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Top-performing treasuries efficiently fund working capital, deploy liquidity, and identify and mitigate risks. They put in place the fundamental building blocks to perform well in each of these areas, and transition from people-dependency to well-defined processes. They apply technology to automate repeatable processes that would otherwise occupy significant day-to-day time. They also develop data strategies and invest to ensure access to timely, complete, and accurate data. Other companies can learn from this. The analysis and insights presented throughout this study lay a path to achieving high-performance in treasury. Doing so creates value by contributing to a company’s profitability and growth. Corporate treasurers are reinventing their roles to support business growth while maintaining focus on efficiency, managing risk, and optimizing the use of capital across the entire cash lifecycle. Meanwhile, the emergence of new technologies is changing business models. Digital business models are accelerating the pace of interaction across company supply chains, increasing the velocity of cash, and creating new challenges for treasury management. Technology enables treasury to move from manual processes led by people to full automation. Technology increasingly powers data-led insights. That said, many companies still struggle to set a foundation of strong treasury fundamentals — good cash forecasting, centralized cash and banking, optimized working capital, and effective mitigation of financial risks. This is not without good reason. Many companies face a technology debt. They are plagued with manual processes, poor data, and underinvestment in technology and talent. In the face of rising expectations and demands from executive leadership, treasurers are seeking guidance to shape their investment roadmap. How do they demonstrate that leadership in treasury matters for the firm? What are the attributes of a leading treasury? What are the steps that treasurers need to take? This study measures what differentiates top performing treasuries from the rest. Companies that nurture treasury teams to be leaders tend to enjoy better financial performance. Put another way, underperformance in treasury risks diminishing value. We show how high-performing treasuries ensure efficient funding of working capital, proactively identify and mitigate financial risks, and deploy liquidity to fund company growth. We argue that companies can use the learnings from this study to leapfrog a historically lengthy process of their treasury reaching the top tier. And by doing so, they can accelerate their ability to better support company returns.

Top-performing treasuries efficiently fund working capital, deploy liquidity, and identify and mitigate risks. They put in place the fundamental building blocks to perform well in each of these areas, and transition from people-dependency to well-defined processes. They apply technology to automate repeatable processes that would otherwise occupy significant day-to-day time. They also develop data strategies and invest to ensure access to timely, complete, and accurate data. Other companies can learn from this. The analysis and insights presented throughout this study lay a path to achieving high-performance in treasury. Doing so creates value by contributing to a company&rsquo;s profitability and growth.
Corporate treasurers are reinventing their roles to support business growth while maintaining focus on efficiency, managing risk, and optimizing the use of capital across the entire cash lifecycle. Meanwhile, the emergence of new technologies is changing business models. Digital business models are accelerating the pace of interaction across company supply chains, increasing the velocity of cash, and creating new challenges for treasury management. Technology enables treasury to move from manual processes led by people to full automation. Technology increasingly powers data-led insights. That said, many companies still struggle to set a foundation of strong treasury fundamentals &mdash; good cash forecasting, centralized cash and banking, optimized working capital, and effective mitigation of financial risks. This is not without good reason. Many companies face a technology debt. They are plagued with manual processes, poor data, and underinvestment in technology and talent.
In the face of rising expectations and demands from executive leadership, treasurers are seeking guidance to shape their investment roadmap. How do they demonstrate that leadership in treasury matters for the firm? What are the attributes of a leading treasury? What are the steps that treasurers need to take?
This study measures what differentiates top performing treasuries from the rest. Companies that nurture treasury teams to be leaders tend to enjoy better financial performance. Put another way, underperformance in treasury risks diminishing value.
We show how high-performing treasuries ensure efficient funding of working capital, proactively identify and mitigate financial risks, and deploy liquidity to fund company growth. We argue that companies can use the learnings from this study to leapfrog a historically lengthy process of their treasury reaching the top tier. And by doing so, they can accelerate their ability to better support company returns.

