US Treasurers Fall Behind On FinTech Investment

Treasurers from the largest corporations are more likely to invest in newer financial technologies, found a new report from East & Partners and Contentive Media.

Reports released last week said researchers found that, across the globe, treasurers at the largest corporations are investing more in financial technologies than their peers at smaller firms. East & Partners outlined its findings in the Treasury FinTech Index, which surveyed treasurers across geographic markets.

“The research confirms not only are corporate treasurers targets for FinTech innovation, but they are directly embedding themselves in the strategic direction of FinTech firms themselves by providing direct investment and funding,” said East & Partners Australia Head of Markets Analysis Martin Smith in a statement. He added that this signals a “two-pronged approach” that is helping to accelerate the adoption of FinTech in the corporate world.

Across geographies, Asia holds the highest percentage of treasurers directly investing in financial technologies, according to the report. Nearly a third of treasurers in China, for instance, said they have already invested in FinTech — more than 40 percent said they are exploring opportunities to do so.

That figure is less in Australia, where 17.6 percent of treasurers were found to have already invested in FinTech, with 24.2 percent planning to do so. Treasurers in the U.K. are planning to increase their FinTech investment by 14.5 percent, researchers found, while Australia and Singapore each are planning 12.2 percent increases in their FinTech investments.

“The adoption of FinTech by the treasury function of leading global corporates is clearly underway, led by the U.K. and Singapore, but with China set to catch up with the investments it’s directly making in these technologies,” said East & Partners Principal Analyst Paul Dowling, who also served as one of the authors of the report.

He noted that the U.S. is curiously behind in its investment in FinTech by top corporate treasurers.

“What’s surprising is the U.S.’s ranking in the adoption of FinTech, languishing behind virtually all of these other global players,” he stated.