C2FO
DIGITAL REPORT 2021
Changing the Liquidity Conversation
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The world’s largest platform for working capital www.c 2f o. com
C2FO
Saket Sarda and Iain Rolfe discuss C2FO’s revolutionary fintech platform, releasing working capital back into the market, and the company’s APAC expansion
D
uring times of financial hardship, the ability for companies to remain flexible, adaptable and agile is paramount. Having
ready access to the necessary liquidity in these situations is essential. Unfortunately, since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in March, 04
many firms have found the channels through which they access additional working capital closed off to them. “COVID-19 was a huge shock to the market system. The initial reaction was to hunker down, stop investment, and minimise risk,” explains Saket Sarda, Head Enterprise Sales for APAC at C2FO. “At the same time, the banks issued a blanket credit freeze, large scale enterprises, all the way down to small-scale operators. Nobody could get access to any working capital.” Even though that freeze has begun to thaw, its benefits have disproportionately served larger, more stable firms, leaving smaller and mid-sized companies out in the cold. Not only is this state of affairs potentially devastating for smaller firms cut off from sources of liquidity, Sarda continues, but
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www.c 2f o. com
C2FO
Saket Sarda @ C2FO CLICK TO WATCH
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1:03
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“ Your supply chain is only as strong as its weakest link” — Saket Sarda, Head of Enterprise Sales, APAC, C2FO
necessary liquidity to make the screws, machine parts, whatever it is you need, your entire production suffers and creates a ripple effect on the other suppliers in the supply chain,” he says. “On our platform, we have close to a million of these compact suppliers. When their lifelines were taken away from them,
the impact has the potential to ripple
the only option for liquidity remaining
outwards through their supply chains.
for them was C2FO. We worked with the
“Your supply chain is only as strong
banks and the corporates to get liquidity
as its weakest link. If the small supplier
to the buyer, so that it can then make its
that makes up the farthest end of your
way to the supplier to, in turn, support the
supply chain can’t get access to the
operations of those large corporates.”
Based in the US, C2FO is one of the
“The most disruptive innovations are
larger fintech firms working to revolu-
typically the most simple,” says Iain
tionise the ways in which buyers and
Rolfe, managing director of C2FO’s
suppliers of every size in every indus-
operations in Australia and New
try can access the working capital
Zealand. “That’s what we’re doing –
necessary to survive challenging
challenging this really fundamental
times and thrive in the years to come.
notion of the power dynamic between
E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :
Saket Sarda Title: Head of Enterprise Sales, APAC
Industry: Financial Services
Location: Singapore
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Saket has more than 25 yrs experience working in the Banking and IT industry with expertise in Business Development, Corporate Sales, Trade Product Management working in Africa, Middle East, Russia, ASEAN and Southeast Asia. Saket serves as Head Enterprise Sales, APAC for C2FO and brings a wealth of expertise to expand C2FO’s footprint in this region, where partnerships and product offerings must be augmented in innovative ways. He would be driving C2FO current efforts in India, Taiwan, China and Australia, as well as focus on new opportunities in the Asia Pacific region that are vital to global trade and corporate supply chains. Prior to C2FO, Saket was Managing Director at Standard Chartered Bank managing the Trade business regionally working closely with corporates, regulators and third-party platform providers. Saket holds a B.Eng degree and a Post Graduate Diploma in Management from IIM-A. Saket, his wife and two children reside in Singapore. www.c 2f o. com
C2FO
A HELPING HAND
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The COVID-19 crisis has been economically devastating for companies of all sizes and backgrounds, but particularly for minority-owned businesses. Research done by the University of California, Santa Cruz, found that approximately 440,000 blackowned businesses in the United States (over 41%) were forced to close in response to COVID-19. In contrast, only 17% of white-owned businesses experienced the same setbacks. C2FO’s Equity and Inclusion Program is aiming to help change this state of affairs by providing diverse supplier certification, reduced rates and access to a broadening funding ecosystem. “We’re trying to help those minority segments get easier access to capital through special offers. It’s good for everyone and it addresses the impediments and biases that exist for those minority groups through no fault of their own,” says Rolfe. “That concept of economic justice and of equity inclusion is very strong in C2FO’s culture.”
buyer and supplier, and disintermediating third parties that have become part of those interactions over time.” We sat down with Sarda and Rolfe to discuss C2FO’s ongoing expansion into APAC, following more than a decade of growth in the US and a successful expansion into Europe.