Our ambition is to be the number one trusted advisor for our clients, offering innovative solutions and practical insights throughout their growth journey. Our Services business remains at the heart of that, and the globality of our network uniquely positions us to deliver. I’m excited for Citi to continue supporting clients with their vision and strategy for treasury, accelerating their transformation programs, and driving growth. 
Jane Fraser, CEO, Citi

The ability we have to serve our clients across the globe is underpinned by our Services business, which enables us to meet our client’s needs as they grow and develop. As a CFO, I have seen first-hand the benefits that come from investing in treasury, in managing risks, and supporting business growth and I’m always excited by how Citi partners with clients to support their everchanging treasury needs.  Mark Mason, CFO, Citi

Top-performing treasuries efficiently fund working capital, deploy liquidity, and identify and mitigate risks. They put in place the fundamental building blocks to perform well in each of these areas, and transition from people-dependency to well-defined processes. They apply technology to automate repeatable processes that would otherwise occupy significant day-to-day time. They also develop data strategies and invest to ensure access to timely, complete, and accurate data. Other companies can learn from this. The analysis and insights presented throughout this study lay a path to achieving high-performance in treasury. Doing so creates value by contributing to a company’s profitability and growth. Corporate treasurers are reinventing their roles to support business growth while maintaining focus on efficiency, managing risk, and optimizing the use of capital across the entire cash lifecycle. Meanwhile, the emergence of new technologies is changing business models. Digital business models are accelerating the pace of interaction across company supply chains, increasing the velocity of cash, and creating new challenges for treasury management. Technology enables treasury to move from manual processes led by people to full automation. Technology increasingly powers data-led insights. That said, many companies still struggle to set a foundation of strong treasury fundamentals — good cash forecasting, centralized cash and banking, optimized working capital, and effective mitigation of financial risks. This is not without good reason. Many companies face a technology debt. They are plagued with manual processes, poor data, and underinvestment in technology and talent. In the face of rising expectations and demands from executive leadership, treasurers are seeking guidance to shape their investment roadmap. How do they demonstrate that leadership in treasury matters for the firm? What are the attributes of a leading treasury? What are the steps that treasurers need to take? This study measures what differentiates top performing treasuries from the rest. Companies that nurture treasury teams to be leaders tend to enjoy better financial performance. Put another way, underperformance in treasury risks diminishing value. We show how high-performing treasuries ensure efficient funding of working capital, proactively identify and mitigate financial risks, and deploy liquidity to fund company growth. We argue that companies can use the learnings from this study to leapfrog a historically lengthy process of their treasury reaching the top tier. And by doing so, they can accelerate their ability to better support company returns. Our ambition is to be the number one trusted advisor for our clients, offering innovative solutions and practical insights throughout their growth journey. Our Services business remains at the heart of that, and the globality of our network uniquely positions us to deliver. I’m excited for Citi to continue supporting clients with their vision and strategy for treasury, accelerating their transformation programs, and driving growth. 
Jane Fraser, CEO, Citi The ability we have to serve our clients across the globe is underpinned by our Services business, which enables us to meet our client’s needs as they grow and develop. As a CFO, I have seen first-hand the benefits that come from investing in treasury, in managing risks, and supporting business growth and I’m always excited by how Citi partners with clients to support their everchanging treasury needs.  Mark Mason, CFO, Citi

"Top-performing treasuries efficiently fund working capital, deploy liquidity, and identify and mitigate risks. They put in place the fundamental building blocks to perform well in each of these areas, and transition from people-dependency to well-defined processes. They apply technology to automate repeatable processes that would otherwise occupy significant day-to-day time. They also develop data strategies and invest to ensure access to timely, complete, and accurate data. n	Other companies can learn from this. The analysis and insights presented throughout this study lay a path to achieving high-performance in treasury. Doing so creates value by contributing to a company’s profitability and growth."


Does It Matter?

Top-performing treasuries efficiently fund working capital, deploy liquidity, and identify and mitigate risks. They put in place the fundamental building blocks to perform well in each of these areas, and transition from people-dependency to well-defined processes.

