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From Static Cash to Symphonic Liquidity: Orchestrating the Future with Stablecoins

From Static Cash to Symphonic Liquidity: Orchestrating the Future with Stablecoins

Written by Sharyn Tan (Views are my own) Picture this: As a corporate treasurer, you’ve spent years fine-tuning the art of cash forecasting—building buffers for the inevitable delays, sweeping funds across borders like a conductor waving a baton at half-speed, and staring at dashboards that only refresh when the banks deign to open their doors. The dream? Instant visibility into every pool of liquidity worldwide. Zero dollars (or euros or yen) sitting idle, earning nothing. And the freedom to redirect capital precisely where it’s needed, the moment it’s needed—no more “T+2” alibis or weekend blackouts. For decades, that vision felt like a cruel tease, confined to glossy consultant decks. But stablecoins? They’re the quiet revolution whispering that it might finally be within reach. From where I sit—deep in the trenches of global treasury strategy—they’re not just another fintech fad. They’re the potential bridge to a world of continuous liquidity orchestration, where cash doesn’t just sit; it flows like a symphony, responsive and relentless. Let’s unpack this. Traditional liquidity management is a masterclass in predictability—or at least, the illusion of it. We rely on batch processes: inflows timed to the second, outflows queued for the next available rail, and everything swept into notional pools that ignore the chaos of cut-off times, holidays, and those pesky interbank handshakes that can drag on for days. It’s efficient enough for a 9-to-5 world, but in our 24/7 global economy? It’s like trying to stream a symphony on dial-up. Enter stablecoins—fiat-pegged digital assets like USDC or PYUSD, engineered for stability and speed. When integrated carefully, regulated and battle-tested, they could settle transactions much faster than many legacy rails, sometimes near-instant. For institutions, this could represent a fundamental rerouting of how liquidity moves. Suddenly, treasurers aren’t just managing positions; we’re orchestrating flows—programming capital to dance between entities, markets, and even yield opportunities in real time. Imagine the possibilities: That excess cash pooling in a European subsidiary at 2 a.m. UTC doesn’t languish; it auto-routes to cover a dawn supplier invoice in Singapore, shrinking your working capital cycle by precious days. Or USD balances in LatAm, tokenized and earning 4-5% in short-term instruments while awaiting the next capex call— all without lifting a finger. Precautionary liquidity buffers? They shrink because funds aren’t trapped by geography or clocks; it’s fluid, on-demand, and always earning its keep.  I say possibilities because in reality, cross-jurisdiction FX conversions, capital controls and counterparty checks could still slow things down. Similarly, tokenized assets may unlock yield, but access depend on the asset’s regulatory clarity and risk profile—especially outside the G7. The Real Shift: Not Replacement, But a Hybrid Harmony Don’t get me wrong—stablecoins aren’t here to evict your trusty banking partners. Those relationships? They’re the bedrock: credit lines, compliance muscle, and the kind of trust that’s hard to code into a smart contract overnight. What stablecoins do is extend the orchestra, adding instruments that play faster and louder for the high-velocity parts. Think hybrid liquidity layers: •  Traditional rails for the heavy lifting—high-value, regulated, deliberate – ideal for high stakes solos and foundational support. •  Stablecoin rails for the agile chorus—low-friction, programmable, eternally awake – responding instantly to urgent cues The treasuries that thrive will blend them seamlessly on a single dashboard, routing flows with the precision of a maestro. One minute, you’re hedging FX exposure via bank APIs; the next, you’re settling intra-group transfers on-chain to dodge weekend voids. It’s not disruption for disruption’s sake—it’s evolution, turning payments from a cost center into a liquidity superpower. But here’s where the rubber meets the blockchain: This isn’t plug-and-play. From my vantage point, piloting these shifts reveals the traps lurking just off-stage—integration snags, systems need tuning, accounting ambiguities, and the ever-present specter of regulatory whiplash. Stablecoins promise freedom, but without the right choreography, they can just relocate your liquidity bottlenecks from boardrooms to blockchains. A Treasurer’s Take: 5 Bold Moves towards Digital Liquidity (2026-2027) As treasurers, we know theory is cheap—execution is the real score. So, let’s talk brass tacks: What would moving toward continuous orchestration look like in practice? Here’s how you could approach it: How Close is the Crescendo? Closer than the skeptics admit, but not quite the full symphony yet. We’ve got the instruments: Scaled, audited stablecoins; institutional custody that’s treasury-tough; and central banks tinkering with tokenized deposits.  Still, the gaps echo: Fiat-stablecoin bridges in every currency? I say give it another 18-24 months for the market to catch up. Universal tax clarity? Regulators are warming up, but it’s a slow adagio. And trust in smart-contract automation for non-crypto pros? That’s the finale we need to be composing for now. My bet: By 2028, hybrid stacks will be standard for most multinationals—some hitting the high notes in 2026, with trailblazers already in rehearsal. The question isn’t if continuous liquidity arrives; it’s who will lead the performance, and who will scramble for seats in the orchestra pit.   Ready treasurers will move beyond theory and join the jam—building liquid, resilient, and programmable cash stacks for tomorrow’s markets. If you’re sketching hybrid architectures where fiat, stablecoins, and tokenized assets improvise together, let’s tune this thing together. The future of corporate liquidity isn’t a solo; it’s a collaboration waiting for its cue. So, what’s the thorniest trap in your liquidity score right now—regulatory fog, technology silos, or something else? Lorena Pérez Sandroni, Treasury Masterminds Board Member, Comments For me, as I have expressed in other times, stablecoins aren’t about chasing hype. They are about solving a very real speed problem in treasury. I see them as a practical instrument in the liquidity orchestra, especially when we are constantly battling cut-off times, slow FX rails, and capital stuck in limbo. But I stay pragmatic: cross-border FX rules, tax treatment, and uneven regulatory clarity mean you can’t just “go on-chain,” And honestly, the hardest part isn’t the technology—it’s shifting traditional minds that still equate digital assets with speculation. When you’re explaining that you don’t want crypto, you want faster balance-sheet mobility, you can almost feel the cognitive dissonance in the room. But that’s exactly why stablecoins matter: used carefully, they’re a tool for speed, precision, and…

