Adam Smith Awards Yearbook 2017
2017 marks the tenth anniversary of the Treasury Today Adam Smith Awards. Everyone at Treasury Today Group is delighted to celebrate this milestone by introducing the 2017 Yearbook containing this year’s winning case studies.
The tenth anniversary of our pioneering awards is a great time to reflect on where we are in our industry today. In June 2008 at our very first Adam Smith Awards Gala Presentation Lunch, none of us could have imagined the seismic shifts in the global geopolitical and economic environment that have since occurred.
Since the global financial crisis and over the past decade the role of treasury as a true strategic partner to the business has been established as you are challenged to deliver better and more innovative solutions. We are proud that an Adam Smith Award is the benchmark of that achievement.
We were truly overwhelmed by the number, diversity and sheer quality of submissions for the 2017 awards programme. Our panel of judges always has a difficult task determining the winners, however this year was particularly challenging. What resonated loudly is that treasury departments around the globe have been working on some genuinely innovative projects over the course of a most challenging 18 months.
With more than 200 entries received from companies spanning 30 countries – including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, Hungary, Mexico, Nigeria, the UAE, Spain, Sweden and Ukraine – we can safely say that the Adam Smith Awards are truly global in their reach.
Even with such diversity of submissions, some major themes emerged. Many entries were driven by M&A or spin-off activities and the resultant impact on the treasury function. There were a number of treasury transformation projects, the geographic dimensions evidenced being most impressive with almost half being global in their reach. Treasury structures also took centre stage in many submissions, with virtual accounts, payment factories, in-house banks and POBO/ROBO/COBO structures prominent.
And whilst the focus on cash flow forecasting, risk management and funding remain a top priority, some of the newer developments involving distributed ledger and blockchain technologies are also moving up the agenda.
Treasury Today Group would like to extend our sincere thanks to the many corporates who have taken part in the Adam Smith Awards over the years. We offer our congratulations to all 2017 winners and their partner banks and service providers.
We look forward to celebrating your achievements over the next decade!