Treasury Leadership

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When is cash really trapped? Often this occurs in countries with insufficient hard currency reserves, resulting in inability to remit funds offshore.&nbsp; While rare, current examples include countries like Angola, Argentina and Egypt.More often, this perceived challenge in a group of operating countries is an opportunity to navigate across varying local regulations, requirements, and “realities” to solve for ways to extract or optimize funds.The Client Advisory Group recommends using the following framework to manage cash in countries with varying restrictions:<ul style="list-style-type:disc;"><li>Distinguish unrestricted, semi-restricted, restricted, and truly trapped cash countries</li><li>Quantify the amount of cash in each category of countries</li><li>Be aware of certain countries that have currency conversion constraints</li><li>Understand the company’s business and trading model</li><li>Determine the company’s finance and treasury model</li></ul>&nbsp;Read the full report <a href="/rcs/citigpa/storage/public/restricted_cash_framework_final.pdf" data-link-source="tiny">here</a>.&nbsp;

When is cash really trapped? Often this occurs in countries with insufficient hard currency reserves, resulting in inability to remit funds offshore.&nbsp; While rare, current examples include countries like Angola, Argentina and Egypt.More often, this perceived challenge in a group of operating countries is an opportunity to navigate across varying local regulations, requirements, and “realities” to solve for ways to extract or optimize funds.

Moving Beyond “Trapped” Cash  

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In today&rsquo;s credit-constrained marketplace, corporate Treasury is under increasing pressure to find ways to support business growth objectives. Savvy companies are tapping into a hidden catalyst to accelerate their financial performance: cash concentration. This paper analyzes Citi data on the use of cash concentration liquidity solutions, along with publicly available company financial data. The findings reveal that a positive correlation exists between companies that maximize cash concentration - allowing them to redeploy cash - with those that maximize returns.
Read the full report in <a href="/rcs/citigpa/storage/public/liquidity_cash_concentration_article.pdf" data-link-source="tiny">here</a>.&nbsp;
&nbsp;

The Hidden Catalyst for Accelerating Financial Performance: Liquidity Cash Concentration

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What will treasury look like in 2030?&nbsp;In this latest Citi GPS report, we try to answer this important question. More specifically, we focus on what treasury should look like in 2030 based on where the function is today, what experts are saying, and the opportunities we see.&nbsp;It’s clear that technology will continue to be one of the major catalysts for change. We discuss new technological advances and how they will provide a platform for treasury modernization.&nbsp;Equally important will be tighter partnership and collaboration, within firms and with technology and banking providers. And a talent strategy focusing not only on ensuring the right skillset, but also the right mindset-- one that embraces change--across the treasury organization.<img class="image_resized" style="aspect-ratio:1273/392;width:98.58%;" src="/rcs/v1/media/citigpa/akpublic/storage/retrieveMediaFile/674f0f8482f46064fa9c6f36.png" alt="infographic lady is pointing on icons which say centre of excellence for financial transactions, chief returns and risk officer, always on, 24-7, automation through AL" width="1273" height="392"><o:p></o:p><o:p></o:p>Ultimately, the most important catalyst will be the appetite of treasurers to make the tough choices needed to drive change.&nbsp;That won’t be easy. Treasurers are already busy performing a challenging role. They ensure the company has adequate liquidity, minimize financial risks, and contain net financing costs so they do not materially impact cash flow. They have the vital mission of supporting the CFO in capital strategy.&nbsp;That said, treasurers are also always striving to do better and often ask us what best-in-class treasury looks like. And they wonder how they stack up.&nbsp;A year ago, we published our study <a href="https://www.citigroup.com/global/insights/treasury-leadership">Citi GPS: Treasury Leadership: Does it Matter?</a> This examined what differentiates best in class treasuries from the rest. We found that companies that have nurtured treasury teams to be leaders also enjoyed better financial performance.&nbsp;Recently, many treasurers are asking more forward-looking questions. “What will treasury look like in the future? How should we plan to adapt?" This Citi GPS report sets out a picture of the potential road ahead.&nbsp;The nature of predictions is that we will likely be wrong in terms of precise outcomes. But this report lays out what we believe to be the thrust and direction of how treasury will and should evolve by 2030.&nbsp;We hope the vision we present here serves as a call to action for companies, tech providers and banks to take the steps necessary now to ensure treasury remains relevant and indeed vibrant in the coming years.<o:p></o:p>

Download the full Treasury 2030 report. 

