Association of Corporate Treasurers of Nigeria elects new president -

The Association of Corporate Treasurers of Nigeria (ACTN) has elected a new president to steer the affairs of the Association for the next two years.

The new President who is the third President of the esteemed association since inception is Mrs Victory Olumuyiwa, who is also the Head, Corporate Finance & Treasury of Lafarge Africa Plc.

Olumuyiwa will be paddling the affairs of the ACTN together with other members of a sectoral representation-based Governing Council for the next two years.

The outgoing President, Mr Zeal Akaraiwe in his remarks commended the work done on the documentation, formulation and execution of the association’s Charter and Constitution as a key success achieved within the last two years despite the COVID-19 challenges.

He further expressed happiness on the quality and experience of the new president and emphasized the need for continuity in reaching out to other corporates and increasing the membership so that the Association could become an integral part of the treasury workplace, especially as related to efficiency in the interaction with financial institutions and making the treasury function more seamless.

The Association of Corporate Treasurers of Nigeria (ACTN) was incorporated to foster the interests of Corporate Treasurers of the non-financial organizations by providing a platform for policy advocacy, discussions on issues of mutual interest, education and standard development of the corporate treasury function.

The ACTN also facilitates the exchange of information beneficial to the management of corporate treasury operations and the professional development of its members.

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It is expected that the new ACTN president together with other members of the Council will not only build on the achievements made so far but take the ACTN to the next level in the fulfilment of its laudable objectives of policy advocacy, standard development and education/enlightenment of members.

The role of the treasury profession has evolved rapidly over the last ten years. In addition to the basics of banking relationships and cash management, treasury managers have to inform themselves about developments in electronic payment systems, e-commerce, risk management and relevant SWs for modelling and evaluating risks, credit management, accounting standards, tax optimizations and a variety of other issues.

More than ever, treasury practitioners also have to participate with other managers to coordinate the flow of financial information throughout an organization –thus, the need for a platform to promote education and capacity building for the Treasury profession as well as to advocate at the highest levels to influence policy and regulation from the perspective of the Nigerian Corporates.

In the current business landscape, the importance of treasury management really can’t be understated. With the ever-increasing pace of change in regulation, compliance and technology in the financial sector, the Corporate Treasury function is increasingly becoming a strategic business partner across all areas of the business, adding value to the operating divisions of the company – taking-on responsibility of strategic money management in order to meet the financial goals of the business. The ACTN is therefore needed to provide a meeting forum physical or virtual for all treasury, finance and risk management practitioners within the non-financial sector

The membership of the association has grown with a combined corporate and individual membership of over ninety-seven (97) members. This number would increase as activities begin to normalize and as ACTN continues in carrying out its various activities.

The ACTN has continued to partner with the Central bank of Nigeria who had endorsed it for the provision of the impulse of the real sector in measuring market sentiments. ACTN is also a partner to ACT, the United Kingdom, SWIFT and the International Group of Treasurers Associations (IGTA) for networking and share of knowledge and experience through transfer programs.

With the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic and its attendant unforeseen turn of events that initiated unprecedented trends in the Nigerian financial markets, and the world at large, with severe impacts on economic activities, the ACTN had, however, kept its members, potential members, and other stakeholders at the heart of its activities through various virtual programs around adjusting treasury business practices in the face of the challenges of the pandemic for Corporate Treasurers.

Iheanyi Nwachukwu

Iheanyi Nwachukwu, is a creative content writer with almost two decades journalism experience writing on banking, finance, capital markets, and tax. The multiple awards winning journalist is Assistant Editor, BusinessDay. Iheanyi holds BSc Degree in Economics from Imo State University; Master of Science (MSc) Degree in Management from University of Lagos. Iheanyi has attended several work-related trainings including (i) Advanced Writing and Reporting Skills (Pan African University, Lagos); (ii) News Agency Journalism (Indian Institute of Mass Communication {IIMC}, New Delhi, India); and (iii) Capital Markets Development and Regulations (International Law Institute {ILI} of Georgetown University, Washington DC, USA). Other trainings Iheanyi attended include: Economic/Political Risk Analysis (By Thomson Reuters Foundation); International Financial Journalism (IFJ) (By PMA Media Training, UK); Effective Business Writing Skills (By Phillips Consulting); Reporting on Corporate Governance (By International Finance Corporation (IFC) & Thomson Reuters Foundation UK); etc. In addition, he has participated in high-level economy & markets events in Dubai, South Africa, Morocco, and other African countries like Zambia, Ghana and Gambia.