Table Stakes

Once again, fluid conversation helps to expose the complex inner workings of banking relationships, as we convened our panel of treasury experts at this year's Association for Finance Professionals conference. Whether it be the impact of SWIFT or the shared costs of fraud, our roundtable discussion revealed the changing coordinates of treasury's world.

Business Finance: As the relationships between banks and treasury mature, how are the dynamics changing?

Jim Mahn: I think that one of the things we've seen change is that we no longer consider just banks to be our competition. We've expanded beyond just the cash management realm when we're out talking to our clients. We have to not only call on treasury but also call in other areas within the organization on a more regular basis, whether human resources, payables, etc. The knowledge base has to include the client's treasury needs as well as the business processes.

Alphonse Briand: The only thing I would add is that, over the past 12 months, one of the things that our corporate customers have been increasingly telling us is that they would value our support in helping them to access a single solution to meet both their global and U.S. domestic needs. I think that they realize that there are opportunities to create more of a seamless flow of information and to increase the automation for the payments they make outside of the United States. We see that as a trend where we can help the treasurer assimilate globalization of payment and cash processes.

David Fuller: I would add that the same thing applies domestically as well. With the introduction and proliferation of things like remote deposit, commercial card solutions, and relationships we have with others, geography is not nearly as critical. The notion that I can only bank with you if you're in my same town is a lot less of a driver than it was even 12 months ago. We've seen this with clients who are looking for a comprehensive solution that helps to address their challenges or drives overall efficiencies -- as long as they receive quality service.

Bob Pedersen: David, I couldn't agree more. We, the Postal Service, just put out a nationwide RFP for currency and check collection and processing, and the idea is just to create a competitive free-for-all, and see who wants to partner with whom. We're trying to avoid having a particular bank own a geographic area, leaving us stuck with poor service and poor pricing, to add insult to that injury.

So we're pushing forward, and I've told the bankers that what I want to do with them is to increase their risk, along with their opportunity. We don't have a resource problem dealing with 21 banks right now, but I do believe that at the end of this whole process, we will be dealing with fewer. The objective is not fewer banks per se, but to get the best that the market has to offer. And that will help me sleep better, at least for a while.