 Modernize or Risk Irrelevance

What will treasury look like in 2030? In this latest Citi GPS report, we try to answer this important question. More specifically, we focus on what treasury should look like in 2030 based on where the function is today, what experts are saying, and the opportunities we see.<o:p></o:p>

Treasury 2030 

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Lessons learned from top performing companies and the impact of real-time treasuryIn-house Banks (IHBs) may not be a riveting topic. Yet, they remain a linchpin of top performing corporate treasuries.&nbsp;For those less familiar with IHBs, they are a concept comprised of a legal entity, liquidity structure, system infrastructure, and personnel. The IHB serves as an internal virtual bank, designed to centralize cash, investments, foreign exchange (FX) currency exposures, intercompany lending, and transacts on behalf of participants.&nbsp;An IHB has the ability to reduce overall banking transactions. It is important to recognize that an IHB is not a regional treasury center, shared service center, re-invoicing center, or cash pool. Although, it may be supported by – or support – all of the aforementioned.Read the article <a href="/rcs/citigpa/storage/public/In_house_Bank_Article.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.

In-house Banks (IHBs) may not be a riveting topic. Yet, they remain a linchpin of top performing corporate treasuries. The IHB serves as an internal virtual bank, designed to centralize cash, investments, foreign exchange (FX) currency exposures, intercompany lending, and transacts on behalf of participants.

In-house Banks: As Relevant as Ever in Today’s World

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Treasury professionals strive to meet three primary goals: driving revenue, lowering costs &amp; improving efficiency, and managing risk. Treasury is not in the business of speculating on assets.&nbsp;While we will not argue for or against the use of Digital Assets, this paper aims to provide a framework for Treasury teams to evaluate Digital Assets – discerning their potential applications and associated risks within the context of overarching Treasury goals – to derive a view on their viability and utilization in a 2025 Treasury strategy.

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This paper aims to provide a framework for Treasury teams to evaluate Digital Assets to derive a view on their viability and utilization in a 2025 Treasury strategy.

Digital Assets: Mapping Applications for the Enterprise

<ul><li>Drivers of Renewed Interest: Corporates now better understand the benefits beyond just speed, including the accompanying data and payment confirmation, providing certainty for both sender and recipient. Client demand, especially from younger generations and in the growing B2C market. &nbsp;</li><li>Current State of Adoption: Real-time payment networks or solutions are present in approximately 80 countries and adoption is accelerating. Large multinational corporations demanding real-time capabilities from their banks and payment clearers also drives adoption.</li><li>Value Add in the Insurance Sector: The insurance industry is moving towards a business-to-consumer model, necessitating real-time solutions for direct consumer interactions. This innovative approach digitizes and automates claims processing using third-party data to trigger payments when specific metrics are met (e.g., flight delays, health metrics). This simplifies claims and improves customer experience. Key applications include travel, health, and even agriculture.</li><li>Fraud Mitigation in Real-Time Payments: Manual control frameworks are insufficient for the speed of real-time payments. Automated systems are essential. Collaboration with banks and FinTech providers for solutions like account validation and confirmation of payee is crucial to mitigate fraud risk.</li></ul>

Real Time: 24x7 Finance in an Always-On World

Sophia Bantanidis from the Future of Finance team, Citi Institute, chats with Matt Cornwall, Head of Treasury operations, EMEA and Global Process Owners at Chubb, about the increasing adoption and impact of real-time payments, particularly within the insurance sector.

24x7 Finance in an Always on World 

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<ul><li>Stronger financial health: High scores in treasury leadership correlate with better earnings growth, free cash flow yield, and net income margin growth.</li><li>Resilience to market volatility: Effective treasury leadership helps shield companies from market volatility and enables faster recovery as turbulence subsides.</li><li>Faster rebound: Top-performing companies rebound more quickly and robustly than their peers as market stress dissipates.</li></ul>

Key Takeaways

Corporate treasury departments have shown their worth during the global market volatility of recent months.The Trump Administration’s major tariff announcements on April 2, 2025 unveiled a broad new tariff strategy, triggering a period of market volatility reminiscent in some ways of the 2020 pandemic. Markets went into a downward spiral, sparking flight-to-safety trades across the globe. Beyond sharp price reactions, earnings growth expectations also plummeted. Markets have since recovered, with the S&amp;P 500 back to February levels.A previous Citi GPS study (<a href="https://ir.citi.com/gps/OMWX3mOIyGrvq%2BUILBaR022RRDYAcig7hO4SYJ2tkA%2BXhQKOD%2FT8grgDbVadOS%2BXC0GfOYXZhl%2FAzZrqOcmDQw%3D%3D">Treasury Leadership: Does it Matter?</a>) written for corporate CFOs and Treasurers, found that “top-performing companies have top-performing treasuries”. But did this hold true during the recent bout of market stress?To find out, we investigated company growth, profitability, and financial health metrics before and after the tariffs were announced. We compared these metrics against treasury performance, as measured in our Citi Treasury Diagnostics (CTD) global company benchmarking survey.

