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Awards / Treasury & Capital Markets
New economy companies focus on efficiency
The Asset Awards shine the spotlight on new economy treasury, trade and supply chain finance solutions
The Asset 22 May 2020

IF it was already gaining traction, e-commerce sprinted ahead during the Covid-19 pandemic as stay-at-home and lockdowns drove demand online. According to data from ACI Worldwide, online retail sales jumped 74% year-on-year in March, and by another 209% in April. New economy companies, including those in Asia, are among the keenest to adopt treasury solutions that address operational efficiency.

The Asset Triple A Treasury, Trade, SSC, and Risk Awards 2020 this time showcases the new economy solutions that stood out over the past 12 months. The board of editors were especially pleased to see co-creation models taking off as bank service providers partnered with these new economy firms.

With multiple requirements from them, banks need to demonstrate agility, and flexibility to deliver total solutions in the same way these firms are best known for. In Malaysia, AirPay is using a liquidity and cash management solution from UOB covering receivables for Shopee e-wallet payables to Shopee sellers. China’s Guazi adopted a total solution from Shanghai Pudong Development Bank (HK) including cross-border cash pooling and FX hedging.  

In particular, virtual accounts are widely adopted among e-commerce and third-party payment companies. China’s Lianlian Pay adopted a virtual account solution from Standard Chartered to support the company's receivables on-behalf-of collection model. Myntra Designs in India joined Deutsche Bank in devising a solution that included a pre-approved beneficiary setup and virtual accounts to support the buy-now, pay-later model of new e-commerce sites.

APIs, not novel to e-commerce companies, have become even more popular. Bukalapak partnered with DBS in Indonesia for its tax and credit card bill payments via API. The Singaporean bank also supported Star Agribazaar Technology in India for real-time credits with real-time updates in Indian rupee and Singapore dollar accounts via API.

Apart from payment and collection, new economy companies are also exploring new opportunities in trade and supply chain finance. Digital Guangdong worked with Standard Chartered to offer a deep-tier supply chain finance programme, backed by blockchain, to ensure accuracy and visibility of the product offering.

More of the best solutions from the more than 300 submitted for The Asset Triple A Treasury, Trade, SSC, and Risk Awards 2020 will be featured in the coming weeks.

To see the Best new economy solutions, please click here.

For more details about the awards, please click here.

For more information about receiving the awards, please contact [email protected]

To revisit some of our previous stories on the solution trends shaping treasury departments in Asia please read more below:

ESG underpins the best treasury solutions

Digitalization gains momentum

Digital adoption by SMEs accelerates

New economy companies focus on efficiency

From AI to L/C, trade finance goes digital

To survive Covid-19, here is what you need to do

Automating to accelerate payments and collections

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