Capital Bank has exclusively sponsored the Brinks Cash-Ecosystem Solutions Seminar that was organised by the global Brinks Company on Monday 25th of February at the Sheraton Amman Hotel, and which was attended by various Jordanian banks and corporate clients. During the seminar, Banking Operations Manager Zain Malhas made a presentation on Capital Bank’s cash management experiences to date. Capital Bank’s presentation discussed the factors that have changed the financial services sector over the past few years, most notably global competition, economic instability and continuous change in guidelines such as the Basel directives concerning capital adequacy requirements and liquidity ratios, terrorism and international sanctions.

These factors have contributed to the transformation of banks' business from traditional lending to a focus on products and services to generate non-traditional revenue sources and target the ecosystem surrounding clients rather than to limit client-engagement. They further provide complete solutions and services to end-users and suppliers to fully cover the supply chain, leading to KYCC client identification requirements and, finally, to today's digital transformation. Malhas additionally pointed out that cash management has also undergone the same developments in transforming from a bank account facility to integrated products and solutions designed to meet the needs of clients. She further noted that with the pressures banks have faced to maximize return on shareholders' equity, banks have tended to offer value-added banking solutions to clients.

Malhas explained that the financial technology sector today redefined the concepts of cash management, bringing with it many innovative financial solutions to replace traditional products, which led to increased competition between banks and the emergence of a state of complementarity between the two sectors at the same time. Cash and bank cards (to some extent) are already disappearing in many countries, such as China, for example.

As a case in point, electronic payments in 2017 accounted for about 50 percent of total payments and a growth rate of 94 percent, according to a McKinsey report. Based on the McKinsey report, the presentation by Capital Bank further elucidated that global monetary transactions have declined over the past five years from 89% to 77% (13%), whereas card use has doubled from 5% to 9%. Furthermore, the volume of global digital trade in 2017 amounted to USD 3 trillion, accounting for 48% of trade through smart phones, and is expected to double by 2022.

Similarly, according to the presentation, globalization and technological development together lead to increased competition in all sectors, forcing companies to constantly search for innovative ways to reduce costs and process engineering for streamlining and efficiency, further highlighting that cash management solutions are an integral part of these goals.

In conclusion, Malhas presented an overview of the concept of cash management and its solutions such as collection management solutions, payables, liquidity management solutions, and other complementary solutions such as electronic systems. In light of the above, Malhas underscored the importance of cash management with Capital Bank introducing a new department called “Transaction Banking” designed to deliver value-added solutions in cash management and commercial finance to corporate clients. She further stressed that Brinks is considered to be Capital Bank’s strategic partner in providing cash solutions and services.