Beyond visibility: How cash management is becoming the strategic core of transaction banking

By Anna Koritz, Global Head of Transaction Banking, SAP Fioneer

For a long time, cash management was seen purely as infrastructure. Critical, yes, but ultimately transactional. However, that perspective is no longer viable.

Today, we are seeing a structural shift. Cash management is becoming a strategic control layer for corporate clients. Not just a way to monitor liquidity, but a means to actively shape it – in real-time and across increasingly complex environments.

For banks, this marks a clear inflection point.

The end of passive liquidity management

Corporate treasurers today are operating in conditions defined by volatility, fragmentation and constant time pressure. Static reporting cycles and siloed visibility are incompatible with that reality.

What treasurers need instead is continuous control.

This starts with real-time, end-to-end transparency across accounts, currencies, legal entities, and banking partners. But visibility alone is no longer enough. Clients today expect systems to interpret data, surface risks, highlight optimization potential and provide guidance on what actions to take next.

Liquidity is becoming more dynamic. And so are expectations.

Operational demands are also intensifying:

• Instant execution of payments and internal settlements
• Real-time cash concentration structures
• Seamless integration into ERP and treasury environments
• Intuitive, self-service-driven user experiences

Alongside all of this, there is a clear expectation: service levels must match system capabilities, from onboarding and KYC (know-your-customer) processes to payment investigations.

Ultimately, this change goes beyond an incremental shift. It sets a new baseline for cash management.

Redefining the role of the bank

To meet these expectations, banks must rethink their position in the value chain.

Traditionally, the model was product-centric, built around individual accounts, discrete services and payments. Now, it is giving way to a platform mindset. One where cash management capabilities are embedded into client processes and extended across ecosystems.

This is where differentiation is decided.

Across the market, we’re seeing leading institutions move toward integrated cash management platforms that combine:

• Physical and notional pooling
• Virtual account structures
• Real-time liquidity orchestration
• Open, API-driven architectures

Crucially, these platforms are not built in isolation. They are deeply integrated into ERP systems and client workflows. As a result, banks move closer to the operational core of their customers’ business.

That proximity matters because it creates relevance beyond the transaction itself.

Virtual accounts as a foundation for control

One of the most powerful enablers of this shift is Virtual Account Management (VAM).

VAM is often described in terms of efficiency – and it certainly delivers that. But its real significance lies elsewhere: it introduces a new model of control.

Instead of managing liquidity through fragmented physical account structures, companies can create virtual representations of their business in real-time. Payment flows can be organized by entity, business line, product, or project, without adding operational complexity.

The impact is significant:

• Immediate transparency across all incoming and outgoing flows
• Faster reconciliation with fewer exceptions
• Improved working capital efficiency through real-time cash positioning

Equally important here is flexibility. Virtual account structures can be adapted within minutes. This allows treasury teams to respond to changing business conditions without friction.

This flexibility unlocks new use cases:

• Scalable POBO/COBO and in-house banking models
• Efficient fund segregation for regulated industries
• Wallet-based architectures for platforms and marketplaces
• Precise handling of event-driven structures such as M&A or escrow

Together, these capabilities shift cash management from a static structure to a dynamic control system.

AI moves from efficiency to insight

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is already embedded in many of these processes, – but its role is evolving quickly.

Today, AI delivers measurable gains in areas such as:

• Predictive reconciliation that improves match rates and reduces manual effort
• Fraud and anomaly detection that identifies risks in real time
• Automated structuring that speeds up setup and configuration

These capabilities are important and increasingly expected. But they are not the end state.

The next phase is about changing how users interact with liquidity data altogether.

We are moving towards systems that can be queried in natural language. Treasurers no longer need to navigate complex reports. They can simply ask:

What does my liquidity position look like next week?

The response is not just a number. It is a contextualized answer:

• Projected liquidity by entity and currency
• Identification of concentration risks
• Concrete recommendations for optimization

This is where AI becomes more than an efficiency tool. It becomes a decision layer.

And that fundamentally changes the value proposition of cash management.

Modernization without disruption

For tier-one banks, transformation is rarely limited by ambition. More often, it’s constrained by complexity.

The question is not whether to modernize, but how to do so without destabilizing existing operations.

This is why architectural flexibility is critical.

Modern cash management platforms are designed to integrate into existing landscapes via APIs and modular services. Capabilities can be embedded directly into established digital channels or deployed through complementary layers.

Equally important are flexible migration strategies. Banks need options that range from incremental rollouts alongside legacy systems to more comprehensive transformation programs.

The result is a pragmatic path forward:

• Lower implementation risk
• Faster time to value
• Continuous evolution instead of disruption

In practice, this means banks can begin delivering enhanced capabilities within months, not years.

Towards embedded liquidity ecosystems

Looking ahead, the direction is clear. Cash management will not remain a standalone discipline.

It will become increasingly embedded, connected and contextual.

Financial services will be integrated directly into operational environments such as ERP systems, procurement platforms and digital marketplaces. Liquidity data and execution will be available exactly where business decisions are made.

At the same time, real-time connectivity will extend beyond individual institutions. Liquidity will be orchestrated across networks, value chains and ecosystems.

Emerging technologies will accelerate this shift:

• Digital currencies that enable more efficient cross-border flows
• Programmable transactions that link liquidity to business conditions
• Distributed infrastructures that reduce friction in settlement processes

Individually, these developments are significant. Together, they point to a fundamental change. Liquidity becomes continuously managed, contextually embedded and intelligently optimized.

A strategic moment for transaction banking

Cash management is no longer a supporting capability. It is becoming a strategic differentiator.

For banks, this creates a clear choice.

They can continue to optimize existing structures incrementally. Or they can use this moment to redefine their role in an increasingly real-time, data-driven financial ecosystem.

The institutions that lead will not be those with the most features. They will be the ones that translate complexity into control and data into decisions.

That is where the competitive advantage truly lies.

About the author

Anna Koritz is Global Head of Transaction Banking at SAP Fioneer. She is responsible for the strategic development of transaction banking solutions and works closely with banks worldwide to transform their cash management. With extensive experience across banking, treasury and consulting, she focuses on helping financial institutions modernize their platforms and deliver real-time, data-driven services.