HSBC London Banking Week Day 2

Day two of HSBC London Banking Week saw industry leaders come together to explore and discuss the future of treasury and innovation.

Defining treasury’s future challenges

The day began with a panel discussion – chaired by Annette Spencer, Chief Executive of the Association of Corporate Treasurers – in which an array of industry experts set out the biggest shifts treasury functions must undergo as they juggle protecting firms against risks with finding ways to fund growth.

Manish Kohli, Head of Global Payments Solutions, said that a key challenge for treasury functions was to adapt for a ‘real-time world’, adding that current models are not designed for today’s always-on digital economy. This means developing capabilities around real-time liquidity management, real-time insights, real-time forecasting and real-time positioning, while becoming more reliant on high-quality data to support faster decisions.

Yasemin Artar, Head of Corporate Sales, Europe, told delegates that treasury teams must adapt to manage the rapid adoption of AI and automation – and must understand how AI can improve forecasting, risk management, decision-making and operational efficiency, while also ensuring they have the skills, governance frameworks and technology infrastructure required to deploy these tools effectively.

Meanwhile, Vivek Ramachandran, Head of Global Trade Solutions, said the biggest shift will be moving from a finance function to a key strategic role right across their business.

He told delegates that, “as the world becomes increasingly strategic, treasurers in turn need to become more strategic”. That, he added, means getting closer to the procurement team and processes to ensure they understand and can influence supply chains, becoming part of the sales process to influence the margins, and getting to grips with how data is organised in the business.

Managing geopolitical and supply chain volatility

Across the day, geopolitical uncertainty was highlighted as a defining theme for treasurers right now, with experts setting out that businesses should no longer view disruption as a temporary event but as a permanent feature of the global operating environment.

Panellists described the ongoing reconfiguration of global trade as a structural reset, driven by geopolitical tensions, energy security concerns and shifting alliances, with nearshoring, friendshoring and ‘China Plus One’ strategies – whereby companies diversify their supply chains away from solely China by adding another supplier country – reshaping sourcing decisions and trade flows.

Companies were urged to prepare for continued volatility through scenario planning, liquidity buffers and more resilient risk management frameworks.

The event also heard that treasurers must be increasingly prepared for the growing impact of geopolitical events on supply chains. Disruptions to the Strait of Hormuz were cited by Janet Henry, Global Chief Economist, as an example of how regional conflicts can affect not only energy markets but also fertilisers, chemicals, food production and industrial inputs – creating inflationary pressures and supply shortages.

In response, organisations were urged to move away from traditional just-in-time models in favour of prioritising resilience, inventory flexibility and supply chain diversification.

The future of liquidity and FX management

With optimising liquidity a key priority for treasury teams as they navigate geopolitical uncertainty, higher interest rates and market volatility, experts shared their wish list for treasury’s future capabilities.

Looking ahead three to five years, panellists agreed that treasury teams will increasingly expect access to real-time information, real-time decision-making and ultimately more continuous liquidity management. Muneeza Mansuri, UK Treasurer, WPP plc, highlighted 24/7 liquidity as a key aspiration, telling delegates that the ability to move and manage cash without being constrained by market opening hours would significantly improve decision-making for global treasury teams.

By combining real-time information with automated decision-support tools, treasury functions could become more agile, more strategic and better positioned to manage risk while identifying opportunities for value creation, delegates further heard.

Technology was again seen as the primary enabler on this issue. Speakers pointed to AI-powered cash flow forecasting, predictive analytics and automated treasury workflows as tools that could provide greater visibility, improve forecasting accuracy and reduce manual intervention. Digital currencies and tokenised money market funds were also identified as emerging areas with the potential to reshape liquidity management, although panellists acknowledged that corporate adoption remains at a relatively early stage.

Tips for successful AI implementation across treasury

AI was identified throughout the day as one of the defining shifts in treasury, particularly in areas such as cash-flow forecasting, liquidity management, risk analysis, fraud detection and working capital optimisation. And speakers argued its impact will extend far beyond automation to fundamentally change how treasury teams operate, make decisions and contribute to business strategy.

However, speakers stressed that successful AI implementation depends on much more than technology. The quality of underlying data was identified as the single biggest determinant of success, with several panellists warning that “garbage in, garbage out” remains a fundamental risk. Organisations were encouraged to modernise legacy treasury systems, improve data governance and create integrated data environments before expecting transformational AI outcomes.

The discussions also highlighted the importance of people, governance and culture when implementing AI. Treasury leaders were advised to invest in AI education, create AI champions within their teams and ensure human oversight remains embedded within decision-making processes.

Delegates heard that treasury professionals will need to become more technologically fluent, understand how AI models are trained and learn new skills such as prompt engineering – but were urged to begin experimenting now while simultaneously building the data, governance and operating foundations required to scale AI successfully in the years ahead.

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