Corporate treasurer
The ACT is the leading professional body for international treasury providing the widest scope of benchmark qualifications for those working in treasury, risk and corporate finance. We define standards, promote best practice and support continuing professional development. Get careers advice from the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT).
Corporate treasurers play a vital role in improving and maintaining the financial standing of a wide range of companies. They are often responsible for determining financial strategy and policy, advising on what businesses to invest in, arranging the appropriate funding and managing financial risks in the organisation.
This is a varied and responsible role that ensures a company has the cash and liquidity to meet its obligations, involving raising funds from banks, as well as debt and equity markets and, in some companies, actively trading in the foreign exchange, commodity and money markets. Other activities may involve dealing with property, taxation, insurance and pensions.
The Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT) defines five core treasury functions, which are also areas in which treasury professionals may specialise. These are capital markets and funding, cash and liquidity management, treasury operations and controls, corporate financial management and risk management.
Within these functions typical work activities may involve:
The ACT is the leading professional body for international treasury providing the widest scope of benchmark qualifications for those working in treasury, risk and corporate finance. We define standards, promote best practice and support continuing professional development. Get careers advice from the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT).
The ACT is the leading professional body for international treasury providing the widest scope of benchmark qualifications for those working in treasury, risk and corporate finance. We define standards, promote best practice and support continuing professional development. Get careers advice from the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT).
This area of work is open to graduates from most academic backgrounds, but business or finance-related degrees are most relevant. The following might be useful:
Entry with an HND/foundation degree alone is unlikely.
Corporate treasurers, and other financial professionals, who require knowledge of treasury management (for example, accountants or public sector financiers) take examinations administered by The Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT) .
The key ACT professional qualifications are the AMCT Diploma in Treasury, which provides associate membership and the MCT Advanced Diploma in Treasury, Risk and Corporate Finance, although they offer other qualifications such as a Certificate in International Treasury Management (CertITM). Employers may provide funding and time off to study for these examinations. Working towards professional qualifications as soon as possible may be helpful to career development.
Many entrants to the profession are already qualified accountants. There are relatively few opportunities for new graduates to enter directly into a corporate treasury department, though numbers are rising as the financing requirements of companies become increasingly complex. Most aspiring treasurers will join as graduate recruits in the finance divisions of medium to large companies and multinationals where the training programme may include placements across several specialised functions; for example, financial and management accounting, taxation, financial reporting, audit, as well as treasury. A good example is the training programme offered by Tesco Finance Careers , where graduates may expect to progress from working as treasury assistants to treasury analyst and treasury manager roles.
Candidates need to show evidence of the following:
Entry is competitive due to the limited number of direct-entry graduate training roles. Evidence of relevant work experience will enhance job applications, as it is important to be familiar with the nature and demands of the job. Specialist financial recruitment agencies can be a source of permanent and temporary opportunities. The ACT may be able to help with contacts for work shadowing or research. Join the ACT and start networking early on to build up contacts.
For more information, see work experience and internships and search courses and research.
The ACT is the leading professional body for international treasury providing the widest scope of benchmark qualifications for those working in treasury, risk and corporate finance. We define standards, promote best practice and support continuing professional development. Get careers advice from the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT).
Corporate treasurers usually undertake training for professional qualifications such as the AMCT Diploma in Treasury offered by the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT). It is the ACT's core treasury qualification and delivers understanding and knowledge of the essential topics within treasury, risk and corporate finance. It includes four compulsory (foundation) papers covering the following topics:
The syllabus is also flexible with a choice of three out of six modules, which allows candidates to tailor the qualification to their specific needs.
Through the ACT's FastTrack route to AMCT, members of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) who meet specific criteria can take an accelerated route through the examination programme. Exemptions are also granted for other accountancy qualifications.
The ACT also offers the MCT Advanced Diploma in treasury, risk and corporate finance. This diploma is especially useful if you aspire to hold a senior position. It is pitched at an MBA level and is the UK's only professional qualification in treasury management.
Keeping up to date with developments in accounting and treasury is an essential part of the job. The breadth of many corporate treasury roles and the demands of increasing legislation can make this challenging but gaining membership with somewhere like the ACT may help. The Treasurer magazine is published monthly by the ACT and archived copies are available free from the ACT website. This is a very good source of information on current developments.
The ACT is the leading professional body for international treasury providing the widest scope of benchmark qualifications for those working in treasury, risk and corporate finance. We define standards, promote best practice and support continuing professional development. Get careers advice from the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT).
Career development is very much the individual's own responsibility. Treasurers liaise with many departments in and outside their own companies, and there is potential to branch out into other financial areas through this. There are a range of opportunities within all sorts of companies. Look out in particular for companies that are developing quickly, as they are likely to offer more long-term career development options.
Specific challenges to career progression may lie in the nature of the company and its treasury department, as well as the particular needs of the company. There are not as many jobs in treasuries as there are in other areas of finance. If a department is small, opportunities to progress may be limited. It may be necessary to take a position in another company in order to progress and/or to increase knowledge and experience. This could require a move to another part of the country, so mobility and flexibility can be helpful.
From more junior roles as a treasury assistant or analyst, treasury professionals may progress to more specialised roles, perhaps as a treasury manager in liquidity management, risk management or corporate finance, for example.
With sufficient experience and qualifications progression may be to the position of group treasurer and even very senior roles such as director of finance or chief financial officer (CFO). Alternatively, some experienced and qualified treasurers may progress to other senior financial positions on the basis of their knowledge of accounting, tax and administration.
Companies not large enough to support a treasury function might consider applicants who have a treasury background and qualifications from The Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT) for senior financial posts.
The ACT is the leading professional body for international treasury providing the widest scope of benchmark qualifications for those working in treasury, risk and corporate finance. We define standards, promote best practice and support continuing professional development. Get careers advice from the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT).
The increasing complexity of the financial instruments that are now integral to managing modern companies, combined with major changes in accountancy standards, has led to a growth in demand for corporate treasurers in all industries. Financial institutions also offer more specialist treasury opportunities. Corporate Treasury is a role that is likely to continue to grow in breadth and responsibility in the future. Whilst most companies need to perform some treasury functions, they must also be of a sufficient size to warrant and support their own treasury department.
Corporate treasurers are likely to work in the head offices of large companies in the private sector, many of which are based in London or the South East. However, treasury specialists can also be found in the public sector, including central and local government, health and education and the larger charities. Experienced treasury professionals may also join management consultancies advising clients on improving their cash management, capital raising and risk management procedures.
The size of treasury departments varies in extremes from company to company. A large company will have anything from three to 50 treasury staff, while a medium-sized company would usually have between one and five. The number of treasury staff employed by a company can depend on the complexity of their transactions and on the level of international activity.
Small companies are unlikely to have a dedicated treasury function. The Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT) provides an information pack to universities that includes a list of companies that employ five or more of their members.
Other sources of vacancies include specialist financial recruitment agencies, which are likely to advertise jobs in the financial press. The ACT website lists details of these through its Treasury Services Directory .
Graduate schemes are less common than in other areas in finance, but some financial companies such as Barclays run schemes for graduates in their treasury departments. Graduate/new entrant level jobs are rarely advertised, so direct, speculative applications to larger companies are recommended.
Get tips on job hunting, CVs and covering letters and interviews.
The ACT is the leading professional body for international treasury providing the widest scope of benchmark qualifications for those working in treasury, risk and corporate finance. We define standards, promote best practice and support continuing professional development. Get careers advice from the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT).
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