23-03-2023 | Sabbir Rahman | treasuryXL | LinkedIn | We are so happy to introduce Sabbir Rahman as our newest treasuryXL expert. Sabbir is a treasury, corporate finance and capital markets leadership executive.
24-02-2021 | treasuryXL |
Award-winning Fintech company, SurePay, integrates the IBAN-Name Check into your business processes. This prevents fraud and errors and allows you to realize more efficient processes.
SurePay was founded in 2016 and has been providing the IBAN-Name Check to all major Dutch banks since 2017. In the years that followed, the group of customers expanded to corporates and partners. Today, SurePay provides the Confirmation of Payee service in the UK, while at the same time introducing new services in the Netherlands. At the beginning of 2020, SurePay became a Private Company and an independent part of the Rabobank Group.
Entering, using and checking customer data is often labor-intensive. By integrating the SurePay IBAN and name check into your systems, you make your processes more efficient, safer and reduce the risk of fraud.
This way, the online registration of new customers runs more smoothly, you collect from and you pay to the right person. Moreover, you know whether you are dealing with a private or business account! Various organisations, like insurers, municipalities and energy companies already use the IBAN-Name Check for organisations. The same solution makes sure that the Covid-19 payments are delivered safely, at scale and to the right people in both the Netherlands and the UK.
SurePay saw a spectacular growth of 1719% in the number of checks for organisations. More than 125 organisations now use the IBAN-Name Check.
See the complete 2020 year report here.
They use the service in the onboarding process of new suppliers and customers (KYC), in claims and payout processes, in direct debit processes and in fraud investigations. This makes processes more efficient, safer and reduces the risk of fraud and misdirection, avoiding all the damage and hassle that goes with it.
The results are impressive:
To know more about the IBAN-Name Check like features, roadmap, use cases and the team behind this proven solution, click on the following banner.
Thanks for reading, take care.
16-12-2021 | treasuryXL |
SurePay, SEPAMail.eu and StreamMind have announced the launch of the first cross-border Confirmation of Payee solution. This service enables companies and banks to check that the account information entered matches the intended beneficiary when initiating cross-border payments between France and the Netherlands and marks an important first step towards a pan-European solution in the fight against fraud.
Confirmation of Payee is a way to give consumers, banks and companies greater assurance that their payments are being routed to the intended recipient and are not being accidentally or deliberately misdirected.
Payments across Europe have increasingly shifted to digital channels, leading to a surge in fraud cases throughout the continent due to methods such as phishing, spoofing, APP scams and CEO fraud. Additionally, fraud is becoming increasingly international, whereby fraudsters are using foreign bank accounts for fraudulent purposes.
SEPAmail.eu offers an account check solution in France for more than 90% of bank accounts and SurePay’s IBAN-Name Check solution checks 99.5% of all online payments in the Netherlands.
This allows banks, consumers and companies in France and the Netherlands to check the accuracy of the account holder. This significantly reduces fraud and errors in payments. In addition, the IBAN-Name Check increases efficiency and improves the customer journey. In the Netherlands the IBAN-Name Check is used by over 150 companies such as insurance companies, lenders, government agencies, energy companies and many others, to prevent fraud or when accepting new suppliers, customers and employees.
30-08-2021 | Maximo Santos Miranda | treasuryXL
Máximo holds a PhD in Economics and is graduated in Law. After 18 years working in International Cash Management in several multinationals coordinating local treasury units with the headquarters or implementing new ones all around the world, he is working as a university professor of finance, treasury and business strategies in several Universities and Business Schools in Spain. He is also a regular contributor in international media such as Forbes México, Forbes Centro America or Revista Gestión of Ecuador for the last five years.
“My first job in treasury was the best you can wish for”
As a researcher he has published more than 30 articles in research journals about banking systems, treasury, finance in general, fintechs or international sanctions and at the same time he is a referee in postgraduate research journals. He also collaborates with Think Tanks and international institutions in different ways.
