BankingCOVID-19
June 16, 2020

So far, So Good: US Banking Sector Shows Strength During Pandemic

Banks are as healthy as ever, and  robust investment-grade debt issuance has bolstered the industry’s profitability.The global pandemic has cratered economies and affected businesses the world over. But the US banking system remains healthy because banks are well capitalized, having adhered to rules put in place after the 2008 financial crisis. Equally important: Investment-grade debt issuance by corporates is generating bank profits. That’s some of what members of NeuGroup’s Tech20 Treasurers’ Peer Group heard at a recent meeting from a…
BankingCapital Markets
June 11, 2020

The Loan Road Ahead: Steep Prices May Linger Longer Than Short Tenors

Post-pandemic advice from U.S. Bank for treasury teams: keep close to your banks. Unlike the booming bond market, corporates still face restrictions on loans, and it may be awhile before pricing returns to pre-pandemic levels. At a recent NeuGroup meeting for assistant treasurers, U.S. Bank provided participants with insights into revolver drawdowns and what to anticipate when refinancing or seeking new debt. Revolver pricing leaps. The volume of revolving-credit drawdowns—once taboo—has hovered at over $250 billion since leaping to that…
Working Capital Cycle
BankingCash & Working CapitalInsurance
June 1, 2020

C2FO Showcases Scope Expansion to AT Leaders

By Joseph Neu C2FO sponsored our recent Assistant Treasurers’ Leadership Group Meeting on Zoom. Their scope expansion, which is indicative of ways working capital platforms can support business ecosystems in this crisis, is my first of three takeaways from that meeting. Working capital platforms expand their scope. Platforms such as C2FO’s focusing on intermediating between buyers with access to capital and a wide range of suppliers with working capital needs have a vital role to play in this pandemic. C2FO…
Digital Forecasting
BankingCash & Working Capital
May 27, 2020

Founder’s KTAs from the Global Cash and Banking Group 2020 H1 Meeting

By Joseph Neu NeuGroup facilitated our Global Cash and Banking Group’s 2020 H1 meeting last week, sponsored by ION Treasury. Here are a few takeaways I wanted to share. Focused on cash visibility and forecasting, still. Members in this group noted that their projects and priorities had not shifted as a result of Covid-19 and its impacts, given that cash visibility and forecasting were already a priority. Using treasury technology and process improvement to get better at both also has…
BankingTechnology
May 19, 2020

Pandemic Raises the Stakes for Banks to Double Down on Digital

Digital banking is speeding up, and banks not getting ahead of the trend will be left behind. Now is the time for all good bankers to embrace digital banking—or risk being left behind as the pandemic accelerates a trend that was gaining momentum well before the arrival of COVID-19. Engaging with digital now is also smart because the barrier to entry is relatively small and the returns can be significant. Those were among the insights from a presentation at a…
BankingTechnology
May 12, 2020

Pandemic Pushes Some Companies Away From Checks, Toward Real-Time Payments

U.S. Bank sees more clients opting for RTP in a bid to gain control and improve forecasting.The COVID-19 pandemic appears to be persuading more companies to consider abandoning paper checks and start using electronic payment rails to pay bills — even though many corporate treasurers do not view speed as a major incentive to switch. That insight emerged during a presentation by U.S. Bank at a recent NeuGroup meeting it sponsored.  Old, suboptimal habits in the US. Here’s some context for where…
BankingTechnology
May 12, 2020

The Challenges for Corporates of Nonbank Payments

Treasurers in Asia discuss why regulation, technology and business models complicate nonbank payments in the B2C space. The brave new world of nonbank payments presents both challenges and opportunities for finance teams at multinationals that have to collect cash from open platforms, a topic that garnered attention at a recent meeting of NeuGroup treasurers in Asia. Key issues. In the business-to-consumer (B2C) arena, the widespread use of tech intermediaries such as PayPal, WeChat and Alipay poses a problem for corporates because these…
BankingCash & Working CapitalCOVID-19
May 5, 2020

Seeking Incremental Credit? Refinancing Loans? Expect Hurdles

Insights from U.S. Bank on current market dynamics as corporates shore up their access to credit. Defensive drawdowns of revolving credit lines have subsided and banks are selectively entertaining requests for new, incremental loans as well as refinancings of existing credit lines. But borrowers can expect some hoops, hurdles and different market dynamics. That was among the takeaways from a presentation by U.S. Bank, sponsor of a recent virtual NeuGroup meeting for treasurers of large-cap companies. Here are highlights: Members…
BankingCapital MarketsESGUncategorized
April 21, 2020

A Closer Look: ESG Ratings, KPIs and Second-Party Opinions

Sustainalytics discusses ESG trends, ratings and aligning internal KPIs with established principles. Treasurers exploring the rapidly expanding land of environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria quickly encounter Sustainalytics, a well-established provider of ESG ratings to institutional investors and so-called second-party opinions used by issuers of green bonds to give confidence to investors that bond proceeds will finance environmental or social projects. At a recent NeuGroup virtual meeting, representatives from Sustainalytics described the company’s ratings and methodology, answered questions from members…
BankingCapital MarketsCOVID-19
April 14, 2020

Revolvers to Recovery: Credit Markets and the Five R’s of COVID-19

US Bank on where credit markets have been, are now, and what (we hope) lies ahead: recovery and relaxation. NeuGroup held a virtual meeting last week where members who work in treasury at major retailers heard a presentation on bond and loan markets from US Bank and discussed other topics of interest during this period of uncertainty, volatility and disruption. Here are some key takeaways as distilled by Joseph Neu, beginning with insights from US Bank. The five R’s of…