Download the full Treasury Leadership - An Antidote to Market Stress report. 

An Antidote to Market Stress

Corporate treasury departments have shown their worth during the global market volatility of recent months. A previous Citi GPS study (<a href="https://ir.citi.com/gps/OMWX3mOIyGrvq%2BUILBaR022RRDYAcig7hO4SYJ2tkA%2BXhQKOD%2FT8grgDbVadOS%2BXC0GfOYXZhl%2FAzZrqOcmDQw%3D%3D" target="_blank">Treasury Leadership: Does it Matter?</a>) found that “top-performing companies have top-performing treasuries”.&nbsp; &nbsp;

Download GenAI in Treasury - A Practitioner's Guide

In this paper, we undertake two key tasks. First, through surveys and interviews with treasury practitioners, we offer a current view of GenAI maturity in treasury departments. Second, based on these findings and experiences of those contributing to this paper, we propose a framework to help treasury advance their digital agenda through GenAI.

<ul><li>Adoption of GenAI in treasury has been limited to date. Most firms are at the early stages of opportunity identification or exploratory experimentation.</li><li>Barriers to getting started include access to technical resources and challenges with data quality and visibility. Key concerns include risks in trusting AI outputs and the potential for data leakage.</li><li>That said, AI is a current hot topic for corporate treasury teams. They are mindful of the myriad points of failure embedded in today’s manual processes and seek to improve the speed and quality of decisions (as well, there is perennial pressure to “do more with less”).</li><li>Some common traits of AI leaders in treasury include gaining C-level encouragement and mandate; training to facilitate small experiments and build a change mindset; and prioritizing incremental process improvements before “moonshots”.</li><li>Understanding treasury’s data (and limitations) is another key attribute for success. Treasurers are recognizing the importance of investing in a robust data strategy as a necessary foundation for leveraging AI, as well as readying for a world where they need real-time information to execute faster.</li><li>Against a backdrop of broad corporate investment in AI (in talent and technology), and high expectations of productivity gains, treasurers are recognizing that AI deployment needs to be part and parcel of forward planning for their organization and talent. &nbsp;</li></ul>

Key Takeaways 

In this paper, we undertake two key tasks. First, through surveys and interviews with treasury practitioners, we offer a current view of GenAI maturity in treasury departments. Second, based on these findings and experiences of those contributing to this paper, we propose a framework to help treasury advance their digital agenda through GenAI.

GenAI in Treasury - A Practitioner's Guide

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In today's unpredictable economic climate, companies can optimize cash and liquidity management through strategically designed cash pooling structures. A well-designed cash pool improves capital efficiency, reduces reliance on costly borrowing, and enhances decision-making speed.This article provides detailed guidance on how to design an optimal cash pool. It delves into the complexities and constraining factors that treasurers must navigate, including external regulations and internal considerations. It also elaborates on the different types of cash pooling and banking structures that might be considered in corporate treasury’s pursuit of its liquidity management goals.

<a class="lmn-btn lmn-btn-primary" style="text-decoration:none;" href="/rcs/citigpa/storage/public/Designing-the-Optimal-Cash-Pool-The-Increasing-Importance-of-Managing-Global-Liquidity.pdf" role="button" target="_blank">DOWNLOAD</a>

Read the full article: Designing the Optimal Cash Pool: The Increasing Importance of Managing Global Liquidity

In today's unpredictable economic climate, companies can optimize cash and liquidity management through strategically designed cash pooling structures. A well-designed cash pool improves capital efficiency, reduces reliance on costly borrowing, and enhances decision-making speed. This article provides detailed guidance on how to design an optimal cash pool. It delves into the complexities and constraining factors that treasurers must navigate, including external regulations and internal considerations. It also elaborates on the different types of cash pooling and banking structures that might be considered in corporate treasury’s pursuit of its liquidity management goals.&nbsp;

Designing the Optimal Cash Pool: The Increasing Importance of Managing Global Liquidity

