There are three main types of treasury structure but regional treasury centres are predominant. The trend is towards further centralisation – moving from localised treasury operations to a regional structure. The major driver for this has been cash pooling and the movement has been facilitated by technology. Other key factors that have influenced the current trend towards centralisation are new regulations such as the International Accounting Standards and Sarbanes-Oxley. The benefits of centralisation are cost savings, improved management control, exposure netting, economies of scale and staff specialisation. The process of centralisation should involve a project management approach and ensure that senior management buy-in has been secured before the project’s commencement.