The rise of AI in corporate FX risk management

The rise of AI in corporate FX risk management

This article is a contribution from our content partner, MillTech Traditional FX risk management processes are often manual, time-consuming and reliant on outdated tools—making it harder for corporates to respond quickly and efficiently in today’s volatile markets. It’s little wonder, then, that all respondents in our recent North American and UK corporate FX surveys said they are exploring the use of AI in some capacity to improve both operations and decision-making. In this blog, we take a closer look at how corporates across both regions are starting to adopt AI to reduce their reliance on resource-heavy manual tasks, and move towards more intelligent, tech-driven FX solutions. AI as a strategic tool for FX risk management AI is rapidly becoming a strategic priority for corporates on both sides of the Atlantic—especially as firms search for smarter ways to navigate currency volatility. Faced with ongoing geopolitical tensions, diverging monetary policies and a backdrop of macroeconomic challenges, FX risk management is naturally emerging as a key area of interest for innovative technologies. Corporates are beginning to take action: While these numbers reflect consideration rather than full-scale adoption, they signal a clear shift: AI is moving from theory to strategy in the world of corporate treasury. Commenting on the trend, Sam Hunt, CTO at MillTech, affirms: “The genie is well and truly out of the bottle with generative AI and any organisation not thinking about how this technology can enhance their offering risks being left behind. It’s clear from the findings that CFOs realise that in today’s fast-paced digital landscape, embracing AI-driven innovation is no longer optional but essential for staying competitive.” Early-stage exploration beyond risk management Building on this momentum, process automation and FX operations are also emerging as key areas of AI exploration among corporates in both North America and the UK: Together, these trends point to a broader shift: corporates are not only recognising the strategic value of AI, but actively seeking ways to embed it across their FX management strategy. AI use cases in FX According to Justin Xu, Head of Quant and AI Strategy at MillTech, AI is unlocking new levels of precision and control in currency management. Predictive analytics for FX risk management Machine learning algorithms analyse diverse source of information, including historical price movements, macroeconomic indicators, and central bank policies, to predict the direction and magnitude of currency market risks. These insights enable CFOs and treasurers to make more informed hedging decisions, minimizing exposure to currency risk. Natural language processing (NLP) for sentiment analysis NLP-powered AI models process news articles, central bank statements, and social media sentiment to assess market conditions. By extracting insights from both structured and unstructured data sources, corporates can more effectively manage event-related currency risks, thereby gaining a competitive edge in FX risk management decisions. AI-powered process automation Many FX-related tasks, such as trade reconciliation, compliance reporting, and KYC/AML processes, are time-consuming and prone to human error. AI-driven automation tools can help to streamline these workflows, reducing manual effort and improving accuracy. Looking ahead: What’s shaping the future of FX? When it comes to the future of FX operations, corporates on both sides of the Atlantic are placing their bets on emerging technologies—but not always in the same order. In North America, corporates are most optimistic about the impact of automation and data-driven tools, with notable interest in several other technologies: In the UK, corporates are leaning more heavily into blockchain and AI-led transformation: While AI is a consistent theme across regions, the variation in top priorities likely reflects differences in market maturity, regulatory environments and innovation appetite. What’s clear, however, is that FX functions are entering a transformative era—where advanced technologies are shifting from experimental to everyday use in FX strategies. Reimagining FX with AI: Inside MillTech’s next-gen approach At MillTech, we’re applying AI in practical, targeted ways to streamline processes and improve efficiency across the business and for our clients. Smarter compliance through document intelligence To ease the burden of regulatory onboarding, we’ve developed a generative AI solution that accelerates KYC and AML processes with our 15 counterparty banks. By extracting key information from complex legal documents, this tool significantly reduces manual effort and improves accuracy, transforming what was once a time-consuming task into a streamlined workflow. Empowering developers with AI-Driven code search Internally, we’re using generative AI to supercharge our development process. Rather than relying on outdated or scattered documentation, we use generative AI to let developers query the codebase directly, allowing them to retrieve accurate, context-aware answers, saving valuable time. Also Read Join our Treasury Community Treasury Masterminds is a community of professionals working in Treasury Management or those interested in learning more about various topics related to Treasury Management, including Cash Management, Foreign Exchange Management, and Payments. To register and connect with Treasury professionals, click [HERE] or fill out the form below to get more information. Notice: JavaScript is required for this content.