After finishing my studies in economics, my intention was to work for a bank. In fact, my first professional steps were in banking. However, one day I saw a job offer that looked very interesting and I applied for it. Normally, I always prepare the job interviews in detail but this didn’t happen at that time. So, I went to the interview with no visibility of the company I was applying for. After a couple of quick interviews, I was selected as a treasury analyst for Cemex European headquarters.
Everything was perfect. My first job in treasury was the best you can wish for. I was part of the team of international cash management and Cemex at that time was in the middle of fast growth movements. Cemex acquired different subsidiaries worldwide and I was in the center of all those financial flows. There was much stress but the work atmosphere was fantastic and the promotion possibilities were reachable.
Most of my career in treasury has been focused on the international side and that provides an unpayable extra value. Thanks to being an international treasurer I have learned a lot about how treasury and finance work worldwide. I have had the opportunity to see how the banks work in many countries and how different companies from different sectors and industries adapt their cash management to their operative peculiarities and the markets where they are inserted.
International cash management is my greatest strength in the treasury world. Most of the time in my treasury career I have worked as a coordinator of local treasury units. That role has allowed me to see different approaches to similar issues in different countries.
In my first years in treasury, I had to coordinate the movement of funds (in three currencies) between different subsidiaries located in different countries and different banks on the same day. The number of funds moved was very high and the number of countries where the money passed through was also high (more than 20 countries in three continents). I was preparing the operation for a week and finally everything went fine. For me it was quite stressful as the operation was completed finally in 15 hours and it was necessary to compensate several delays in the intermediate transactions. When you prepare in detail a complex operation like that and everything is completed as forecasted you feel very proud of all the work done. After that operation, I have coordinated other operations quite similar but the level of stress has been much lower compared with the first one.
In the year 2005 Cemex sent me to Italy for three years to set up a new treasury unit in the country. For me it was a big challenge. First of all, because I didn’t speak Italian when I went there and soon I realized that to speak Italian is a key point if you want to do your job properly. Secondly because although I worked for a big multinational, the Italian subsidiary was quite small and the approach of the local banks was completely different to that I saw in the Cemex European headquarters in Madrid.
Things work if you prepare them in detail. You can have a very complex operation in your hands but if this operation is prepared in detail (forecasting different scenarios and alternative solutions) the final success is almost guaranteed. Good preparation is the key to success.
The function has changed a lot. When I started in treasury in the year 2001 the administrative workload was the most relevant part of the treasury function, at least in time-consuming. Today instead and thanks to technology the time spent on administrative issues have been reduced significantly. That reduction has allowed the treasurer to dedicate more time to other issues that generate more value for the company. A good treasurer today must know much more than before about technology applicable to the treasury function and must also have strategic thinking.
The treasury teams will be smaller in the future. The technology will reduce all the administrative treasury tasks to the minimum. The treasurer of the future should be focused on technology, strategic thinking and create additional value for the company. To reach that goal, the corporate treasurer should be passionate about the function and must be always informed of the latest developments in the market. The corporate treasurer should know the latest developments in technology, in treasury products, in treasury strategies… always learning. The treasurers of the future should communicate better and invest time in treasury education and build treasury networks to exchange knowledge with other colleges or experienced treasurers. To sum up, the treasurers of the future should increase their impact in the companies thanks to the technology developments.
19-04-2021 | Philip Costa Hibberd | treasuryXL
With over 12 years of experience in the financial industry with the last four years in treasury consulting, Philip has recently launched his own consulting activity, Automation Boutique, specialized in (robotic) process automation for Treasury, Risk and Finance.
“I have been coding for fun since I was a kid. This skill has been very useful throughout my career but has become my trademark in Treasury.”
He recently developed the tool that was awarded the “2020 Best Fintech Solution – Adam Smith award” by Treasury Today magazine. He now tries to focus on what he has always enjoyed the most during his career: solving problems at the intersection between ‘numbers’, ‘people’ and ‘technology’.
As for many of us, it started somewhat by accident. After working in other areas of finance for many years, a few ethical questions started nagging me. Add a sabbatical, some romance, and a few lucky phone calls and I found myself joining the great corporate treasury team at Zanders (a consultancy firm specialized in Treasury, Risk and Finance).
