The corporate treasury function in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong is navigating a complex landscape defined by monetary policy divergence, rapid technological adoption, and evolving regulatory demands.
It is undeniable that the role is transforming from an operational cost centre to a strategic value driver, focusing on resilience, efficiency, and strategic advisory.
Considering these, it should be noted that key issues for 2026 will include mastery of data analytics for decision-making, management of currency volatility in a multipolar world, and integration of sustainability into the core of treasury operations.
Proactive treasury
To paint the picture, Pulat Yunusmetov, CFA, CTP, director at Zanders Singapore, describes the function of treasury as having an operational aspect where it is responsible, as part of the finance department, for visibility of the cash, for the payments, and for the short-term forecast.
He notes that in terms of the strategic value added to the company, as opposed to being just reactive, treasury is expected to be more proactive at this time.
"I think the key word here is transformation," he highlights. "How does one transform, right? When we speak about the transformation, there are certain tools that can be used and enabled... it means being somewhere and doing something and then changing the way you do it by improving certain things."
Yunusmetov advises that instead of being reactive and trying to save cash, the strategic value of treasury relies on actually being proactive--anticipating the risks that cash might face while trying not just to save it but maximise the value of the saving.
He explains that the thing about the treasury perspective is the way it is depending on the company structure, where there is a lot of either cash or debt involved being proactive and anticipating where the risk might be.
"Hence, the strategic value of the corporate treasurers in the corporate world is increasing, because as I mentioned, a lot of CFOs and not just CFOs, they are expecting for the treasurers (to) not just press the button and approve payment and make it efficient but rather, they want treasurers to have the answer."
The trigger that is the pandemic
A lot of things shifted when the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
Yunusmetov recounts that he was still in the corporate world back then, pointing out his learnings. "It was a crisis moment... that's why when there was a crisis moment, a lot of attention was brought to CFOs, and especially the importance of treasury function because at the end of the day, the cash was depleting in a lot of companies."
Considering that cash was depleting that time, corporate treasury or the treasury function took on a vital role for companies and organisations to stay afloat.
Yunusmetov recalls that a lot of CFOs started asking questions and demanding treasurers to react on the crisis, which was coming to the corporates.
"The pandemic may be over, but we continue to experience economic volatility in the form of the wars in Eastern Europe and the Middle East, social political turbulence in many parts of the world, as well as more pronounced natural calamities in Asia."
In terms of the impact of the pandemic, he notes on two aspects: the business aspect and the specific treasury aspect.
He explains, "the immediate business requirement, which is the migration of data centre is short-term, but it's a mid- to long-term impact on the treasury because treasury will eventually be responsible for providing the cash for these production facilities."
So those are mid to long-term in terms of when the geopolitical crisis or the tax wars or whatsoever hits the business. But then direct impact on treasury is on the short-term. Those are usually the tax tariffs.
As for treasurers, Yunusmetov says they have always been responsible in identifying the most efficient and less costly way of repatriation of the cash, whether it is through dividends, or through the cash pooling solution, among others.
A career in treasury
With all of these considerations laid out, Yunusmetov believes there are a lot of opportunities in treasury.
"I think it's very interesting still in 2025, because there is a lot of focus on the strategic role and I think the strategic definition of the role within each corporate for treasury. So I always had this view in mind that not a single treasury is the same in any single corporate."
He believes every single corporate is still on its journey to define what is the strategic role for treasury in organisations. He also sees eventual digitisation and automation in operational treasury.
When it comes to role transitions, Yunusmetov thinks the strategic role and strategic value that the corporate treasurers can bring into the table for the CFOs, is that they stand a chance of transiting from the corporate treasury, which is quite a niche specification and niche department to transform into a broader role of finance directors or CFOs.
"I think nowadays, after like decade of experience within from operations into a strategic value add, I do believe that there are a lot of opportunities for corporate treasurers, not just within treasury, but broader finance function."
AI in finance
In the last couple of years, it has been notable how there has been an increased curiosity and interest around artificial intelligence as applied to the finance function.
Yunusmetov thinks treasury should be 'worried' about these technological developments, as he believes operational treasury will eventually be replaced by AI. "It's just a matter of time when the companies will realise and embark on this journey," he says, noting that operational treasury will eventually become automated within the next five to 10 years.
Onward to 2026
As the world veers to 2026, Yunusmetov believes key challenges will include the current geopolitical events and the effects of volatility. Apart from these, he also tips on possible hurdles surrounding digitisation and management of foreign currency risks.
He recommends to at least kick off the journey towards digitisation, if one has not yet started, as it will take at least six to 12 months for medium-sized companies.
