Corporate treasuries across Asia-Pacific are undergoing a rapid digital transformation, with a marked shift toward real-time, data-driven treasury models, according to a recent report.

Treasury leaders are responding to intensifying market volatility and economic uncertainty by adopting next-generation technologies, especially artificial intelligence ( AI ) and tokenized payments, finds HSBC’s Redefining Treasury in Asia-Pacific: Voices of Treasury 2025 report, which is based on insights from over 460 treasury and finance professionals across eight key Asia-Pacific markets.

While only 8% of respondents consider AI “extremely useful” today, more than half ( 52% ) expect it to be vital to treasury operations within three years. The potential of AI to enhance forecasting, fraud detection and anomaly identification is particularly attractive, with treasurers increasingly seen as strategic enablers within the enterprise.

However, barriers persist. Nearly half of the respondents cite limited skilled resources to implement new technologies, while 38% point to difficulties in securing budget approval for system upgrades.

The report also underscores the growing concern over macroeconomic risks. Treasurers ranked financial market volatility and economic slowdown as their top external risks for the year ahead, with foreign exchange and interest rate management identified as the most pressing operational priorities in seven of the eight markets surveyed.

In parallel, the report touches on the evolving landscape of digital money. HSBC has already launched its Tokenised Deposit Service in key financial centres, including Hong Kong and Singapore.

Although this development came after the report’s research phase, the bank signals it will play a central role in shaping cross-border real-time payments, aiming to eliminate time-zone and cut-off constraints.

“Treasurers have become crucial players in strategic conversations, supporting key decisions that enable business growth,” says Manoj Dugar, the bank’s head of global payments solutions for Asia, ex-Greater China. “The benefits of efficient, agile treasury management, supported by robust and immediate information, will redefine treasury excellence for the future.”

Yvonne Yiu, the bank’s head of global payments solutions for Greater China, adds that treasurers must “balance ambition with navigating volatility”, underscoring the need for agility and precision as global firms continue to expand into, and from within, Asia.