I love the diversity of challenges. You are dealing with the financial heart of the company and need to make sure that the right amount of blood reaches every cell. This necessarily means dealing with different kinds of issues, topics and people. This keeps Treasury fun and in constant evolution!
I have been working as a consultant on very different Treasury projects, from interim roles to system implementations. I guess I am what you would call a generalist, but with a knack for using technology and social skills to solve problems. I have been coding for fun since I was a kid. This skill has been very useful throughout my career but has become my trademark in Treasury.
Going back to the cardiovascular metaphor for Treasury, the best experience was probably when I was called by a client to solve an urgent clot which was at risk of causing severe damage. An apparently simple data migration exercise turned out to be much more complex than anticipated and was at risk of causing severe delays to a multimillion project. The solution involved a robot, a laptop being flown up and down Europe, a wedding and unreliable hotel wi-fi. Surprisingly, instead of being the ingredients for a bad joke, this led to a happy client and to an award-winning solution.
My biggest challenge in Treasury was witnessing the clash of American, Dutch, Indian, Japanese and many more cultures during a global SAP implementation (going live during a pandemic). Holding three nationalities and being exposed to different cultures from an early age didn’t help me as much as I would have hoped. I would encourage anyone working with different cultures to read Erin Meyer’s book “The Culture Map”. It will be helpful.
No one is rational and analytical all the time, not even experienced treasury professionals. Good communication is more important than perfect data and models, especially during a crisis. Without it you will lead or be led by emotion and will certainly miss the best course of action. When fear creeps in your own monkey mind, don’t be afraid to have a good conversation with it. Assess how big the actual threat is compared to the shadow being cast by your amygdala.
Corporate Treasury has come a long way from its more transactional origins and – as expected – is taking more of an advisory and strategic role within organizations. The boundaries with other specialized professions have faded (risk management and FP&A just to name a few) and I think that this is a good thing. Skilled professionals should be employed to solve interesting problems and come up with great ideas. The best problems and ideas are usually found at the intersection between disciplines and it’s only natural that we tend to all meet there more and more often.
For the near future I expect the focus on the hot topics of the moment to continue: cash visibility, cash flow forecasting, operational efficiency etc.
For the further future, I won’t adventure on guessing exactly what hot topics the next crisis will bring. I will instead share my best guess on the evolution on the corporate treasurer as a person.
My guess is that she or he will be less of a specialist and more of a generalist. The ideal corporate treasurer will be ‘renaissance polymath’ if you will. Our rapidly changing environment makes it more difficult to remain a (useful) specialist for long. Technology also tends to favour the generalist by democratizing specialist’s skills. There will certainly always be room for very specialized knowledge, but the risk of learning too much about too little in a dynamic environment, is that after a while you risk knowing everything about nothing.
25-03-2021 | treasuryXL | XE |
Komt uw bedrijf in aanraking met vreemde valuta? Wybe Schutte legt in onderstaand interview uit hoe bedrijven de complexiteit van FX kunnen aanpakken.
Wybe Schutte is Head of Business Development Europe bij Xe. Wybe’s carrière is altijd gericht geweest op internationale bedrijfsontwikkeling en het beheren van relaties. Binnen XE spelen beiden een belangrijke rol, aangezien Xe wereldwijd de vertrouwde partner zijn van veel bedrijven en hun helpen bij het beheren en verminderen van het risico die gepaard gaan met internationaal zakendoen en valuta’s.
Bij Xe draait alles om valuta’s. De meeste mensen kennen Xe van de “Currency Converter”, maar we bieden al meer dan 25 jaar internationale betalingsverkeer diensten aan voor bedrijven. Xe’s Business Solutions ondersteunt bedrijven die in aanraking komen met vreemde valuta door hun te ondersteunen bij het beschermen van de winstmarges, en het verbeteren van de cashflow. Dit onder andere door het valutarisico waarmee ze worden geconfronteerd te kwantificeren en door strategieën te implementeren om dit te beperken. Zodat onze klanten zich kunnen concentreren op hun corebusiness en zich geen zorgen hoeven te maken over hun FX.
