TOMATO CATCH-UP - Newsletter Issue 207 – January 2018
Your monthly resource on working capital, process optimization and issues relating to the world of corporate treasurers, IT professionals and bankers!
This newsletter is bilingual, English or German depending to the source.
Introduction:
Happy New Year! Here’s a fundamental resolution for 2018; at the end of this year, we want to be able to say: “I made a difference; what I did mattered.” Not everybody knows what that difference is in their job. It’s management’s duty to make that very clear to everyone in the team. If you don’t know for sure, ask your supervisor or your colleagues! My second suggestion: Remain optimistic despite everything. It’s an attitude, a way of looking at the world and one’s life. It’s no surprise to me that Time Magazine published a guest-edited January issue with Bill Gates editing and all articles being on reasons for being optimistic. Details…
However, remember that for any problem you’re grapple with, ask Martin Schneider for a discussion that will clarify it. Contact Martin via email or call 044 814 2001.
Enjoy the topics in today’s newsletter.
Regula Spottl and the Tomato Team
Topics
- Most Read Articles in 2017
- 40 Jahre Bankenregulierung unter der Lupe
- 5 Best Practices to Improve Payments and Cash
- Mifid II: What Treasurers Need to Know
- A Digital Toolkit for Treasurers
- The Blockchain (R)evolution – The Swiss Perspective
- Blockchain Forum in Zurich on March 20, 2018
- Keeping Up with EMIR
- Artificial Intelligence Will Change the Way We Live, Work and Play
- Hiring Foreign Workers: What Employers Need to Know and Do
- The History of Blockchain and its Future. NL199 March ‘17
The most read article in 2017 and before the explosion of Bitcoins value - Der neue Schweizer Zahlschein: Was, wie, wann?
About the new payment slip with QR codes and its timetable. In German. NL 201 June ‘17 - Swiss GAAP FER-Vorschriften zur Konzernrechnung
About the working group overviewing the regulations. The project is still ongoing. In German. NL 205 November ‘17 - FinfraG News
About the new FinFraG regulations. In German. NL 203 Aug/Sept ‘17 - Sicherheit in der digitalen Welt
We pointed to a presentation of Prof. Dr. Lubich about security in the digital World. In German. NL 202 July ‘17 - Stop Using Excel, CFOs Tell Their Staff
Wall St. Journal article about the fact that Excel is not an enterprise-level database tool.
NL 206 December ‘17 - “Tomato’s highlights in 2017 include our Brown-bag-lunches,… with the main topics FinFrag/EMIR, negative interest rates, payment security, payment services in restricted countries and SAP for Single Finance/Hana”.NL 206 Dec ‘17
40 Jahre Bankenregulierung unter der Lupe
Am Anfang 1986 stand ein Bankenkollaps – jener der Herstatt Bank. Mit diesem Konkurs entstand Basel I.
Bereits in den neunziger Jahren wurden Ergänzungen und Erweiterungen fällig. Die NZZ schreibt: „Denn Banken begannen, die Regeln von «Basel I» mit Finanzinnovationen kreativ zu umgehen – das Katz-und-Maus-Spiel zwischen Finanzinstituten und Regulatoren hatte begonnen.“
Die NZZ durchleuchtete die inzwischen 163 regulatorischen Dokumente des Baseler Ausschuss, die vor dem 31. Juli 2017 veröffentlicht wurden. Bedeutend und bekannt sind heute die Regulierungswerke «Basel I» (1988), «Basel II» (2005) und «Basel III» (2010).
Der NZZ-Bericht liest sich einfach und die guten Grafiken lockern das Lesen auf.
Die Umsetzungen in den Banken sind übrigens immens: Regulatorische Vorschriften soll 2014 die Deutsche Bank 1,3 Mrd.€ gekostet haben. Die US-Bank JP Morgan Chase soll zwischen 2012 und 2014 gut 13'000 zusätzliche Mitarbeiter eingestellt haben. Die Kosten der Komplexität bezahlen am Ende wir alle. Hier geht es zum NZZ Bericht …
Kommentar von Martin Schneider:
Im Tomato Newsletter 110 vom November 2008 schrieben wir:
„Die Geschichte der allgemeinen Entwicklung der Schweizerischen Nationalbank von 1907 bis 1914 illustriert einige Parallelen in die heutige Zeit. 1932 zum 25-jährigen Jubiläum der Schweizerischen Nationalbank schreibt sie zum Jahr 1907: „...Die großen Verluste aus der Entwertung amerikanischer Wertpapiere wurden für verschiedene Kleinbanken in der Westschweiz zum Verhängnis… Wiewohl im In- und Ausland die Geldleihsätze ganz erheblich gefallen waren und geraume Zeit hartnäckig auf dem tieferen Niveau verharrten, ungeachtet auch der verhältnismäßig rasch gebesserten wirtschaftlichen Lage in den Vereinigten Staaten, brauchte es einige Jahre, bis sich in der Schweiz Handel und Industrie von der Störung erholten...“ Details in der SNB....
5 Best Practices to Improve Payments and Cash
The article on best practices for improving payments and cash was one of GTNews’ most read in 2017. Issued by Bottomline Technologies, it is invaluable.
