Other parts of this series:
In my last post, I explained how Open Banking and treasury application programming interfaces (APIs) are a win-win for both banks and their corporate clients in better meeting their business needs and operational goals.
According to Accenture Research, 77 per cent of European banks, 72 per cent of North American banks and 61 per cent of Asian banks plan to invest up to $20 million in next few years to offer API propositions for commercial/corporate clients.
But there are already a growing number of global players leading the way and setting the example for what is possible through API innovations for both large and mid-sized corporations.
Let’s take a look at these industry leaders and their treasury API offerings.
- CitiConnect APIs: Launched in 2016 as a part of Citibank Treasury and Trade Solutions (TTS), the CitiConnect APIs enable faster onboarding and a simplified implementation process by allowing organisations to seamlessly integrate with Citi TTS. They are available in 90 countries worldwide, with clients such as Alibaba Cloud, Argentinian online lender Moni and UK’s online food delivery service Deliveroo. Citi also offers pre-built connectivity into partners that include Oracle, SAP and Kyriba.
- DBS IDEAL RAPID APIs: DBS launched RAPID in 2017 within its Treasury and Working Capital Solutions in order to facilitate real-time processing of payments, receivables and information enquiry into customers’ business workflows. Fast-food giant McDonalds, agribusiness marketplace leader Halcyon and MSIG, a travel insurtech, are among its top clients.
- J.P. Morgan: J.P. Morgan treasury APIs, launched in 2018, aim to provide a complete treasury payments lifecycle, from initiation to visibility, reconciliation and reversal. J.P. Morgan partners with Bill.com to make B2B payments easier, while its Kyriba alliance allows its corporate customers the ability to send real-time payments via The Clearing House network.
- Kyriba: Since 2012, Kyriba has been offering multibank connectivity-as-a-service integrated with its software-as-a-service treasury management system. Kyriba’s diverse global clients include BBC, Qualcomm, Spotify and the IT supply chain Ingram. The company partners with Grant Thornton for treasury advisory; NA Jones Capital for fund management and administration; and Actualize Consulting, among others.
- SAP: SAP Multi-Bank Connectivity allows multiple participants (banks and their corporate customers) to exchange financial messages (for example, payments, collections, status notifications, payment advices and account statements) on a proprietary network. SAP partners with Citi, Dresdner Bank, as well as Bloomberg and SWIFT, to provide a credible alternative to bank-provided treasury solutions.
- Xero APIs: Xero is one of the world’s largest cloud-based bookkeeping service providers, with more than a million clients worldwide and offering a range of platform-based services for small- and medium-sized enterprises—online invoicing of customers, a view of cash flow in real-time and near-instant reconciliation of bank accounts. Xero launched its APIs in 2006 and now offers them in 180 countries. Among the strategic partners of Xero are Square, Shopify, Vend and Tallie.
In my next post, I’ll share some insights about how to future-proof corporate banking based on key observations of how industry leaders approached the first wave of their treasury API journeys. Please feel free to contact me with questions and feedback.
