- Mark Appelman
- CEO, Bank Mendes Gans
Instead of being in a “constant state of reaction”, treasuries should focus on adaptability to ensure change feels manageable as opposed to a continuous run of hurdles. Here, Mark Appelman, CEO Bank Mendes Gans (BMG) outlines his organisation’s philosophy as it strives to assist clients to future-proof their treasury departments.
Treasury has always been at its best when the fundamentals work. Cash is in the right place, payments run reliably, and liquidity keeps the organisation moving. When these foundations are sound, businesses operate with confidence. Yet the environment around us is shifting. We’ve all seen cycles are shorter, volatility is more frequent, and expectations of the function are rising. The question is no longer only whether the operation runs well. It is whether the organisation is prepared for whatever comes next.
I have been lucky enough in my career to work in New York, Houston, Kyiv, Istanbul, Frankfurt and Amsterdam, and I have seen how quickly conditions can change and how much stronger organisations become when treasury is designed to adapt rather than merely operate efficiently.
This shift is reshaping how treasury evolves, how we think about liquidity, and how we choose partners. Treasury still supports the business, but it also helps steer it, and the hardest part is often creating the room and the clarity to steer while managing the pressure of daily operations.
From operational cash to strategic liquidity
Operational cash keeps the lights on: salaries paid, suppliers settled, and working capital moving. Strategic liquidity goes further. It treats cash as an enabler of growth, resilience, and long‑term value, co-ordinating liquidity across entities, regions, and scenarios. In this model, treasury becomes a strategic partner to the CFO, contributing to decisions on capital structure, working capital, and global cash positioning to support corporate strategy and future readiness.
Resilience remains essential. But while resilience absorbs shocks, it does not move a business forward. Adaptability does. Economic cycles are shortening, supply chains continue to evolve, and global trade flows are being reshaped. In this environment, treasurers who focus only on efficiency can find themselves stuck in a constant state of reaction.
Adaptability keeps treasury at the centre of strategic conversations as volatility rises. For me, it rests on three principles: modular design so structures can flex without being rebuilt; optionality so organisations have more than one path to the same outcome; and speed so they can sense and respond while it still matters. When these elements work together, complexity is contained and change feels manageable rather than disruptive.
Designing for adaptability at scale
Adaptability is most visible in geography. Regional agility is now more of a requirement than an option. Treasury models need to be globally coherent while still making sense locally, and be able to scale as trade routes and regulations evolve (as my colleague Shiv argued so persuasively in this column from June 2025). The same logic applies to currencies. Shifting trade patterns and ongoing dedollarisation do not just change which currencies matter. They increase how many currencies treasurers must manage. Many organisations are expanding their currency footprint to reduce risk as well as build operational flexibility.
This philosophy guides our choices at BMG. We continue to challenge ourselves to add new currencies, expanding our portfolio to more than 30, covering more than 100 countries. This is a deliberate move, enabling clients to configure their treasury for tomorrow’s trade patterns as easily as they do for today’s.
Volatility also reshapes the treasurer’s role. It influences tax outcomes, accounting treatment, and liquidity structures shaped by local regulation. Modern treasurers need to be strategic generalists – comfortable across accounting, tax, and treasury, and able to operate across multiple banks, entities, and currencies. The goal is not simply to do more with less, but to focus on the right levers and pull them with confidence.
That’s why adaptable infrastructure matters: near real-time data; workflows treasury teams can adjust themselves, without routing every change through IT; and structures that enable regional flexibility without adding unnecessary complexity.
If adaptability is the goal, structure is how you get there. A well‑designed treasury set-up gives head office visibility and control while shielding operating companies from unnecessary burden. This means pairing clear central rules with practical local flexibility. With the right structure, treasury can change payment routes, switch banking partners, and rebalance liquidity without redesigning the system for every legal entity.
Two ideas matter most. First, build with flexible components rather than one rigid system. Cash pools, intercompany funding and regional hubs should be easy to rearrange as needs change. Second, ensure rules and controls travel with the data. When data is consistent, governance scales naturally instead of becoming a burden.
Choosing partners for the future
To play a truly strategic role, treasurers need partners who go beyond checklists. Reliable execution still matters, but real value comes from helping teams think through scenarios, identify near‑term improvements and build options for the future. At BMG, our platform is designed to be flexible, using configurable structures that clients can shape to fit their own policies and risk appetite.
Adaptability has defined BMG for more than a century. Founded in 1883 as a brokerage firm, the business reinvented itself after the Second World War and worked with Dow Chemical Company to develop Netting. Purposeful adaptation has helped us stay relevant and prepared for what comes next.
Treasury is moving from a reactive, efficiency‑driven function to a strategic one that supports long‑term value creation. Being ready for the future means designing for adaptability across regions, structures, and currencies so treasury can remain a trusted partner in a more volatile world.
