The title of this referenced brief article, which is published in International Banker, echoes one of the ongoing themes under which we develop our member agenda.
In the upcoming CEP Outlook for 2020, which will be released shortly, globalization is one of the four key themes for the upcoming year and beyond. Subthemes include the ability to offer better experiences in many areas, but cross-border payments is, of course, one of the prime focal points.
The author of this referenced piece, a Visa exec, provides a succinct picture of a root cause:
‘Organisations across the world increasingly expect global access to finance in real-time. They also expect finance to be consistently available in a way that works for them in any country and currency, without the process being held up by the historical constraints of national boundaries. And they want the banks and financial institutions they work with to make this a smooth, seamless process for them. ..Today, despite the rapid progress we see on the consumer side in areas of payments processing, cross-border B2B payments remain complex and difficult, touching many intermediaries and often resulting in delays – the duration of which are difficult to predict. The traditional correspondent banking network operates on a largely bilateral relationship structure that is invariably perceived to be unwieldy and unreliable, typically offering limited visibility on the status of a transaction.’