The importance of treasury resilience shines through in a packed agenda at this year’s ACT conference with strategic and practical sessions led by specialist speakers focused on cash, liquidity and risk management, and how treasury can keep payments, and goods, flowing in today’s challenging trading environment.
The role of treasury transformation and digitisation, and AI, supporting companies to adapt to always-on markets and real-time decision making is also a key theme with content designed to engage all levels of the treasury function and the wider financial community.
“2026 has continued and magnified the uncertainty we’ve seen in the past few years. The natural pragmatism and focus of treasurers is helping them cope with this, although undoubtedly it adds complexity and the need for rapid agility and adaptability at times,” says Annette Spencer, Chief Executive, Association of Corporate Treasurers.
This year’s opening plenary session will explore the UK’s evolving relationship with Europe and how shifts in the policy direction and funding environment will impact treasurers operating across the region. Other sessions will explore the evolution of private credit as a credible alternative funding source, and how it sits alongside traditional bank relationships.
Elsewhere, the conference speakers will share tax, accounting and regulatory updates for treasurers; speak on trends in sustainable finance and discuss how treasury can integrate UK economic releases into actionable cash investment, debt issuance timing, and interest rate and FX hedging strategies. As well as other panels on cash investment strategies that include programmable cash, sessions will focus on how treasurers are approaching the opportunities and risks in their DB pension schemes.
Treasury talent and the importance of finance qualifications is another key strand running through the conference content, adds Spencer. “This year we have an increasing focus on key human and leadership skills for the modern age, such as critical thinking, empathy, strategy and collaboration,” she says.
Both the ACT’s mid-level qualifications, the Certificate in Treasury (CertT) and the Certificate in International Cash Management (CertICM) are now available in micro credential modules, so members can dip in and out of specific short topics, and build up the blocks to a full qualification.
“We’ve also updated our training course on AI and continue to keep adapting the training and qualifications we can offer to reflect current needs and demand, particularly in the technology space,” she adds, reflecting how the organisation itself, like its members, is adapting to work with AI, creating resilient services and models.
This year’s event combines the usual main-stage plenaries, practical breakouts and large exhibition hall and co-lead sponsors include HSBC, NatWest and SMBC. The conference will start with a Members-Only drinks reception on Monday 11th May and the ACT is hosting a networking event at the Museum of Liverpool on Tuesday 12th May.