Binnen elk bedrijf kijken we waar de valutarisico’s zitten en hoe we deze risico’s kunnen beperken. Waarbij er verschillende opties zijn voor bedrijven om bescherming te bieden tegen het risico, zoals termijncontracten. Valutarisico kan worden onderverdeeld in drie soorten: 1) Transactie risico, wanneer een bedrijf zaken doet in een land dat verschilt van de basisvaluta; 2) Translational risico, wanneer een bedrijf een activa of passiva in een vreemde valuta op de balans heeft staan, en 3) Economisch risico waarbij een verandering in de wisselkoers een bedrijf een concurrentievoordeel kan geven in de markt.
FX-risico kan een negatieve of positieve invloed hebben op de bedrijfsresultaten. Als je terugkijkt op de afgelopen 10 jaar, valt er te zien wat de potentiële impact zou kunnen zijn in de meest extreme, minst extreme en gemiddelde scenario’s op een gegeven tijdlijn.
Dit kan worden gedaan door te kijken naar de hoogte- en dieptepunten van de markt en de valutapositie van een bedrijf. Deze stap helpt bedrijven te begrijpen wat de impact op het bedrijfsresultaat kan zijn.
Bedrijven die een transactionele risico hebben, kunnen een onderscheid maken tussen gecommitteerde of verwachte blootstelling aan valuta risico. Een gecommitteerde blootstelling is wanneer de prijs voor goederen of diensten in een vreemde valuta bekend en gecontracteerd zijn. Hierdoor heeft elke wisselkoersschommeling een directe impact op hun winst of kosten, tenzij ze worden afgedekt. Een verwachte blootstelling is wanneer een bedrijf een inschatting maakt om te zien wat hun vereisten kunnen zijn. De betrouwbaarheidsniveaus in de voorspelde perioden kunnen sterk variëren en het is normaal gesproken zo dat hoe groter de periode, hoe lager de betrouwbaarheidsniveaus.
Er zijn een aantal belangrijke stappen die een bedrijf kan volgen om de FX-volatiliteit te verminderen. De eerste is het type risico te identificeren om daarna de risico-elementen te kwalificeren en vervolgens een strategie te ontwikkelen en deze tijdens het implementatieproces te implementeren. In deze fases kunt u beslissen welke producten het meest geschikt zijn, zodat u vervolgens over kunt gaan op markttiming en uitvoering. Ten slotte moet u uw aanpak regelmatig analyseren, herzien en aanpassen. Het is belangrijk om te onthouden dat het niet om marktspeculatie gaat, maar om het beperken van uw risico.
Gezien de altijd onzekere wereld waarin we momenteel leven, kunnen financiële afdelingen en treasury teams op zoek zijn naar een strategie om met deze valutaschommelingen om te gaan. Een strategie die na verloop van tijd een aanzienlijke invloed kunnen hebben op de bedrijfsresultaten van een bedrijf. Een gestructureerde benadering van valutarisico’s kan een bedrijf in staat stellen om strategische beslissingen te nemen, in plaats van te proberen in te spelen op de dagelijkse ontwikkelingen in de markt.
Er hebben zich aanzienlijke bewegingen voorgedaan op de valutamarkten tijdens de Covid19-periode en er zijn nog steeds veel factoren die de dagkoersen beïnvloeden. In deze onzekere tijden zijn onze opdrachtgevers op zoek naar zekerheid en stabiliteit. En hoewel prijs altijd belangrijk is, werden andere sleutelfactoren zoals veiligheid en geloofwaardigheid belangrijker. Uiteraard was de impact op onze klanten heel verschillend en we hebben met hun samengewerkt om de oplossingen en flexibiliteit te bieden die ze nodig hadden. We hebben veel nieuwe klanten verwelkomd uit nieuwe industrieën terwijl ze groeiden, en we ondersteunen nieuwe en bestaande klanten die groeiden, het lastig hadden, of hun bedrijfsmodellen aanpasten aan de veranderende markt.
