Roadmaps to results: the real-world strategies for TMS, ERP, and API integration
Modern treasury operations are no longer defined by a single platform or system. As treasury functions grow more interconnected with banking, finance, and enterprise systems, companies must rethink how they approach Treasury Management Systems (TMS), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) integrations, and API strategies. At the 11th annual EuroFinance Treasury & Cash Management Summit West Coast, treasury leaders discussed the need for clear architecture, strong internal leadership, and a realistic understanding of how to connect data and systems effectively.
Step back to see the whole architecture
When Deepa Palamuttam, Senior director of treasury technology at PayPal, an American technology company operating an online payments system, took on her role, the first step was not to dive into fixing individual problems but to plan the architecture. “The way I do it, I just step back and I ask the engineers to provide me with an architecture. Nobody has a full architecture of how the treasury organisation works,” she said. “So I slowly get the team to build out the diagram, see where the holes are.”
This system-wide view was essential to identify priorities. Palamuttam added, “It’s much easier for me to figure out what I need to focus on. I talk to the treasury team, understand their pain points, connect the dots with the architecture diagram, and at the same time talk to vendors.”
At PayPal, the treasury management system was underused. Users had introduced bots to automate tasks that could have been handled natively within the TMS. “When they did the demo, you could just check a box in your TMS and whatever the bot was doing could be undone,” she explained. Her three-pronged approach—understanding the internal systems, listening to user pain points, and aligning with vendors—laid the groundwork for deeper integrations.
APIs: practical strategy over hype
While APIs are frequently discussed in treasury transformation circles, Palamuttam pointed out that, “for me, when I came into PayPal, I needed to fix the things that were not working first before going into the cooler terminologies of API and AI.”
However, APIs are central to PayPal’s future plans. “Today we are going through an API migration,” she shared. “Our current TMS has an ERP connector, a tool we want to evaluate.” By aligning API initiatives with major projects like the ERP migration, Palamuttam is able to position them for budget approval.
She also mentioned, “We are going to implement a FX tool which also will be connecting to APIs. That’s probably going to be our API journey.”
Tami Nguyen, a treasury consultant emphasised that treasurers need to be cautious when assuming API capabilities are readily available. Treasury teams often discover during the process that they lack the licences or modules needed for API connectivity, underscoring the need for rigorous contract management and close relationships with TMS vendors. “You have to really understand what your contractual rights are and whether the technology is actually included in what you’ve purchased,” she added.
Also read: Empowering treasuries through API integration: lessons from DSV
Thinking beyond a single TMS
The modern treasury ecosystem is no longer about installing a single “perfect” TMS. “Fast forward to today,” Nguyen reflected, “and the way I look at things lately is more from a systems architecture perspective, it’s not just your TMS but that whole ecosystem of applications that would connect.”
Palamuttam agreed but added a cautionary note: “Users see the dashboards and they want that. But sometimes from the existing systems, you can get the same result. Maybe not in a fancy way, but it’s there.”
Adding new fintech applications might seem attractive, but treasury leaders must consider the long-term cost, maintenance, and resource impact. “From a technology perspective, everybody wants fewer systems,” Palamuttam explained.
Leadership and the art of influencing
Transformation is as much about leadership as it is about technology. Palamuttam emphasised the importance of influencing stakeholders: “It’s all about: are we going to save money, save resources, or improve control? All my projects that I push for, I have to say they will sunset another system, bring in a capability, or increase controls.”
Success depended on a combination of bottoms-up and top-down strategies. “I rally the users to lay out exactly the problem and why they need this,” she explained. “They go to their leaders, I go to mine, and then in the VP meetings, it gets prioritised.”
Through this process, PayPal’s treasury team managed to save about 3,500 hours each year, consolidate two TMS platforms into one, and upskill users, all within two years.
Nguyen shared a success story in which she supported a corporate in renegotiating with their TMS provider even after the system had gone live. Due to an unsatisfactory implementation, the company was able to secure complimentary additional training and consulting hours to help course correct.
The key takeaway: maintain open dialogue with your partners and don’t hesitate to ask for additional support when needed, according to Nguyen.
Data lakes, bank connectivity, and realistic API strategies
When discussing API integrations with banks, Palamuttam noted, “At this point we are close to coming to the conclusion that maybe connecting to one or two of our major banks might be useful. Connecting to all the banks? Maybe not.”
The real-time payment movement is significant, especially for a company like PayPal, but even so, practical considerations about where APIs add the most value are necessary.
On the data side, Palamuttam explained that PayPal uses a data lake model: “We get all our information from trading systems, FX systems, normal systems treasury uses, about eight or nine of them. We dump it into a data lake and build our dashboards.”
Treasury teams can then use tools to access the data without needing bespoke reports from IT. “Users can just plug and play, use whatever tool they want,” she said, emphasising how user empowerment depends heavily on a robust data strategy.
Nguyen reinforced the importance of understanding vendor capabilities in advance: “The question you need to ask your potential TMS vendor is: do you have an inventory of APIs? Are they plug and play, or what kind of customisation is required?”
Even if APIs are “easy” in theory, she cautioned that treasury teams must work closely with IT to execute connections. “We’re so busy doing true treasury work that you need that IT partnership to actually make it happen.”
Cash forecasting: where TMS and ERP data truly meet
One of the most powerful benefits of connecting TMS and ERP systems is more accurate cash forecasting. At PayPal, the approach is twofold: corporate cash forecasting for operations and product cash forecasting for payment flows.
On the corporate side, Palamuttam shared, “We have SAP data, AP, AR, investments, financing, all in the data lake. We use Python models tweaked slightly, and Power BI is the front-end tool for users.”
PayPal’s product side forecasting is more complex. “We said let’s figure out the short-term forecast first—two weeks of data,” she said. “And we are using AI/ML tools to go beyond seasonality to actually detect when acquirers or merchants are paying early or late.”
While the long-term product cash forecasting remains a work in progress, the corporate cash forecasting tool was scheduled to go live within weeks.
Also read: Enhancing financial precision: A deep dive into cash forecasting techniques
Balanced and strategic approach
Next-generation integrations between APIs, TMS, and ERP are less about advanced technology and more about smart architecture, stakeholder management, and disciplined execution.
As Palamuttam summed up, success comes from understanding your architecture, managing costs, influencing decision-makers, and deploying targeted solutions—not chasing trends. “In the end, it’s people, process, systems. Controls, resources, ROI.”
Also read: AI’s quantum leap in treasury: automating tasks and redefining financial strategy