“Ninety-two percent of Corporate Practitioner respondents consider the customer service responsiveness from their banks to be either a very valuable or valuable aspect in their primary bank relationships, with three-fourths rating this factor as very valuable and an additional 18% rating it as valuable”, according to the Association for Financial Professionals® (AFP) 2024 Bank Relationship Management Survey Report.

While analysing the weighted average scores across various segments or aspects valued in an organization’s relationship with its primary relationship banks—on a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 represents “not at all valuable” and 5 signifies ”very valuable”—customer service responsiveness emerged with the highest score of 4.65 across segments. This indicates that corporate practitioners (who manage or execute the treasury/finance function) place a high value on banking partners who are responsive to their needs.

The AFP survey findings reveal valuable insights into the significance of corporate-bank relationships and outline actionable steps for both parties to further strengthen their ties. The AFP conducted the survey in May 2024, garnering a total of 616 responses, comprising 393 corporate practitioners and 223 bankers. Here are the key findings: 

Boosting corporate relationships: Banks need to streamline KYC and protect against payments fraud

More than half of the survey participants believe that banks can fortify corporate relationships by streamlining the Know Your Customer (KYC) process and safeguarding against evolving payments fraud.

Source: 2024 AFP® Bank Relationship Management Survey Report

“KYC is pivotal in maintaining the integrity of banking systems by preventing identity theft, financial fraud and illegal activities including money laundering and terrorist financing. It is the means by which the banks protect access to the payment rails such as Fedwire, ACH, CHIPS, RTP, FedNow, etc.”, the AFP survey report explains.

Streamlining the KYC process is viewed as a higher priority for organizations with operations across multiple regions and for larger companies with annual revenue of US$1 billion or more, compared to firms based in the US/Canada and those generating less than $1 billion in revenue.

In addition to streamlining the KYC process, corporate treasury and finance professionals are progressively focusing on securing their organizations' payment systems, as payments fraud is expected to continue its upward climb.

As highlighted by the Association for Financial Professionals® (AFP) 2024 Payments Fraud and Control Survey Report, which warns that “Payments fraud is on the rise, with 80% of organizations having been victims of actual or attempted payments fraud attacks in 2023”, corporate practitioners are increasingly relying on the  support and guidance of their banking partners to defend against this growing menace.

Interestingly, as per the 2024 AFP® Bank Relationship Management Survey Report, a larger percentage of companies operating in the US and Canada (57%) are seeking support and assistance for payments fraud protection compared to those with operations spanning multiple regions (48%).

Furthermore, the AFP survey points out persistent threats of payments fraud and scams stemming from business email compromise (BEC) have prompted enterprises in the US and Canada to intensify their fraud protection efforts. In their attempts to combat these threats, corporate treasury and finance executives in this region are actively turning to their banking partners for enhanced support. Notably, a greater proportion of privately held organizations (60%) want their banks to help safeguard them against fraud attacks compared to their publicly owned counterparts (49%).

Enterprises would also appreciate receiving proactive guidance and advice (45%) from their banks, viewing it as a means to bolster their relationships. Around 40% assert that if their banks offered increased transparency regarding bank fees by adhering to industry standards, it would contribute to stronger ties with their banking partners.

Corporate practitioners seek additional value-added services from their banks

The AFP survey report reveals that the top three additional value-added banking services desired by organizations are:

• Regular reviews from banks of optimising account services (cited by 62% of respondents).
• Updates and information on current fraud prevention tools (60%).
• Suggestions on how organizations can derive greater value from underutilized products and services being offered (56%).

Source: 2024 AFP® Bank Relationship Management Survey Report

Apart from the regular services banks extend to their corporate clients, firms seek updates from their banking partners on how their account services can be optimised. Utilising these services more efficiently not only helps reduce costs but also presents opportunities for new solutions to augment existing offerings.

Banks provide a range of services to their corporate clients, and organizations are eager to understand how they can gain additional value and benefits. For instance, “If using positive pay or payee positive pay, ensuring the process to review exceptions is timely and done by the appropriate individuals. But if not, what is the default status and what recourse might there be? The same could be done for ACH positive pay. Areas where straight-through processing can occur with simple changes or accomplished in a relatively short amount of time are often sought out as well”, the AFP survey highlights.

To conclude, the financial stability of a bank is the paramount consideration for organizations when selecting their primary banking partner. Apart from financial soundness, corporate practitioners prefer working with banks that have advanced technology platform and capabilities, can accommodate their credit requirements, and support them from both a strategic and tactical perspective.

“Organizations are looking for more than just banking services; they are seeking trusted strategic banking partners who can support their complex business needs. To ensure that the services offered by banking partners remain relevant to business operations, leaders must evaluate their banking relationships and seek improvements as needed,” said Jim Kaitz, President and CEO of AFP.

To comprehend the opinions of corporate practitioners and bankers about their mutual relationship, we recommend that treasury and finance professionals download, review and benefit from the survey report.