer that “a partner who could support our growth trajectory and new locations would add value in terms of future-proofing”.
HSBC’s journey with AkzoNobel began in 2007, when the company embarked on a treasury transformation project called One Finance, a demanding project entailing changes to its banking infrastructure, treasury policies, technology and relationship with business units. In view of our extensive network, HSBC was appointed as its primary banking partner in many regions and countries, and was subsequently also awarded the sole mandate for trade finance activities. Since then, the relationship has grown significantly: AkzoNobel’s Head of Treasury notes the major benefits her company has gained from the partnership, and we will continue to explore opportunities to expand and strengthen the relationship.
I am confident that the articles in this guidebook will prove to be a long standing source of useful information, and insightful exploration of the future of liquidity and cash management.