THE WORLD’S FIRST WORKING CAPITAL MARKETPLACE C2FO was founded in 2008, in direct
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response to the global financial crisis,
established in response to the need
a catastrophe which cost the US alone
to get liquidity flowing out of the bank-
an estimated $22trn. The response to
ing system, as well as from buyer
the crisis, Rolfe explains, was similar in
to supplier.
a lot of ways to the market’s response to COVID-19. “Liquidity dried up and smaller sup-
Even when the world isn’t languishing in the grip of a pandemic or financial crisis, Rolfe explains that
pliers were unable to access working
there is a fundamental issue with the
capital through normal banking relation-
way that suppliers are often forced
ships, as well as through the invoices that
to acquire their working capital.
were outstanding from their customers,” he says. C2FO, Rolfe continues, was
“Lack of liquidity is a situation that our customers and suppliers face www.c 2f o. com
C2FO
“ The most disruptive innovations are typically the most simple” — Iain Rolfe, MD, ANZ, C2FO
“Going to a bank is going to be a much more painful and lengthy process to free-up liquid capital that they may need urgently,” he says, adding that the cheapest form of financing is money that the company is already owed. This is the core solution that C2FO is built on. Companies can use the C2FO working capital market platform to access funds that are owed and
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every day. At a fundamental level,
invoiced ahead of their due date, in
whether you’re a large or small organi-
exchange for a fee, and at a price that
sation, a supplier, a buyer or both, you
they themselves determine. “It’s an
need to have access to working capi-
equalised system of suppliers and cus-
tal,” he explains.
tomers which cultivates collaboration,”
What this means is that firms are
says Sarda. “We bring price discovery,
constantly trying to thread the needle
profitability, and cash flow into our
between income and outgoings, whilst
customers’ supply chains.”
also having enough liquidity to support
C2FO onboards approximately
expansions, mergers, new ventures,
50mn invoices to its platform every
or to respond to something unexpected
day. “It’s a mammoth technological
– like a pandemic, for example.
challenge,” Rolfe notes.
“When a crisis emerges, you
In order to support this kind of vol-
either go out of business or find
ume, he explains that the company
more working capital to get through
has built a “SaaS platform that runs
that period of time,” Rolfe explains.
on the underlying compute, security
Historically, the typical response
and storage capabilities of a big cloud
has been to get a loan from a third-
services organisation. We then run
party financial institution.
a very sophisticated set of algorithms
JANUARY 2021
on top of that stack that allow us to
keeping a continuous interface
ingest and process that volume of
between the platform and its cli-
invoices every day at scale.”
ents. Instead, they use point-in-time
For the sake of both security and simplicity, C2FO’s platform avoids
onboarding each day. “We can pull the necessary invoices from our
E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :
Iain Rolfe Title: Managing Director, Australia and New Zealand Industry: Financial Services
Location: Greater Sydney Area
Iain leads C2FO in Australia and New Zealand, working with multinationals and local corporations in need of more flexible solutions that provide better control and management of their financial performance. Previously, Iain held multiple roles during his tenure at Cisco, including Chief Commercial Manager for Australia and New Zealand and Chief Operations Officer for their Technical Services division. While there, he established the overall commercial management function for Asia Pacific and led the structuring of their first three direct deals in China and India. Previous to Cisco, Iain worked for Orange Business Services, France Telecom, and founded his own Internet company. Recognized as a global expert in complex adaptive business models, Iain was awarded a Ph.D. from Macquarie University and holds a Master of Commerce and Bachelor of Business in behavioral economics. He is based in Sydney, Australia.
www.c 2f o. com
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C2FO
C 2FO AU ST RALI A
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Rolfe has been leading C2FO’s expansion into the ANZ market since May 2019. Almost more than anywhere, he says, the ANZ market needs new ways for companies to access working capital. “Australia has gone through a period of many challenges. There’s been the financial crisis, there was a government intervention setting out the terms of engagement between big and small suppliers, and then we hit bushfires followed by COVID-19. People here are just punch drunk,” he reflects. In order to recover, Rolfe continues, the ANZ market needs to find new ways to collaborate using technology. C2FO’s role will be to work as a
national working capital control centre through its platform that provides companies with multiple different avenues to generate value. “We’re going to help companies look at an invoice and think about the best way for the capital locked in that invoice to benefit the entire supply chain,” Rolfe continues. “Australia has a very special market with its own financial culture and system. What we’re doing here is taking the best of what C2FO does around the world and customising it for Australian customers. We want to be able to look back in a couple of years and be proud of our role in this collaborative recovery for the ANZ market.”
“ When a crisis emerges, you either go out of business or find more working capital to get through that period of time” — Iain Rolfe, MD, ANZ, C2FO
The platform, Sarda explains, straddles the customer’s procurement and sales functions. “It means that you have a uniquely better view of your cash flow,” he says.
ENTERING APAC C2FO’s presence in the APAC market is relatively new, launching its operations in China and Australia two years ago, expanding its presence in India
customers’ ERPs into our system, do
and adding Taiwan to its portfolio in
what we need to do, and then push the
2019. Sarda’s role in the company’s
equivalent instructions back into their
expansion has several elements, each
systems,” Rolfe adds.
aimed at increasing C2FO’s APAC
Iain Rolfe @ C2FO CLICK TO WATCH
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1:06
www.c 2f o. com
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C2FO
2008
Year founded
463
Number of employees
180
Countries 14
“ If C2FO wishes to achieve the same market penetration it has in Europe and the US, it needs to find ways to appeal to the huge numbers of mid-market, midsized firms in APAC” — Saket Sarda, Head of Enterprise Sales, APAC, C2FO
foothold, and developing the uniquely APAC-centric value proposition it can present to its new customer base. “The first part of my role is business development, which is different from direct sales,” Sarda explains. Whether they’re with large corporates, banks or governments, the partnerships that Sarda is building are intended to fuel the local economic engine with C2FO, making the platform a more
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relevant proposition to companies in a
innovation that supports those goals.
given market. Second, the direct sale
In contrast to the US and Europe –
of services to new clients, both in the
which are fairly homogeneous markets
four countries where C2FO is operat-
– APAC is a very different beast with
ing, and beyond, initially in markets
an eclectic collection of varied rules,
like Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia,
taxes and practices.