Marcus Hughes, Head of Strategic Business Development at Bottomline Technologies, points out that the demands of the economy and the increasing global supply chain require companies to make their payment and cash management processes more efficient.
The implementation of the right payments solution enables them to adopt best practices in the most important areas of payment transactions. The areas are:
- Secure controls and standardized processes
- Streamlined global payments
- Robust multi-bank connectivity
- Effective liquidity management and cash flow forecasting
- Preventing fraud and financial crime
Mifid II: What Treasurers Need to Know
Mifid II went into effect on January 3, 2018. This is an important directive for the regulation of financial transactions and its effects are extensive. Two good resources to get the information you need:
English: What do corporate treasurers need to know about MiFID II? by CTMfile (Cash &Treasury Management file
Deutsch im Der Treasurer: Mifid II trifft Treasurer stärker, als sie glauben. Vor allem im Bereich Rohstoffe und Warenterminkontrakte sind neue Richtlinien einzuhalten. Absicherungsgeschäfte sind ausgenommen.
A Digital Toolkit for Treasurers
Digital technologies, which dictate how treasury will “optimize financial assets and liabilities, drive cash flow improvements, process cash transactions and manage financial risk are on the precipice of profound change.”
The Bobsguide article Digital treasury: A future state vision explains
- Elements of the Digital Toolkits for treasurers (incl. blockchain, IoT, RPA, Cloud, etc.)
- Applying the Digital Toolkit to the treasury operating model (excellent graph including all parts of corporate treasury)
- The Digital ToolKit in action – financial risk management (again, a great graph)
- The Journey forward: 6 Actions to take to begin the journey to digital transformation
Download the full report from PWC…
The Blockchain (R)evolution – The Swiss Perspective
There is no end to articles on Blockchain and how it is going to change business models. I was looking for something that’s more fundamental, less hype and found the White Paper The Blockchain (R)evolution – The Swiss Perspective by Deloitte. It’s comprehensive with its 39 pages. However, the table of content lets you jump quickly to details that interest you. And the graphs are invaluable.
For example, the section “Sample applications in details” contains text and graphs on payment settlement, a sample accounting application, trading & settlement etc. Other sections are equally interesting.
The main sections are:
- What is Blockchain?
- Blockchain and the path to innovation
- Switzerland’s positioning
- A look into the future
Blockchain Forum in Zurich on March 20, 2018
If you’d rather attend an event to learn from various experts about Blockchain, sign up for the Blockchain Forum in Zurich on March 20, 2018. Hightlights:
- Blockchain und IoT: Diese Synergien bringt die Kombination
- Blockchain als Enabler für neue Business Modelle
- Juristische Besonderheiten und Anwendungsmöglichkeiten von Smart Contracts
- Verschiedene Blockchain Use-Cases und ihre Besonderheiten
- Blick in die Kristallkugel: Die Zukunft von Payments und Cryptocurrencies
- Digital Tokens - das steckt dahinter
The European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR) transaction reporting implementation has been wrought with challenges ever since it was issued in 2014. Changes have been ongoing.
The article Keeping up with European market infrastructure regulations in Bobsguide explains the revised requirements. The changes pertain to:
- Unique Trade Identifier (UTI)
- Product classifiers
- Product identifiers
- Identification of index and baskets
- Collateral reporting
- Reporting of valuations
- Trade repositories reconciliation information
The article also describes a cost-effective solution. Details…
Artifical Intelligence Will Change the Way We Live, Work and Play
It’s hard to ignore AI when everyone from Elon Musk to Mark Zuckerberg and more predict that it will become mainstream this year.
Similar to the Internet, which was once so new and hard to fathom, AI is going to be the story of generations.
The article 8 ways artificial intelligence is going to change the way you live, work and play in 2018 in cnbc.com lists these changes:
- Everybody will have a virtual assistant, and they're going to be pretty smart
- All your voice-based gadgets will work together (and may get confused)
- Facial recognition will be the new credit card
- Your boss is going to start to talk about AI
- AI will generate media specific to your personal preferences
- AI will write news and market reports tailored specifically for you
- Your computer will become empathetic
- Your doctor is going to use AI
Hiring Foreign Workers: What Employers Need to Know and Do
The “Stop Mass Immigration” plan will take effect in July 2018, which means that employers need to review recruitment processes now and plan assignments to Switzerland and for specific projects as soon as possible.
In the blog Swiss immigration: recent developments and outlook 2018, KPMG’s Adrian Tüscher highlights the developments that are crucial for employers; and explains what they mean and what employers need to do. Tüscher warns that compliance is essential as violators may be fined up to CHF 40,000 per case.
From the Desk of Regula Spottl, Greensboro, NC, USA
Some words, especially verbs are incredibly strong and can make us think about our lives differently. Take “connect” for example. Aha moments let us connect dots where we didn’t see a connection before. May be we should disconnect for some people and things that only hold us back. Instead we may want to reconnect with people that we neglected without a good reason and with things and events that inspire and enrich our lives.
We’ve had the lowest temperatures in North Carolina ever. Many days -15 degrees Celcius all day. So I just stayed inside most of the time. That makes you start thinking about stuff, like the word “connect”.