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What Treasurers Should Do in 2026<ul><li>Take Ownership: Clearly define problems and opportunities, identify key data sources and specify the treasury questions that can only be answered with accurate, real-time information</li><li>Architect an Integrated Ecosystem: Breakdown silos, eliminate manual handoffs and create a single source of truth shared across treasury, core systems and banking partners</li><li>Implement an API-first Approach: Use APIs to unlock real-time visibility and automate workflows so actions in one system immediately trigger responses in another</li><li>Engage Technology and Banking Partners: Understand how platforms are evolving for real-time operations and participate in industry efforts that shape future standards</li></ul>

Citi’s Client Advisory Group is proud to present their annual Top Treasury Priorities. Read the full article to understand how to build a treasury function ready for today's realities and tomorrow's future.

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Top Treasury Priorities 2026: Activating the Intelligent, Always-On Treasury

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Future high-performing treasuries will share three common traits that go beyond headcount:<ul><li>Human Capital Investment: Continuous upskilling in data, analytics, fintech and strategic finance ensures personnel capabilities evolve with technology</li><li>Deliberate Digitalization: Tools like TMS and ERP are employed not merely for automation, but to unlock new insights, enhance decision-making and drive strategic efficiency</li><li>Innovation Mindset: Effective teams view change as a competitive advantage, proactively adapting structures and roles as new technologies and market dynamics emerge</li></ul>

Discover why investing in technology is justified not by staff reductions, but by its transformative power to elevate treasury's role from transactional processing to strategic insight generation. This piece challenges conventional wisdom and provides a fresh perspective on how high-performing treasuries are truly built for the future.

Read the full article

Discover why investing in technology is justified not by staff reductions, but by its transformative power to elevate treasury's role from transactional processing to strategic insight generation.

Beyond Headcount: Measuring Treasury's True Value

Citi Services' Client Advisory is a practitioner-led team to help clients progress treasury practices and evolve their corporate treasury functions in support of enterprise growth and transformation. &nbsp;They guide decision making with diagnostics &amp; benchmarking, provide insights on best practices, and deliver in-depth analysis leading to recommendations and roadmaps to chart a path to value creation.

Citi Services | Client Advisory

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The global economic and geopolitical landscape is undergoing profound transformation, moving from a predictable, internationally connected era to a “new world order.” This shift, characterized by increased fragmentation of global frameworks, geopolitical tension, and accelerating change, presents marked challenges and opportunities for corporate finance leaders. As highlighted at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos, the forces reshaping our world demand a fundamental re-evaluation of financial strategy and operational resilience. Our recent Citi Institute report, “Treasury Leadership: An Antidote to Market Stress1 ,” substantiates this, showing that top performing treasuries are crucial for navigating market volatility and achieving faster recovery.The insights echoed at Davos underscores a world grappling with globalization’s retreat, multipolar power structures, and pervasive digital transformation. For CFOs and Treasurers, these macro-trends translate into tangible, volatile, risks across balance sheets and income statements. Stability from established global norms is eroding and replaced by rapid, unpredictable, and reversible policy decisions. The significance of treasury resilience, flexibility, and robust governance outweigh static forecasts. Treasurers must evolve from operational managers to strategic navigators.Navigating Macro-Financial VolatilityTrade and tariffs volatility is resurging. Protectionist policies indicate higher tariffs and bilateral trade pressures. The Citi Institute report examined the market impact of tariff announcements and concluded that companies with strong treasury performance were “better shielded from the market impact… and recovered fastest as outsized market volatility diminished.” Treasurers should scrutinize FX exposure in key supply chains, prepare for working capital impacts from inventory front-loading, and implement robust scenario planning for short-notice policy shifts.&nbsp;Geopolitics has unequivocally become a treasury issue. Messaging from major global powers regarding alliances, trade partnerships, and international disputes translates directly into real-world risks. Sanctions exposure, payment blockages, counterparty concentration risks, and commodity hedging strategies are no longer peripheral concerns but central to enterprise risk. This makes contingency planning and stress testing with sophisticated data analytics paramount and serves as an imperative for treasury to further leverage the power of data during uncertain times.&nbsp;The volatility extends to capital markets windows. Periods of perceived optimism can open brief windows for capital markets issuance, often followed by rapid closures and increased market turbulence. This demands an “always-on” readiness from treasurers introduced in our recent Top Treasury Priorities 20262 publication, where maintaining up-to-date documentation, ensuring agile issuance capabilities, and pre-aligning with boards on opportunistic funding strategies are critical.Building the Resilient TreasuryConsequently, the treasury operating model should be agile. Empirical data shows top-performing treasuries support growth by shifting from people-dependency to process-driven models, digitizing/automating processes with technology, and developing data strategies for timely, accurate decisions. This requires models built for optionality, ample liquidity buffers, and continuous stress testing. “Always-on” models, integrating real-time data and analytics, become essential for rapid response. AI’s transformative potential for enhancing productivity, automating decisions, and simplifying processes is undeniable3; it augments, rather than replaces, human judgment.&nbsp;Regulatory uncertainty also intensifies. CFOs and treasurers should anticipate less predictability, necessitating fast responses to evolving mandates, strong governance for approvals, and accelerated decision-making. Effective Executive Committee and Board communication becomes pivotal. Finance leaders should articulate global events’ concrete business impacts, identifying shifting risk profiles, highlight controls, and signal decisions requiring action.