Singapore and later expanding into
“In the West, the very nature of
the Philippines, South Korea, Japan.
the Fortune 500 belies how many
Lastly, he is working to ensure the
large-scale corporations there are
broader relevance of C2FO’s offerings
in that market. APAC has a smaller
to the APAC market, and driving the
percentage of large corporations www.c 2f o. com
C2FO
by comparison. In APAC, and more
a mid-sized company that might not
importantly in ASEAN, a few high-level
have too much data of its own, we’re
corporations control large segments
able to provide a far more nuanced
of the economy - equivalent to that
view of their own supply chain that
which 500 companies control in the
they might not have had so far.”
US,” Sarda explains. Therefore, if C2FO wishes to achieve the same
COVID-19 AND BEYOND
market penetration it has in Europe
The past year has been a challeng-
and the US, it needs to find ways to
ing one for companies worldwide.
appeal to the huge numbers of mid-
As liquidity has dried up, and larger
market, mid-sized firms.
corporations and banks adopt more
“We’re looking at a comprehensive 16
conservative stances, C2FO has
offering which straddles payables
become a driving force in preserving
and receivables, creating an invoice
resilience and agility in the markets
central for a corporate, and also by
it serves.
connecting to their ecosystem of sup-
“Since COVID-19 hit, many large
pliers and customers to be more like
organisations drew down large
an invoicing intermediary between
amounts of capital through their
firms,” he says, adding that another advantage that C2FO hopes to leverage in APAC is its data. “Our existing presence in a lot of APAC countries, across numerous industries means we have a lot of data on trade,” Sarda explains. The 50mn invoices that are added to C2FO’s platform every day help generate deep insights into the wider market. “We can use all this data to give value back to our clients,” says Sarda. “For
“ We want to be able to look back in a couple of years and be proud of our role in this collaborative recovery for the ANZ market” — Iain Rolfe, MD, ANZ, C2FO
T H E C H I E F F I N AN CE AN D I N SI GHT S O FFI CER
The nature of executive roles is forever changing, as digital transformation reshapes the capabilities and demands placed on companies’ leaders. Sarda reflects that the traditional role of a Chief Finance Officer (CFO) may look very different in just a few years. “Historically, a CFO uses past data to explain why things have happened and provide analysis. Going forward, I think that the CFO role will become far more about providing insights for future decision making,” he says, adding that the role will become about developing insights into how
one course of action will interact with other elements of the business, and ultimately figuring out how to make the company more nimble. “If the world keeps undergoing the kinds of crisis that we’ve been seeing, the companies that end up being successful are going to be the ones that manage to have more variable practices,” he adds. “Passive knowledge of things like accounting is going to evolve towards strategy, ecosystems and therefore outsourcing and the need for platforms like C2FO that can help provide good data in those areas.” www.c 2f o. com
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C2FO
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credit lines, got lots of money in the
like the Equity and Inclusion Program,
door, and began tightening up on their
C2FO is working to help the world sur-
expenses. It’s the same reaction that
vive and even thrive in these challenging
they had to the financial crisis in 2008,”
times. Rolfe reflects that the past year
says Rolfe. “What’s different this time
has been one of, at times, frantic activity
around is that our customers have had
for himself and his team.
the ability to treat the crisis in a more nuanced, technology-driven way.”
“In many ways, we’re a counter-cyclical business. When the chips are down for
Through its market-based approach
the economy as a whole, that’s when
to freeing up liquidity, as well as initiatives
more people come to use our platform
dilemma whether we should continue to try and expand into new markets, given that we can’t travel, recruit and train new people,” explains Sarda. “This year, we decided to double-down on the investments we’ve made in the countries where we’re already active.” Going forward, Sarda intends to continue focusing on the three main areas of his remit: developing relationships with key partners, expanding into new markets like Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia, and continuing to develop new products and services that are uniquely tailored to help APAC companies get the most out of every part of their balance sheet. Looking to the future, Sarda is optimistic about the potential for progress, even in uncertain times such as these. and our services, so we’ve had our hands
“I think that what C2FO did in the US and
full this year,” he says. “We’ve had a huge
Europe in a matter of five to six years
uptick, not just in our customer base, but
will be accomplished much more quickly
also in our range of products on the mar-
in APAC.”
ket. We’re iterating and releasing new products almost bi-weekly because of how fast the landscape is moving.” In ANZ, as well as the rest of APAC, C2FO has pivoted its operations in response to the crisis. “There was a www.c 2f o. com
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