All Posts By

Justin Jones

D&IInvestment Management
July 29, 2021

Simple, Repeatable, Scalable = Real Impact on D&I Goals

Women in NeuGroup (WiNG) members discuss advancing D&I objectives, starting with cash portfolio investment partners. Talking the talk can be an important first step, but putting words into action is where treasury gets involved in delivering the financial end of ESG and D&I commitments made by organizations. A recent Women in NeuGroup (WiNG) event addressed opportunities to create meaningful impact via the corporate cash investment portfolio. Diversity in financial partnerships. One way to meet D&I goals is to boost the number…
Justin Jones
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FXRegional
July 29, 2021

RMB vs. USD: Watching Closely as China Builds ‘Parallel Universes’

Standard Chartered advises keeping an eye on China as accelerating use of the RMB helps the nation separate itself from the pack.In a recent meeting of NeuGroup for Tech Treasurers centered around China’s economy, Standard Chartered’s global head of research Eric Robertsen kicked things off with an anecdote. Just over ten years ago, a Congo-based wood supplier had its supply of wood bought out by a Chinese business that paid in USD. Just three years later, Chinese businesses were still…
Justin Jones
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COVID-19Treasury Management
July 29, 2021

Free Lunch as Bait: Trying to Make Returning to Offices Appetizing

Another challenge: filling open positions when many applicants won’t accept jobs requiring extensive time in the office.More than one company in the NeuGroup network is trying to make returning to the office a bit more appealing to workers whose managers are requiring them to start commuting again—at least for part of the work week. One method: offer employees the proverbial free lunch (it’s not truly free if you have to come in to get it). This morsel emerged at one…
Justin Jones
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ESGRisk Management
July 22, 2021

Hot Topic: How and When Corporates Respond to Climate Change Risks

At a recent NeuGroup virtual interactive session, Willis Towers Watson’s Climate and Resilience Hub experts, led by Irem Yerdelen, detailed the long-term risks of ignoring the causes of climate change and other environmental threats, and members discussed what steps, if any, treasurers can take to incorporate this risk into their ESG and risk management strategies. "There is an extraordinary depth and breadth to this issue,” Ms. Yerdelen said. “It's one of the few issues that permeates every element of every…
Justin Jones
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BankingD&I
July 15, 2021

A Bigger Slice: Bank Boosts Roles of Diverse-Led Firms in Bond Deals

Morgan Stanley shares insights on its approach to partnering with diverse-led firms, including increased fees and mentorship.Morgan Stanley recently shared how it is expanding the role of banks and broker-dealers owned and run by minorities, women and veterans—so-called diversity or diverse-led firms—in self-led bond deals. The insights came during a NeuGroup meeting of bank treasurers sponsored by Morgan Stanley. Many corporates in the NeuGroup network are encouraging banks that underwrite their debt offerings to allocate bonds to diverse-led firms and…
Justin Jones
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Capital MarketsESG
July 15, 2021

Taking Smaller ESG Steps, Bypassing the Green Bond Road (for Now)

Options in the ESG financing field range from CP to credit facilities, money-market funds and time deposits. Not quite ready to issue ESG bonds? Nearly half the assistant treasurers (ATs) in the projects and priorities session of a recent meeting of NeuGroup for Large-Cap Assistant Treasurers cited ESG as a top priority. However, most said their companies were not quite ready to issue an ESG-based bond and expressed interest in various ESG alternatives. Issuing an ESG bond requires significant legwork and…
Justin Jones
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Investment ManagementPension and Benefits
July 15, 2021

Offering Retirement Income Solutions in DC Plans: Yes, but Not Yet

Using annuities to make 401(k) plans resemble pensions is compelling—but so far, most corporates aren’t doing it. The vast majority of members of NeuGroup for Pensions and Benefits who also oversee defined benefit (DC) plans say their companies should consider solutions that help employees receive lifetime income after they retire. But few corporates are actually implementing so-called retirement income solutions. At least not yet. That key takeaway emerged at a recent meeting sponsored by Insight Investment and BNY Mellon that featured…
Justin Jones
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BankingInvestment ManagementTalking Shop
July 15, 2021

Talking Shop: Investing in Collateralized Loan Obligations

Member question: “Have any members considered/evaluated adding to their investment portfolio in the current environment? “While we’ve had CLOs in the portfolio in the past, it’s something that hasn’t been actively pursued in recent years and we are dusting it off for evaluation.” Peer answer 1: “We have been investing in CLOs since Q2, almost exclusively in the AAA space, but we have authorization to do AA. Spreads are tight, but they are a good option to park cash and…
Justin Jones
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NeuGroup News
July 7, 2021

NeuGroup Virtual Meetings: A High Standard

Well over a year into virtual meetings, our peer group leaders share the knowledge they’ve gained along the way. In the last 18 months, NeuGroup has evolved from a company that only facilitates semiannual, in-person meetings to a network for corporate treasury and finance professionals to regularly connect, share and learn, online as well as (hopefully soon) in-person. Earlier this year, we looked back at how NeuGroup’s events planning staff expertly pivoted to virtual meetings. Now, Peer Group Leaders Anne…
Justin Jones
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FP&ATechnology
July 1, 2021

Rolling Forecasts by FP&A Gain Ground in Pandemic Despite Obstacles

The pandemic and rapid recovery underscore the benefits of more frequent forecasts by FP&A, but transitions can be messy. At a recent NeuGroup meeting for heads of FP&A teams co-sponsored by fintech OneStream Software, more than half of members surveyed said they are updating their forecasts more frequently—some using rolling forecasts—a practice prompted by the pandemic and continuing because of the rapid economic rebound. Instead of updating the standard 12-month forecast yearly, more teams now continuously update throughout the year. Most…
Justin Jones
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