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Justin Jones

BankingLibor SOFR
January 28, 2021

Cutting the Cord: When Banks Plan to Stop Making Libor Loans

A NeuGroup survey shows SOFR is the replacement rate for most banks, and many accounting systems aren’t yet ready.The opportunity to give feedback on a plan announced in December to allow legacy USD Libor contracts to stretch to June 30, 2023—18 months beyond the initial deadline—ended Monday. Almost everyone expects Libor’s administrator to make it official and is planning accordingly. At a recent meeting of the Bank Treasurers’ Peer Group, NeuGroup members reviewed the results of a survey on their…
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Cyber riskTalking Shop
January 28, 2021

Talking Shop: Which Area of Your Company Owns Fraud Risk and Training?

Member question 1: “Which area of your company ‘owns’ fraud risk? “I am interested in benchmarking ownership of fraud risk management, from policy setting to training and compliance monitoring. The scope of the fraud risk management is broad and includes data security, wire transfers, general theft, IP protection, etc.“Do you have one owner or is it co-owned by multiple departments (treasury, legal, auditing, etc.)?” Peer answer: “For us, it is owned by different groups based on the source of the fraud.…
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Pension and BenefitsRisk Management
January 26, 2021

Pension Endgames: Insights for Managers Mulling Moves

A session sponsored by Insight Investment probes pros, cons and timing of transferring liabilities to insurers.A key consideration for corporates with traditional defined benefit plans is whether to transfer pension liabilities to insurance companies as funding deficits narrow or plans go into surplus. The primary benefits of risk transfer are eliminating PBGC fees, which have escalated substantially in the last few years, and removing all risk from the company’s balance sheet—both interest rate and longevity risk. Half of the members…
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Accounting & DisclosureLibor SOFRRisk Management
January 26, 2021

Libor Transition Puzzle: FASB Provides Clarity, Relief to Corporates

Guidance from FASB clarifies accounting for all hedges impacted by the discounting transition.The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) started 2021 by clarifying accounting guidance aimed at facilitating the transition of corporate floating-rate transactions away from the Libor reference rate. The standard setter is also expected to resume progress this year on issues it had set aside to address the Libor transition. Background. On Jan. 7, FASB issued ASU 2021-01, an accounting standards update that clarifies issues stemming from Topic 848, titled…
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Cash & Working CapitalTalking Shop
January 26, 2021

Talking Shop: What is Your Cash Flow Coverage Target?

Member question: “Looking to take a quick pulse of the group. What is your cash flow coverage target for your current fiscal year period? Coverage can be defined as hedges placed vs. earnings exposure estimate or maximum hedge accounting capacity. “Our cash flow hedges are currently covering ~70% of our entire estimated earnings exposure (which closely aligns with our max hedge accounting capacity). This is up significantly from two years ago and is the culmination of a huge effort. Wanting…
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BankingCapital MarketsTreasury Management
January 21, 2021

Tear Down, Rebuild: A Treasurer Lays a Foundation for Best Practices

How a newly hired treasurer revamped her company’s capital structure, banking group and her team. Soon after arriving at a fast-growing midsized multinational company, a newly-hired treasurer with extensive experience in loan restructurings and amendments launched a loan compliance cleanup. That was the first step on the path to establishing best practices at a company that had never had a treasurer with experience in treasury. The treasurer described what she did and her thinking at a recent meeting of NeuGroup’s Treasurers’…
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BankingCapital Markets
January 21, 2021

Borrowing Authority and the Board: How Often Do You Renew?

NeuGroup’s survey results on the frequency of borrowing authority renewals, use of carve-outs for M&A and more.Nearly two-thirds of the treasurers responding to a recent NeuGroup survey renew their borrowing authority with the board on an ad hoc or as-needed basis, while about one-third do it every year. That’s shown in the pie chart on the left, below. But at a follow-up meeting to discuss the results, the general consensus seemed to be that an annual review made the most…
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FXTalking Shop
January 21, 2021

Talking Shop: Net Investment Hedging Programs

Member question: “Anyone have a net investment hedging program? If so, how often are you rolling hedges? “What is your typical tenor? Are you hedging 100% or something less?” Peer answer: “We have done some opportunistic NIH hedging in JPY with FX forwards. We generally use our EUR capacity for debt issuances as well. Hedges have been in the two- to three-year range. “We will go up to 100% of capacity (we do not seek to push to the 125%…
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NeuGroup News
January 19, 2021

NeuGroup for High Potentials Validates Next Gen Leaders’ ESG Focus

Members share and learn their ESG and D&I experiences, showing a proclivity for the subject.   As social justice and environmental issues dominate headlines across the world with increasing frequency, many businesses have altered their strategies to embrace the movement toward a longer-term and more selfless approach.  NeuGroup members found that one of the factors driving the recent acceleration of these initiatives is the higher priority the Millennial and Gen Z generations place on these issues.NeuGroup for High Potentials (HiPo), comprised of our member companies’ most promising treasury professionals (typically those just below the level that typically participate in the core NeuGroup Peer Groups), recently met to share…
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TaxTreasury Management
January 19, 2021

Learning New Strokes: A Treasurer Adds Tax to Her Skill Set

One NeuGroup member has “had to learn from doing” to tackle tax—and also tap internal and external experts.When the head of tax at a midsized multinational company left to take another job a couple of years ago, the CFO tapped the treasurer to run tax, too. The treasurer shared some of the challenges she faced and how she addressed them at a recent meeting of the Treasurers’ Group of Thirty and in a follow-up interview.A difficult beginning. Three of four…
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