19th August 2021 – Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions (TTS) Asia Pacific has processed close to 350 million Application Programming Interface (API) calls for corporate clients since the launch of APIs for corporates in 2017. As corporate clients digitize their businesses, APIs facilitate the seamless execution of a range of functions that support real-time banking experiences.
Faced by the ongoing pandemic and multiple changes in a rapidly evolving business environment, corporate clients are more quickly adapting and transforming their businesses and product offerings with an increased focus on technology and digitization. Coupled with the exponential growth of digital commerce in Asia Pacific, clients are embracing new e-commerce models.
Companies in consumer-facing industries are increasingly selling directly to their end-consumers by digitizing their sales models. In the business-to-business (B2B) space, businesses are engaging their clients differently. Supporting this transition, businesses are also incorporating new digital payments strategies in response to the growing adoption of alternative payment methods including instant payments and digital wallets in Asia Pacific.
Citi’s APIs for corporates are offered through TTS’ CitiConnect® solution, and includes over 80 APIs, covering both data-driven and transaction-driven APIs.
Data-driven APIs support self-servicing needs including producing reports, providing real-time FX information to a client, as well as account services including providing proof of payments to clients. Transaction-driven APIs facilitate payment transactions, including instant payments and collections, request-to-pay transfers as well as WorldLink® transfers.
In 2020 alone, TTS Asia Pacific doubled its API client base year-on-year and grew API call volumes by 52% in the same period.
Momentum has continued through to this year. In the second quarter, the business’ API client base grew 45% year-on-year. APIs that support account services have also seen notable increases in usage.
In the first half of the year, Account Balance Inquiry API call volumes grew by close to 2.4 times compared to the same period in 2020. Account Statement API call volumes rose by 64% in the same period as clients increasingly adopt real-time processes and enable faster reconciliation of transactions.
Sanjeev Jain, Asia Pacific Head of Payments & Receivables, Treasury and Trade Solutions, Citi said, “APIs provide instant, seamless and direct connectivity between Citi’s and clients’ platforms and systems. This connectivity gives clients the ability to offer enhanced user experiences to their customers, while giving them access to real-time information that is fundamental to efficiency and decision-making. APIs, used in various ways, can help corporate clients transform the way they engage with their end-consumers, optimize working capital and increase sales growth. We continue to invest in our suite of digital solutions, including APIs, to transform the client experience and at the same time, support our clients’ businesses as they respond to changes and adapt their businesses for the future.”
By using APIs, online investment company StashAway in Malaysia is now able to automate payments to its customer base which comprises retail and accredited investors.
“Using CitiConnect® APIs, we are now able to initiate payments to our customers automatically without any manual intervention required. We are also able to query the status of each payment to determine if it was successful and have put in place automated alerts in the event of any payment issues. Through our partnership with Citi, we have been able to achieve our desired level of operational efficiency to support the growth we are seeing in our customer base. Citi’s APIs are a key component in StashAway’s system,” said Wai Ken Wong, Country Manager, StashAway Malaysia.
In the B2B space, Best Logistics, which provides delivery services for e-Commerce marketplaces, adopted Citi’s APIs for greater efficiency in managing payments and operations. By using Citi’s APIs, Best Logistics is able to transfer funds collected from end-consumers upon delivery of goods to the respective e-Commerce marketplaces, resulting in a streamlined process and a better experience for their clients.
“Citi’s API solution enables us to easily initiate and track payments to our clients who are based in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. The comprehensive reporting capabilities as well as on-demand visibility into balances are very impressive. We look forward to continued collaboration with Citi as we further digitize our business model and operations,” said Chen Xinxuan, Treasury Manager, Best Logistics.
CitiConnect® is part of an omni-channel digital banking product suite that also includes CitiDirect BE® Online Banking and Mobile. CitiConnect APIs are supported through an ecosystem that includes strategic partnerships with various treasury software providers. Along with the Citi Institutional API Portal and CitiConnect® Testing Portal, Citi TTS supports clients through a consistent API integration experience throughout the global TTS footprint.
