| Scotiabank: Taking the Lead |
| Financial | |
| Written by Liz Jones | |
| Monday, 01 October 2007 | |
“Being Canada’s most international bank with customers in more than 50 countries, the majority of which have cross-border operations, we wanted to offer integrated solutions to meet their needs and follow their businesses wherever they may go,” said Alberta Cefis, executive vice president and head of global transaction banking since 2006. Cefis joined the company in 1999 and served as executive vice president of domestic personal lending and insurance, as well as president and CEO of Scotia Mortgage Corporation. Scotiabank’s global transaction banking (GTB) platform was formed in 2005 in response to its clients’ need for a single source for international financial management services. The platform integrates various products and services that were previously dispersed throughout the company’s three divisions, including trade finance, cash management, payments, correspondent banking, e-commerce, and e-banking solutions. “GTB allows us to bring together these services around a customer-centric model,” said Cefis. “In the past, customers operating in multiple countries tended to buy services from a number of banks. Nowadays, CFO and treasurer functions are becoming centralized, and customers want a one-stop shopping solution, economies of scale, efficiencies, and competitive pricing.”  Alberta Cefis Because its customers’ financial management needs cross geographic boundaries, Scotiabank’s GTB division is designed along the same lines. It works collaboratively and closely with the bank’s other divisions to deliver products and services seamlessly. “Their clients are our clients, and vice versa,” said Cefis. “Customers couldn’t care less how we are organized, but they do care about bundled services and relationship management expertise, and that is exactly what we are providing.” About 600 employees make up Scotiabank’s GTB division. Those who do not work at the corporate headquarters are stationed in various countries and report to local management. Cefis explained that at some banks, all GTB employees report to the head of the division regardless of where they are located, but Scotiabank believes in the power of local relationships. “We use a model in which some employees report directly to the GTB division, but others report to local management. We work with local business units to deliver products and technical support, but they provide the local sales and services.” According to Cefis, Scotiabank is one of few financial institutions with a strong presence in Canada, the US, Central and South America, the Caribbean, as well as Europe and Asia. In fact, it is the third largest bank in Peru, the second largest bank in Costa Rica, and the single largest bank in the Caribbean. It is currently optimizing this infrastructure to deliver its GTB platform to existing foreign customers. “We’ve been experiencing compounded annual growth of 17%. The opportunity for us is in deepening relationships with our existing customers and additional geographic expansion,” said Cefis.  This global transaction banking is changing the way the world does business, and this international bank is leading the way. A portion of Scotiabank’s inhouse IT department is dedicated to the GTB division and has created a variety of products to suit global customers’ growing needs. For instance, ScotiaConnect is a Web-based service used by CFOs and company treasurers. “It’s their entry point. They can view their operating accounts, initiate payments, transfer funds, evaluate e-banking or e-commerce opportunities, and perform other financial functions,” said Cefis. Using Scotiabank’s Tradexpress elite, customers can electronically generate letters of credit, which means they not only save time, but also gain immediate access to funding. In addition, according to the company’s Web site, ScotiaFX is a “foreign exchange trading system that assists institutional, corporate, and commercial clients obtain live foreign exchange quotes, execute trades, and monitor online transaction history.” Scotiabank offers these products in multiple languages and multiple currencies. Scotiabank’s IT team works tirelessly to ensure that clients’ enterprise systems interface seamlessly with its electronic financial products. “Our products are adaptable to many types of management systems so that data and files can be transferred smoothly and securely,” said Cefis. Personalized marketing To send the message to existing and potential clients that GTB is the way of the future, Scotiabank’s GTB division is targeting existing customers of Scotiabank’s domestic and international divisions, as well as Scotia Capital. “We cross-sell to our customers to gain marketshare—we identify clients, and our specialized sales force offers them a portfolio of services that includes global transaction banking,” said Cefis. Scotiabank reaches its GTB customers through trade shows, major financial conferences, and other events. For example, this year, Scotiabank launched GTB in Peru, and in celebration, it hosted an event for 700 of its top clients. The evening included speeches and an explanation of Scotiabank’s GTB services, and several kiosks featured specific product suites. “Creating the GTB division is about responding to our customers’ needs. In today’s world where sophisticated technology has globalized business in terms of trade, commodities, and the exchange of data, financial institutions need to adjust quickly. Just like we historically provided credit services to these customers, we want to provide transaction services that complement their businesses.” |
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American Executive is a RedCoat Publishing publication.
American Executive is a RedCoat Publishing publication.
