HSBC London Banking Week Day 3

Session two: GPS Institutional Day

Day three’s afternoon session of HSBC London Banking Week saw industry leaders debate several high-profile trends impacting global payment solutions for institutional clients right now.

Francois Ionesco, Global Head of Institutional Sales, GPS, set the scene by telling delegates that the payments industry is being reshaped by a huge pace of change – with markets, technology and client expectations all moving faster, and against a backdrop of an increasingly complex and unpredictable operating environment.

He identified speed, control, resilience, innovation and trust as the defining themes for the sector – pointing to the growing commercial potential of tokenisation and digital assets, rising demand for real-time treasury capabilities and the transformative impact of AI as crucial to change.

How tokenisation can help unlock liquidity and efficiency

Tokenisation was highlighted as one of the most significant developments reshaping capital markets right now, with speakers arguing that the technology is moving beyond experimentation to deliver tangible benefits in the management and exchange of assets and value.

The discussion highlighted how tokenisation can improve efficiency by enabling the near-instantaneous movement of value at low cost, while creating opportunities for automated transactions, supply-chain payments and more streamlined settlement processes.

However, speakers stressed that wider adoption will depend on overcoming several challenges. Interoperability was identified as the most critical priority – ensuring different forms of tokenised money can operate seamlessly across institutions and markets.

The panel also emphasised the need for continued collaboration between financial institutions, regulators and technology providers to build scalable infrastructure and unlock the full benefits.

Real-time and AI-driven treasury delivers multiple benefits

Another key trend discussed throughout the event was how real-time and AI-driven treasury is reshaping the movement of money – by delivering faster settlement, greater payment certainty, and improved end-to-end visibility.

Speakers argued that real-time treasury is now a reality, with organisations increasingly seeking real-time liquidity visibility, faster access to information and the ability to take action immediately when required.

And delegates heard that the value of real-time payments extends far beyond payments speed, also enabling organisations to identify mismatches, limit breaches and exceptions more quickly.

Real-time data exchange, richer payment information and ISO 20022 standards were highlighted as key enablers of better tracking, straight-through processing and reduced payment friction in the future.

On the issue of AI in treasury, delegates heard that successful AI implementation in treasury is not about pursuing full automation, but about using AI to augment human decision-making and remove low-value manual work.

The session also heard that organisations should not “lead with AI” but instead start by identifying business problems and operational inefficiencies that AI can support.

The strongest implementations were described as those that automate repetitive activities such as reconciliations, cash allocation, reporting and customer enquiries, freeing treasury professionals to focus on judgement, risk management and strategic decisions.

Crucially, speakers emphasised that AI success depends on strong foundations. Organisations were warned that applying AI to fragmented systems and poor-quality data simply automates inefficiency. Treasury teams should therefore prioritise data quality, process simplification and system integration before scaling AI initiatives.

Resilience becomes an always-on, in-motion, everyday issue

Delegates also heard that operational resilience is no longer a periodic compliance exercise but a continuous business capability that must be embedded into day-to-day operations.

With organisations now operating in a world where disruption is expected, resilience must be managed “in motion” – alongside normal business activity – rather than through annual reviews and contingency plans.

Jack Armstrong, Partner, Cyber & Resilience, Ernst & Young LLP, argued that resilience should not be viewed as a risk in itself but as an outcome built on effective risk management.

He stressed that organisations must move beyond compliance and focus on understanding what is truly important to their business, how critical services are delivered, how quickly they must recover from disruption, and whether those capabilities have been properly tested. As he put it, organisations should continually ask: “What if it goes wrong? Do we have a plan?”

Another major theme was the growing complexity created by AI, automation and always-on digital services. While these technologies offer significant benefits, delegates were warned that they also introduce new dependencies and potential points of failure. The challenge for organisations is to balance innovation with resilience – by ensuring robust testing, governance and oversight of both internal systems and third-party providers.

The panel also highlighted the importance of continuous monitoring, data-driven decision-making and scenario testing.

For more insights from our events throughout June, click here.