Key Points<ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li>A New Global Landscape</li><li>Why Companies Need to Pay Attention&nbsp;•Unpredictability•Disruptions to trade•Best-in-class treasury will be crucial for navigating this new landscape and achieving resiliency, adaptability swift recovery from disruptions, sustaining growth, etc.</li><li>What’s the Playbook for this New Landscape?In addition to treasury fundamentals, there are some new aspects that treasuries would have to master:•Scrutinize Supply Chains, Stress Test•Geopolitics Is Now a Core Treasury Issue•Agility•Regulatory Adaptability•Leverage Regional Dynamics•Understand Regional Rules of Engagement</li></ol>

Leveraging Regional DynamicsThe strategic response to this new world order should also consider regional themes. As global frameworks fragment, regional trade alliances gain heightened relevance. For smaller economies, these blocs offer pathways to maintain trade flows, diversify supply chains, and mitigate risks from larger geopolitical confrontations. Treasurers and CFOs operating in these regions need to understand specific rules of engagement, tariff schedules, and dispute resolution. Regional agreements can provide stability, counterbalancing broader fragmentation and facilitating trade resilience.&nbsp;Conclusion&nbsp;The “new world order” is not merely a political construct; it is a fundamental recalibration of economic and financial realities. For CFOs and Treasurers, this necessitates a strategic shift towards heightened agility, deep geopolitical literacy, robust risk management, and proactive communication. Investing in modernization and automation, guided by a clear strategy, will transform treasury management, empowering effective corporate growth and enhanced returns. Embracing regional dynamics and advanced analytics will be critical to thriving in this era of profound change

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1. <a href="https://www.citigroup.com/global/insights/treasury-leadership-an-antidote-to-market-stress">https://www.citigroup.com/global/insights/treasury-leadership-an-antidote-to-market-stress</a>2. <a href="https://www.citigroup.com/global/insights/top-treasury-priorities-2026-activating-intelligent-always-on-treasury">https://www.citigroup.com/global/insights/top-treasury-priorities-2026-activating-intelligent-always-on-treasury</a>3. <a href="https://www.citigroup.com/global/insights/genai-in-treasury">https://www.citigroup.com/global/insights/genai-in-treasury</a>&nbsp;

The global economic and geopolitical landscape is undergoing profound transformation, moving from a predictable, internationally connected era to a “new world order.” As fragmentation, tariff volatility, and geopolitical tensions accelerate, CFOs and treasurers are confronting unprecedented pressures on liquidity, funding access, and enterprise risk. Leading organizations are already redefining treasury as a strategic command center—leveraging real‑time data, automation, and agile operating models to navigate volatility and capture fleeting market opportunities. Modernizing treasury capabilities is no longer optional; it is essential for protecting corporate value and enabling resilient growth as globalization recedes, power structures shift, and digital transformation reshapes how companies operate.

Citi Services | Client Advisory

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Beyond Headcount: Measuring Treasury's True Value

Navigating the New World Order: A Strategic Imperative for CFOs and Treasurers

Top Treasury Priorities 2026: Activating the Intelligent, Always-On Treasury

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