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HONG KONG,18 January 2018 -

DBS Bank (Hong Kong) last week successfully debuted DBS Treasury Prism, the world’s first online treasury and cash management simulation tool to over 100 CFOs, corporate treasurers and finance controllers from large and multinational corporations in Hong Kong. Users are able to simulate various bank and corporate solutions on DBS Treasury Prism (treasuryprism.dbs.com) at no cost, and review potential opportunities that will maximise value for their enterprise.

CFOs and corporate treasurers often manage several accounts with different currencies and transaction flows across multiple countries. As a result, they often engage a few different banks to help create an optimal treasury and cash management solution. The process in doing so, called a Request for Proposal, is often time-consuming, unproductive and tedious. 

Using a human-centred design approach, DBS uncovered five critical areas to address through in-depth interviews with over 50 CFOs, corporate treasurers and finance professionals. These problems include:

• Too much preparatory work to achieve an optimal solution 
• Difficulty in monetising or quantifying the benefits and costs of solutions proposed by different banks
• No time to keep up with the latest regulatory, tax and market changes
• Too much effort to work with stakeholders on a new cash management solution
• Difficulty in implementing new and complex solutions 

DBS Treasury Prism was custom-built to address these challenges by giving CFOs and corporate treasurers the ability to independently experiment with cash and liquidity management structures and analyse the relative benefits and costs. The bank-agnostic platform takes into account the regulatory and tax environment in the markets where the company operates in, and offers immediate and contextual insights to help them understand the implications that each solution has on the business. 

Users can create simulations of account and liquidity structures across multiple markets and compare each solution through a quantified assessment of its cost and benefits. The combination of digital solutioning and contextual insights results in a value-rich experience for treasurers as they explore potential opportunities and solutions. 

Soh Fern Boey, Managing Director and Head of Global Transaction Services, Hong Kong, at DBS Bank (Hong Kong), said, “The rapidly shifting technological and regulatory landscapes that are driving the evolution of the corporate treasurer mean increased demand for speed, efficiency and transparency in cross-border cash management solutions. We developed DBS Treasury Prism to be an innovative and intuitive enabler to help corporate treasurers in their work, such as instantly getting information on country regulations and central bank rules, and reducing the time needed to perform basic checks on possible cross-border cash management solutions.”

Mark Troutman, Global Transaction Services’ Head of Sales at DBS Bank, said, “We believe DBS Treasury Prism is a good example of how we are leveraging digital technology to help CFOs and corporate treasurers meet elevated expectations for cash management solutions. DBS Treasury Prism is a product of innovation and customer-centred digital engagement, and will help shape the partnership between transaction bankers and treasury and finance professionals well beyond the conventional bank-customer interaction.”

Some of the key features of DBS Treasury Prism include:

Building simulations and quantifying benefits

Treasurers often receive multiple cash management proposals from banks; determining the best solution is challenging as the benefits are not always clearly evident. DBS Treasury Prism empowers treasurers by enabling them to simulate various structures for a range of international currencies, taking into account the tax and regulatory implications across 24 countries including key financial centres in Asia, Europe and the US. Each simulation features an Optimisation Score derived from a smart algorithm that takes into account the interest yield and debt, tax, bank fees and corporate costs, helping users quantify the benefits of each structure.

The dynamic online platform is equipped with over 30 liquidity and transactional flow management tools, including bank solutions and corporate tools such as interest optimisation, notional pooling, instant payments, and payments and receivables management, all supported by real time insights. In addition, the platform has an 'Optimise' feature that recommends alternative structures for users to explore and consider.

Access to contextual insights in real time

Keeping up-to-date with the latest changes in regulations and tax is time-consuming and challenging. The platform solves this problem by pulling current tax and regulation updates across 24 countries globally, providing users with contextual insights in real time as they create simulations. DBS Treasury Prism also features a Knowledge Centre with articles on emerging trends, new solutions and the latest market practices in treasury and cash management, giving treasurers a full breadth of information.

Building the global transaction services business is one of the bank’s strategic priorities, and today, it constitutes 31% of the bank’s institutional banking business income. In particular, cash management services have grown from strength to strength. DBS was also named Best Transaction Bank, Asia by The Asset, and Best Overall Bank for Cash Management, Asia Pacific by Global Finance in 2017.  

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About DBS
DBS - Living, Breathing Asia

DBS is a leading financial services group in Asia, with over 280 branches across 18 markets. Headquartered and listed in Singapore, DBS has a growing presence in the three key Asian axes of growth: Greater China, Southeast Asia and South Asia. The bank's "AA-" and "Aa1" credit ratings, is among the highest in the world.

DBS is at the forefront of leveraging digital technology to shape the future of banking, and has been named “World’s Best Digital Bank” by Euromoney. The bank has also been recognised for its leadership in the region, having been named “Asia’s Best Bank” by several publications including The Banker, Global Finance, IFR Asia and Euromoney since 2012. In addition, the bank has been named “Safest Bank in Asia” by Global Finance for nine consecutive years from 2009 to 2017.

DBS provides a full range of services in consumer, SME and corporate banking. As a bank born and bred in Asia, DBS understands the intricacies of doing business in the region’s most dynamic markets. DBS is committed to building lasting relationships with customers, and positively impacting communities through supporting social enterprises, as it banks the Asian way. It has also established a SGD 50 million foundation to strengthen its corporate social responsibility efforts in Singapore and across Asia.

With its extensive network of operations in Asia and emphasis on engaging and empowering its staff, DBS presents exciting career opportunities. The bank acknowledges the passion, commitment and can-do spirit in all of our 23,000 staff, representing over 40 nationalities. For more information, please visit www.dbs.com.

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