Last updated on Nov 8, 2023
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Cash management
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Treasury management
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The difference
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The benefits
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The challenges
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The best practices
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Here’s what else to consider
If you work in financial services, you may have heard of cash and treasury management, but do you know what they mean and how they differ? In this article, we will explain the basics of these two important functions and how they help businesses optimize their liquidity, risk, and profitability.
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- Zahin Sarwar Sr. Treasury Analyst at Copart
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- Mohamed Manikar Senior Treasury Officer at Bloom Holding - A Division of National Holding
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- Lawrencia Osei, CTA, CRS Head of Treasury at Ghacem Limited (HeidelbergCement Group)
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1 Cash management
Cash management is the process of managing the inflows and outflows of cash in a business. It involves collecting, transferring, investing, and disbursing cash efficiently and securely. Cash management helps a business to maintain adequate cash balances, meet its payment obligations, reduce transaction costs, and maximize its returns on idle cash. Some examples of cash management tools are bank accounts, cash pools, payment systems, cash flow forecasting, and cash budgeting.
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Cash management focuses on day-to-day operational tasks related to managing an organization's short-term cash and liquidity, with a focus on immediate cash flow optimization. In contrast, treasury management is a broader, strategic approach that encompasses cash management but also includes activities like risk management, investment management, and long-term financial planning, with the goal of ensuring an organization's overall financial stability and growth. Treasury management takes a longer-term perspective and involves making strategic decisions regarding capital structure, risk mitigation, financing, and investments.
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- Zahin Sarwar Sr. Treasury Analyst at Copart
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Cash management is a subset of broader Treasury management. Cash management deals with short term liquidity, funding, or investments. Treasury may include more than cash management functions for an example merchant services, risk/ hedging, bank partnership management etc.
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2 Treasury management
Treasury management is the broader term that encompasses cash management as well as other aspects of corporate finance. It involves managing the financial resources, risks, and strategies of a business. Treasury management helps a business to align its financial goals, policies, and operations with its overall objectives and environment. Some examples of treasury management functions are capital structure, funding, hedging, investing, foreign exchange, interest rate, and liquidity risk management.
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- Wajih Al-Darra, CFC Multi-Certified Senior Treasury Accountant with 15+ Years of Experience | Financial Specialist | Financial Reporting | Financial Accounting | Budgeting and Expense Analysis | Risk Management | Cash Flow Management
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Cash management focuses on short-term liquidity and cash flow optimization, while treasury management encompasses a broader set of financial activities, including risk management and long-term financial planning.
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- Lawrencia Osei, CTA, CRS Head of Treasury at Ghacem Limited (HeidelbergCement Group)
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Treasury management is a comprehensive financial discipline that includes cash management but extends to a broader scope like managing a company's financial assets and liabilities, including longer-term investments, debt, and risk management.It involves strategic financial planning and decision-making, not limited to;a. Managing investments, b. Securing financing, c. Hedging against financial risks (such as currency or interest rate risks), and d. Optimizing the overall capital structure of the company. Treasury management aims to enhance a company's overall financial performance and stability.
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3 The difference
The difference between cash and treasury management lies in the scope, complexity, and strategic importance of their activities. Cash management is more focused on the operational and tactical aspects of managing cash flows, while treasury management is more concerned with the strategic and long-term aspects of managing financial resources and risks. Cash management is usually performed by a cash manager or a cashier, while treasury management is usually performed by a treasurer or a chief financial officer. Cash management is often seen as a subset or a part of treasury management, but they are not interchangeable terms.
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- Mohamed Manikar Senior Treasury Officer at Bloom Holding - A Division of National Holding
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The important difference between Cash vs Treasury Management is that cash management focuses on the short-term goal of ensuring that organization has enough cash on hand to meet its business commitments; infact Treasury Management focuses on the long-term goal of minimizing its business risk and maximizing the organization's profitability.
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- Lawrencia Osei, CTA, CRS Head of Treasury at Ghacem Limited (HeidelbergCement Group)
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In summary, cash management is a subset of treasury management, focusing on short-term cash flow management (day-to-day cash flow operations) while treasury management involves a more strategic approach to managing a company's financial resources, encompassing a wider range of financial instruments to maximize a company’s financial health and stability.
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4 The benefits
Both cash and treasury management offer significant benefits to a business. By managing cash effectively, a business can improve its liquidity, solvency, and profitability. It can also reduce its exposure to operational, credit, and fraud risks. By managing treasury effectively, a business can optimize its capital structure, funding, and investment decisions. It can also mitigate its exposure to market, currency, and interest rate risks. Both cash and treasury management can enhance the financial performance, stability, and reputation of a business.
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- Jake Ballard Experienced SAP Treasury Professional | Finance Technology Enthusiast |
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Effective cash management enhances a business's liquidity, solvency, and profitability. It minimizes operational, credit, and fraud risks, ensuring financial stability. On the other hand, treasury management allows businesses to optimize capital, funding, and investment strategies, reducing market, currency, and interest rate risks. Both disciplines contribute to financial performance, stability, and a strong business reputation, reinforcing the importance of mastering them.
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5 The challenges
However, in the dynamic and uncertain financial environment, cash and treasury management also faces some challenges. For example, managing multiple currencies, accounts, and regulations across different markets and jurisdictions can be a difficult task. Additionally, it can be difficult to find the balance between liquidity and profitability, as well as risk and return. Furthermore, forecasting cash flows and financial needs accurately and timely is a challenge in itself. Finally, implementing and integrating appropriate systems, processes, and controls as well as developing and maintaining the skills, knowledge, and competencies of the staff can be a struggle.
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- Jake Ballard Experienced SAP Treasury Professional | Finance Technology Enthusiast |
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In the ever-changing financial landscape, cash and treasury management come with their set of challenges. Handling diverse currencies, accounts, and regulations across various markets and jurisdictions can be quite complex. Balancing liquidity with profitability and managing risk versus return poses an ongoing challenge. Forecasting cash flows and financial needs accurately and timely is another hurdle. Furthermore, establishing and integrating the right systems, processes, and controls, along with nurturing staff skills and knowledge, can be a demanding endeavor. Meeting these challenges is essential for effective financial management.
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6 The best practices
For optimal results, businesses should adopt best practices for cash and treasury management. These include establishing clear, consistent policies and procedures that are aligned with the business objectives and strategies. Utilizing reliable and secure technology that allows for automation, integration, and analysis of data and transactions is also key. Moreover, strong relationships with banks, financial institutions, and other stakeholders should be developed and maintained. Performance and efficiency of cash and treasury activities and processes should be monitored, with improvements and innovations identified and implemented. Finally, regular training should be provided to cash and treasury staff and other stakeholders.
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- Jonathan Omollo Senior Executive- Finance at Pwani Life
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Just as succinctly explained, cash management constrained to cash, while treasury is broadly extending to the global finance function and will include both micro and macro factors that affect the financial position of of the institution.
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7 Here’s what else to consider
This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?
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- Eirik Jacobsen
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A Treasury function will also be involved in stress testing of both capital and liquidity in a bank and in the development on contingency plans for capital and liquidity.
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- Farrukh Sadiq Treasurer|Tri-Athlete|Marathoner|Finance Trainer|
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Tools available for effective cash & treasury management, it's scope & utility for various industries. Integration of these tools with existing system
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