We werken nauw samen met onze klanten om hun behoeften continu te begrijpen en hierop aan te passen. Onze deskundige dealers houden de markt nauwlettend in de gaten. Inzicht in de bewegingen, weerstandsniveaus en belangrijke economische en politieke updates die de markt kunnen beïnvloeden zijn erg belangrijk, en we houden die in de gaten zodat onze klanten zich daar geen zorgen over hoeven te maken. Xe werkt ook nauw samen met onze zusterbedrijven en moederbedrijf Euronet Worldwide.
De nabije toekomst zou het hoofd kunnen bieden aan buitengewone niveaus van balansuitbreiding en recessie, wat mogelijk zou kunnen leiden tot een langer stimulerend/ expansief monetair beleid dat op zijn beurt de valutakoersen van de landen die ze dragen, zou kunnen drukken. De gevolgen hiervan op de korte tot middellange termijn zouden een gebrek aan grote economische expansie kunnen zijn, aangezien het kapitaalrendement vaak negatief is wanneer de inflatie wordt meegerekend. Dit kan betekenen dat we een herschikking van de FX-sterkte zien naar op commodity based valuta’s (CAD / AUD / NZD) en alternatieve veilige havens (CHF). We zouden deze verschuiving echter op langere termijn kunnen zien, aangezien met name de overheidsschuld houdbaarder en aantrekkelijker wordt tegen zulke lage rentetarieven en bredere investeringen zou kunnen uitnodigen voor landen en tot op zekere hoogte de particuliere industrie.
We zijn getuige geweest van een grote volatiliteit in de FX-markt door een grotere afhankelijkheid van een smallere data kern. Inflatie en rentetarieven, maar ook verhalen over de overheidsschuld en de uitbreiding van de balans hebben de meeste invloed op de renteschommelingen.
Een scale-up ondersteunen met hun complexe FX-vereisten en hen in staat stellen hun bedrijf in een korte tijd te laten groeien door het FX-risico te elimineren en gaandeweg aanzienlijke kostenbesparingen te realiseren.
Bij XE draait alles om Valuta. We bieden een uitgebreid portfolio van valutadiensten en -producten aan, waaronder onze valutacalculator, marktanalyses, valutagegevens-API en snelle, gemakkelijke en veilig betalingsverkeer voor consumenten en bedrijven.
XE faciliteert wereldwijd meer dan 13.000 bedrijven per jaar bij het beheren van hun vreemde valuta en het vooruit plannen om de risico’s van valutaschommelingen te beperken.
XE is onderdeel van Euronet Worldwide (EWI), een aan Nasdaq genoteerde wereldwijde aanbieder van elektronische en transactie verwerkingsoplossingen met een marktkapitalisatie van ongeveer 7,5 miljard dollar.
Internationale betalingen en beheer van valutarisico’s van ‘s werelds vertrouwde autoriteit op valutagebied. De concurrentie voorblijven is al moeilijk genoeg zonder de complexiteit van vreemde valuta. XE kan u helpen tijd en geld te besparen, zodat u kunt blijven doen waar u goed in bent: uw bedrijf runnen. Onze oplossingen bieden u zekerheid in een onzekere wereld en stellen uw bedrijf in staat om de juiste beslissingen te nemen.
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18-03-2021 | treasuryXL | XE |
Having a secure, reliable and cost effective international payment provider as well as the tools and expertise available to support you to weather market volatility is crucial.
Any business that deals with foreign currency, no matter the size or the industry, has the potential to be impacted by the ups and downs of the foreign currency markets. A change in exchange rates from one day to the next could potentially increase importing costs, increase capital expenditure costs, or increase overseas investment costs.
If you are a business in the healthcare and medical industry, preparing for market volatility and knowing how to respond to shifts in currency values is critical. Otherwise, you could end up paying more than you projected on goods or services, which can have a detrimental impact on your bottom line.
Whether you’re importing medical devices and distributing them to local pharmacies or healthcare providers, or purchasing chemicals as part of the medicine production process, having a secure, reliable and cost effective international payment provider as well as the tools and expertise available to support you to weather market volatility is crucial.
