This is an elegant solution involving a ‘Software as a Solution’ (SaaS) approach with secure implementation across multiple regulatory jurisdictions achieved in less than 100 days. “The objective,“ as Alexandre Simon, Group Treasurer, Flagstone Re, describes, “was to abolish bureaucracy and reduce the time taken to access treasury information by simplifying complex treasury processes.”

Flagstone Re is a global reinsurer with 47 business units in 13 different countries. The five-strong treasury team is split between Luxembourg and Canada, and has to manage over 150 accounts across 17 global banks. This places complex demands on the corporate treasury team. In its early years, Flagstone Re had no treasury management system in place, with the team forced to rely on manual processes, largely based on spreadsheets. Producing risk reports took three days and payments required forms signed, countersigned and faxed.

So Flagstone Re developed a solution to build the treasury function on technology delivered as a service, to accommodate future growth, structural change, and protect against obsolescence.

Flagstone Re engaged Wall Street Systems in April 2009 to implement a single global treasury management system. Within three months, Wallstreet Treasury SaaS was implemented, with integrated electronic banking provided via industry-leading partner Fides.

Alexandre comments, “The solution provides all members of the Flagstone Re treasury team with immediate visibility of liquidity and risk positions, and real time reporting. The 150 bank relationships have been reduced to a single portal. The cross-border business cycle works smoothly across 47 business units from 9am Luxembourg time to 6pm Canada time.”

The benefits of this solution can be summarised as follows:

• The company’s global cash position can now be pinpointed immediately, anywhere in the world.

• Paper has been removed from the workflow.

• Improved productivity, speed and scalability.

• The Group Treasurer can now provide accurate global cash and risk information within minutes and manage real time reconciliation of all cash movements across business units, using a single portal to reach all banks.

The SaaS model also means the treasury team does not require in-house IT support, and can manage all future technology needs.

Adopting technology as a service, and implementing it securely across multiple regulatory jurisdictions in under 100 days, has reduced the time it takes to determine the liquidity position from three days to three minutes. The barriers between financial information stored by banks, corporations and Governments have broken down, and regulatory scrutiny and competition have placed corporate treasurers under greater pressure than ever before to report on cash, risk and liquidity.

“We recognise this Award as a confirmation that Group Treasury at Flagstone Re has achieved an important milestone.”

Alexandre concludes “We recognise this Award as a confirmation that Group Treasury at Flagstone Re has achieved an important milestone. The selection of the right TMS vendor, has enabled us to significantly improve our control, to maximise returns on short-term investments and reduce operating costs by improving efficiencies under a period of relatively low interest rates and increasing scrutiny of regulators worldwide.”