En Voyage - Issue #8
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Business<br />
DIGITAL INNOVATION<br />
TO SUPPORT<br />
BUSINESSES<br />
BY SHARON TAYLOR, HEAD OF GLOBAL<br />
LIQUIDITY AND CASH MANAGEMENT, HSBC<br />
CHANNEL ISLANDS AND ISLE OF MAN<br />
With the Channel Islands and<br />
Isle of Man having positioned<br />
themselves strongly as dynamic<br />
business centres, local businesses<br />
operating or transacting locally<br />
or internationally inevitably find<br />
that having a banking partner<br />
with the capability and reach to<br />
meet their current and future<br />
challenges is critical in helping to<br />
deliver their corporate strategy.<br />
The outward-looking nature<br />
of the islands as centres for<br />
sophisticated commerce is<br />
reflected in HSBC’s approach. As a<br />
result, we are seeing rising demand<br />
for specialist and high-level<br />
expertise that can support both<br />
local and international businesses.<br />
Time and again, we see<br />
corporates, trust companies,<br />
service providers and other<br />
fiduciaries benefitting considerably<br />
from having the support of a bank<br />
that is credible internationally<br />
and that can provide them<br />
with innovative digital tools.<br />
INTERNATIONALLY DYNAMIC<br />
Of course, being successful<br />
requires careful planning,<br />
comprehensive knowledge and<br />
real focus, and a global banking<br />
network like that of HSBC that can<br />
support internationally dynamic<br />
firms in these ways is invaluable.<br />
Cash management is a particular<br />
area of growth for businesses, and<br />
HSBC’s cash management team<br />
in the islands is growing too.<br />
The introduction of SEPA (Single<br />
Euro Payments Area) has made<br />
liquidity easier in Europe than in<br />
regions with diverse market and<br />
regulatory conditions. Even so,<br />
with very high levels of market<br />
volatility, such as GBP and EUR,<br />
many treasurers are now revisiting<br />
and revising their account<br />
structures and use of liquidity<br />
cash management solutions.<br />
Considered a core service<br />
by a growing number of fastpaced<br />
businesses trading from<br />
the Channel Islands and Isle of<br />
Man, cash management services<br />
enable them to quickly and easily<br />
manage their cash and balances,<br />
see what’s going in and out of<br />
their accounts, and review their<br />
liquidity and borrowings, wherever<br />
in the world they are doing<br />
business. There are a number of<br />
key benefits to the business of<br />
such an approach, including:<br />
simplification of bank accounts<br />
and non-core banking<br />
relationships<br />
• greater efficiencies<br />
• rationalised and reduced<br />
transactional pricing<br />
• tighter control and visibility of<br />
cash flow<br />
• specialist single points<br />
of contact and quick<br />
query resolution<br />
• real time balance and<br />
transaction reporting<br />
We frequently see businesses<br />
benefitting from a robust approach<br />
to cash management, and this<br />
can take a number of forms.<br />
For instance, one large<br />
international client has recently<br />
implemented a card solution<br />
using HSBC’s MI Vision tool.<br />
It allows them to take an extract<br />
and upload direct to their<br />
<strong>En</strong>terprise Resource Planning<br />
(ERP) platform, helping them to<br />
make administrative savings.<br />
We also recently undertook a<br />
cash management review for a<br />
locally based corporate client<br />
with a view to reviewing their<br />
processes and identifying areas<br />
to help them be more efficient<br />
and reduce costs. Reducing<br />
costs is a priority for many of our<br />
business clients so this service<br />
can add real value to our clients’<br />
overall business performance.<br />
In all cases, an innovative<br />
approach to cash management is<br />
really helping businesses to plan,<br />
manage and monitor their liquid<br />
assets and, in so doing, streamline<br />
their processes, reduce manual<br />
labour costs, and position them<br />
strongly for future growth.<br />
INNOVATION<br />
HSBC is working on numerous<br />
innovations that will enable clients<br />
to take full advantage of the digital<br />
economy, and ensure they are<br />
able to transact efficiently, quickly,<br />
conveniently and safely across<br />
borders. Globally, for instance,<br />
the Bank is investing US$2.1<br />
billion in digital transformation<br />
between 2015 and 2020, and we<br />
are seeing this sort of innovation<br />
directly benefit local businesses.<br />
94 <strong>En</strong> <strong>Voyage</strong> | Aurigny’s Magazine