Working with a knowledgeable, experienced foreign exchange provider is the first step to safeguarding your business against ups and downs of the currency markets. No one can predict the future, but an FX provider can help you prepare for potential volatility, and will have the tools and guidance to help you respond in the event of unexpected shifts.
Opening an Xe Business account will allow you to take advantage of our full suite of products and services, so you can:
Protect costs for imports;
Save time through accurate forecasting and quick and easy payments;
Save money with cheaper rates and no fees (compared to banks).
We understand that no two businesses are the same. We work individually with each business in order to identify where their needs lie and what their risk exposures are, and develop an international payments and risk management strategy tailored to their operations.
We offer a range of products and services, including:
Spot transfers. Purchase currency and send your international payment at the current rate. If you need to make a quick payment, you can do it on the spot in just a few minutes.
Market orders. Identify a target exchange rate, and we’ll initiate your transfer when that rate is reached. If your payment isn’t time-sensitive, you can avoid potential volatility in the future.
Forward contracts. Lock in today’s exchange rate and send the payment on a set future date. If you have an upcoming transfer and don’t want to worry about the markets fluctuating, take care of it now for peace of mind later.
Risk management. Don’t have the time or the resources to devise a risk management strategy on your own? With our 25 years of experience in the currency markets and dedicated team of currency experts, we can help you to strategise the right one for your business.
Signing up for an Xe Business account is completely free, and will take just a few minutes. Interested in learning what the process entails? Contact our expert Maurits Houthoff for quick and transparant information.
28-01-2021 | treasuryXL | XE |
Does your company have an exposure to foreign currencies? Wybe Schutte explains in below interview how business can tackle the complexity of FX.
Wybe Schutte is head of Business Development Europe at XE.com. Wybe’s career has always centered around international business development and managing relationships. Within XE.com both play an important part as globally we XE is the trusted partner of many business in helping them manage & mitigate the risk that is associated with dealing with multiple currencies, be this through simple rate regulation or looking at high level currency risk management & hedging solutions.
We asked him 10 questions. Let’s go!
At Xe, we live currencies. Most people know Xe from the currency converter, however we also provide international money transfer services for business for over 25 years. Xe’s Business Solutions supports company’s that have an exposure to foreign currency, supporting them to safeguard profit margins and improve cashflow through quantifying the FX risk they face and implementing strategies to mitigate it. So that our clients can focus on their core business and do not have to worry about their FX.
We look within each business to see where the currency risks are, and whether these can be offset. For example, any sales made in Euros could be offset against Euro costs. If there is still an exposure this is where products such as Forward Contracts can be considered in order to provide protection against the risk. Currency risk can be divided into three types: Transactional Risk, when a business deals in a country that differs to their base currency; Transnational Risk, when a business has an asset or liability overseas on their balance sheet, and Economic Risk where a movement in the exchange rate can give a business a competitive advantage when competing for a particular market.
FX Risk can either have a negative or positive impact on a business’ bottom line. If you look back over the last 10 years you can understand what the potential impact could be in the most extreme, least extreme and average scenarios over your given timeline.
This can be done by looking at the high & low points of the market and a business’ FX exposure. This step helps companies to understand what the impact of the net exposure can have on the bottom line.
Businesses that have a transactional exposure to the currency markets can differentiate between committed and forecasted exposures. A committed exposure is when the price for a good or service in a foreign currency is known and contracted. Therefore, any movement in exchange rate has a direct impact on their profit or cost unless hedged. A forecasted exposure is when a business looks to the period beyond the committed period to see what their requirements may be. Confidence levels into forecasted periods can vary largely and it is normally the case that the further out a business forecasts, the lower the confidence levels.
There are a number of key stages that a business can look to follow in order to mitigate FX volatility. Firstly, Identify the type of risk, quantify the risk elements, and then look to build a strategy and agree the implementation process. These stages will allow you to decide the products that are most suitable, so you can then move to market timing and execution. Lastly, you should look to review, revise and adjust your approach on a regular basis. It is important to remember that it is not about market speculation but about mitigating your risk.
