Opening the final day of Money 20/20 Europe, industry leaders discussed whether treasury management is broken and explored new opportunities in this space. Moderated by Melissa Donohoe, VP of Notion Capital, the panel featured Pac O’Shea, CEO and co-founder of Round Treasury, and Seth Phillips, founder and CEO of Bound.
Shifting Dynamics in Treasury Management
O’Shea explained their move into treasury management: “We started a couple of months before SVB crashed and what we saw was a concentration risk on the money side. Founders often have to sacrifice liquidity for yield with traditional banking products as well as user experience for trust.”
Phillips, drawing from his background in software development for the gold market, noted the potential for automation in best practices: “We realized we could automate a lot of best practice.”
Rising Interest and Financial Responsibility
Phillips highlighted the increased interest in treasury management: “Venture-backed companies have $10, $50, or $100 million in the bank. With interest rates no longer at zero, it matters where you keep that money.”
O’Shea added: “People are now innovating in the treasury space, and that’s why founders and entrepreneurs are looking at opportunities here. On the VC side, it’s getting hyped because it’s essentially net new money for these businesses, an expenditure they weren’t considering before.”
Real Money in Treasury Management
Phillips concluded that both Bound and Round Treasury focus on responsible cash management: “Being responsible with your cash and the value passing in and out of the business wasn’t very cool a few years ago. Now, people are realizing there’s real money to be made or saved in how a company manages its finances.”
