There is no simple single way of keeping up-to-date in todays dynamic and inter-connect world. As one corporate treasurer put it recently on market intelligence, “Really struggling I must say.” While another corporate treasurer at the ACT’s Cash Management Conference last month commented, “I read the banks’ briefings, Bloomberg and the Financial times and then I make up my own mind.” 

These two comments sum up the problem: in a frantically busy corporate treasury department how do you get enough (but not too much) information (not pure data) and then understand it, to be able to make sensible rational judgements? 

The alternatives

The keeping up-to-date solutions include:

• installing a Thomson Reuters or a Bloomberg terminal at $10,000+/month
• read the bank or other financial institution sponsored research
• read the FT or the Wall Street Journal
• read all sorts of other material.

However, whatever solutions and inputs used, the corporate treasurer still has to make up their mind as to what they believe.

ECR Research

ECR Research is different from the options listed above. It was founded in 1979 and has become one of the leading providers of global financial markets research. It is now used by CFO’s and treasurers, and by a wide range of investment professionals around the globe for their insightful observations on interest rate and currency developments.

The research platform is grouped into four research areas:

• Macro & Political
• FX & Interest Rates
• Asset Allocation
• Fund Selection.

These are covered by 18 publications and services, to match user’s specific needs. All 18 can be subscribed to individually.

To suit their 3,500+ clients world-wide many of their reports and services are provided in three languages: English, German and Dutch. Most of the publications have a weekly frequency while some appear on a quarterly or monthly basis.

They also provide morning briefings which are particularly important for keeping up-to-date.

ECR philosophy

ECR Research philosophy is to:

• strive to offer a clever research solution for time-pressed decision makers.” 
• gather the world’s leading research and carefully analyze it. Compare and weigh arguments and discuss most likely scenarios. Provide clear views with concrete market predictions.
• be unbiased: ECR is privately owned and strictly independent. ECR Research has no investment or trading activities. “Our sole aim is to provide you with research and advice to best suit your needs.”
• offer time saving no nonsense or jargon, with a crystal clear analysis of all that matters in the global financial markets enabling subscribers to spend more time with their clients and on other core activities.
• deliver value for money offering a high quality service at just a fraction of the cost of alternative, in-house and external, research solutions. 

Cost: If client takes the complete set of ECR Research report the cost is €11,000/year. The average user spends some €3,000/year which is much less than the monthly cost of a Reuters or Bloomberg terminal.

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CTMfile take: ECR Research could be a cost effective alternative for busy corporate treasury departments to understand the wider picture before they make up their own minds.