Given the ever-uncertain world in which we currently live in, finance departments and treasury centres could be looking to build a strategy to deal with currency fluctuations, which over time could have a considerable impact on your company’s bottom line. A structured approach to foreign exchange risk can enable your business to make strategic planning decisions, rather than attempting to respond to day-to-day developments in the market.
There has been significant movements in the currency markets during the Covid19 period and there are still many factors that influence the daily rates. During these uncertain times our clients are looking for certainty and stability. And although price is always important, other key factors like security and credibility became more important. Naturally each of our clients has been impacted very differently and we have worked with them to provide the solutions and flexibility they needed. We have welcomed many new clients from new geographies? as they were growing, and we supported existing clients that were growing or adapting their business models to suit the changing market.
We work closely with our clients to continuously understand their needs and adjust accordingly. Our expert Dealers keep a close eye out on the market. Understanding the movements, resistance levels, and key economic & political updates that can influence the market so that our clients do not have to worry about that. Xe also works closely with our sister companies and parent company Euronet Worldwide.
The near future could be set to weather extraordinary levels of balance sheet expansion and recession, potentially leading to a longer stimulative/expansionary monetary policy which could in turn depress currency rates of the countries that bear them. Near to medium term impacts of this could include a lack of major economic expansion as capital returns are often negative when factoring inflation. This may mean that we see a re-composition of FX strength toward commodity-based currencies (CAD/AUD/NZD) and alternative safe havens (CHF). However, we could see this shift in the longer term as public debt, in particular, becomes more tenable and attractive at such low interest rates and could invite broader investment for countries and to a degree private industry.
We have witnessed ample FX market volatility from an increased reliance on a more narrow data core. Inflation and interest rates and also public debt and balance sheet expansion narratives are having the most impact on rate movements. With this in mind; where much of the corrective forces required are formed around policies related to these key issues, it appears that volatility could behere to stay for at least the coming 6-12 months and beyond.
Supporting a scale-up with their complex FX requirements and enable them to grow their business in a short period of time by eliminating the FX risk and provide significant costs savings along the way.
At XE, they live currencies. XE provides a comprehensive range of currency services and products, including their Currency Converter, Market Analysis, Currency Data API and quick, easy, secure Money Transfers for individuals and businesses. They leverage technology to deliver these services through their website, mobile apps and over the phone.
Last year, XE helped nearly 300 million people access information about the currencies that matter to them and over 350,000 people used XE to send money overseas. Thousands of businesses relied on XE for information about the currency markets, advice on managing their foreign exchange risk or trusted XE with their business-critical international payments.
XE Business Solutions can help safeguard your profit margins and improve cashflow through quantifying the FX risk you face and implementing unique strategies to mitigate it. We provide a comprehensive range of currency services and products to help you access competitive rates with greater control.
At XE, they share the belief that behind every currency exchange, query or transaction is a person or business trying to accomplish something important, so XE works together to develop new and better currency services that put their customers first.
XE is proud to be part of Euronet Worldwide (Nasdaq: EEFT), a global leader in processing secure electronic financial transactions. XE is part of the Money Transfer Division of Euronet and is the unification of HiFX and XE.com.
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17-11-2020 | treasuryXL | SpendLab |
SpendLab Recovery generates liquidity for clients by using their Accounts Payable Recovery Analyzer (APRA). APRA is a technology platform that combines over 400 algorithms, Big Data, AI, and machine learning, and audits all the raw Accounts Payable data in any ERP system to identify anomalies. Several examples of anomalies include but are not limited to: undue payments, double invoices, overpayments, and overpaid VAT. Over the past years, SpendLab has analysed over 321 million invoices and has recovered more than €200 million EUR for its clients.
We asked the company 10 questions, let’s go!
SpendLab is the Dutch market leader in spend justification and has grown significantly during the past years. The organization is a former spin-off of the Dutch government with a 98 year old heritage in procurement. SpendLab is specialized in generating liquidity for clients by analyzing- and identifying anomalies in raw Accounts Payable data. Besides the generation of liquidity as part of Treasury, we provide compliance reports that are used by our clients to achieve compliance objectives.
During our analyses back in the day we identified that a significant number of invoices and payments were processed incorrectly in Accounts Payable departments of organizations. As a result of these incorrect processes, liquidity could be recovered over multiple historical years.
During the years we significantly invested in our technology in order to provide our clients with a value proposition that is comprehensible, covering all aspects of an Accounts Payable recovery audit. Despite the approval of financial years by Auditors and Accountants, we are able to recover liquidity from the Accounts Payable for our clients. Nowadays we provide liquidity, a 100% analysis of the administrative Accounts Payable processes, and compliance -and risk reports that can be used for compliance purposes.
Administrative departments within organizations consistently encompass irregularities that lead to the loss of liquidity, despite the level of automation that is adopted. There will always be a continuous flow of business operations inside an organization, and if there are any checks in place, then these checks are mostly reactive and are used as an add-on for a team or employee. SpendLab specifically focuses on the Accounts Payable and is able to identify any irregularity within the raw AP data. Thereupon, we recover rightful liquidity for clients that they can use for value-adding activities.
From our own perspective the generation of liquidity from the Accounts Payable of financial years that were audited and ‘’closed’’ is a great advantage for our clients. Specifically, we are remunerated for the amount of liquidity that we recover.
In terms of Procurement, the Procurement department is usually in the lead during the contracting phase. However, after this phase a lack of insights and active control exist in how suppliers perform in processing invoices. Through our approach and the methods that we use, you could say that we are educating the suppliers of our clients in processing invoices correctly. Besides, it creates awareness that our clients are performing Accounts Payable Recovery Audits on a structural basis.
Our recovery analysis consists of six project phases and requires approximately four months to conduct. The first results will be visible after only eight weeks. Below the project planning can be found.
The average lead time of a recovery project is four months. The first payments from suppliers, however, will be collected after just two months. SpendLab is only charged based on the payments that are received, on the basis of no cure no pay.
In the very beginning of Account Payable recovery audits, research was done based on spreadsheets. In the past five years we have invested significantly in our IT-platform APRA®. Nowadays, we have a team of more than twenty employees in the Technology department that are continuously developing software for Recovery. The transformation from manual research to automated research in combination with Machine Learning and Artificial intelligence has been the biggest challenge within SpendLab, and could not have been possible without the team and the investments that had to be made.
It has been a challenging choice to completely focus on IT development. However, this choice has enormously helped our organization in optimizing our service, identifying anomalies in Accounts Payable data, and remaining thought leader in the field of Accounts Payable recovery.
Remote and safe access to ERP systems. Whereas our Data Collections team used to literally fly all around the world to align data requirements and to safely collect the raw data of the Accounts Payable that we need for our recovery audit, we can now align and safely collect (ISO:27001; ISO:9001 certified) the data remotely with and from our clients. SpendLab is now able to conduct a complete Accounts Payable recovery audit on a remote and digital basis. Since March 2020, COVID-19 has only accelerated this level of digitization and the service that we provide for our clients.
Moreover, as an organization we have completely changed our way of working. We now work from our platform on a digital and remote basis. Just like every success, this could not have been achieved without challenges.
We have gone from subsequent recovery analyses over five financial years to periodical visualizations. Together with our clients we have developed a complete recovery service, which we can utilize several times a year over the current financial year. Instead of conducting subsequent recovery audits, we are now aiming to provide our clients with a subscription agreement in which some of our clients even take care of the recovery themselves.
Despite that organizations keep optimizing their internal -and external processes, there will always be errors in processes. Based on the collaboration with and input from our clients, we have invested in optimizing our compliance -and risk reports. We can now offer the visualization of these reports in Power BI, which allows our clients to have live and real-time insights in the Accounts Payable.
SpendLab has always chosen to conduct Accounts Payable recovery audits only, and we are now an absolute leader in spend justification. This leadership role allows us to partner up with top leading international organizations and to discuss the current and future capabilities that they require from our recovery service. By commencing structural dialogues with leading organizations and system suppliers we challenge tomorrow’s needs in Accounts Payable solutions.
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