The power of unifying cash flow, accounting, and compliance

Source: Statrys. Koh.

Aaron Koh (AK), Statrys’ GM in Singapore, points out a core paradox of modern business: while technology has made global trade faster than ever, administrative tasks for those operating across borders remain highly fragmented. He discusses what can make a difference.

Q: Why do businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), need support beyond payments processing?

AK: I used to run my own business and have had firsthand experience of how challenging it can be to find, engage, and manage multiple vendors. One provider for incorporation, another for accounting, and another for your payments, each having different standards, turnaround times, and expectations; that creates unnecessary friction.

Q: Working with multiple suppliers is just the way business is conducted, isn't it? What kind of friction occurs?

A: One of the clearest pain points we hear repeatedly is how manual and painful the monthly bookkeeping process can be. Let’s take accounting reconciliation for example. Every month, business owners have to chase down invoices, payment receipts, and bank statements from different systems just to provide them to their accountants. It is tedious, time-consuming, and prone to errors.

Business owners can benefit from having a single reliable partner who can streamline all three functions, allowing them to focus on growth with clarity and confidence.

In practical terms, SMEs benefit from timely bookkeeping, prompt filing of financial statements and annual returns, and significantly fewer back-and-forths during compliance checks.

Q: Would such a service help specific types of businesses?

A: Integrated services can be especially appealing to traders, sourcing companies and owner-managed firms as their operations are naturally complex and fast-moving. They juggle between supplier payments, handling logistics, shipping documents, and bookkeeping, often across multiple currencies and jurisdictions. 

When these processes sit in separate systems or with different providers, it slows them down and creates risk.  You can eliminate that entire workflow by integrating payments, accounting, and administration into a single platform. Instead of juggling across multiple providers, data flows are automated, there's real-time visibility and a much smoother month-end process.

One example that stands out is a sourcing client who used to manage payments with one provider, handle logistics documentation separately, and then send everything to an external accountant at month-end. This resulted in delays, missing documents, and reconciliation headaches. 

After moving to our integrated platform, their supplier invoices flowed directly into their payment workflow, shipping documents were attached to transactions, and through Statrys’ platform, we provide real-time access to reconciled data. What used to take them several days every month dropped to just a few hours, and they gained full visibility over their cash flow. 

Q: What recurring cross-border frictions do you see, and what improvements can come from a unified platform?

A: I’ve often shared in the past that domestic payments* are straightforward. You receive an invoice in S$, pay via FAST or PayNow, and the transaction is done. But once a payment crosses borders, it becomes an entirely different beast. You’re suddenly dealing with a new currency, a jurisdiction that has no prior information about your business, and local regulatory expectations that vary widely across Asia. 

Despite improvements in recent years, cross-border payments in Asia are still highly fragmented. Settlement times differ by corridor, documentation standards aren’t harmonised, and the likelihood of requests for information (RFIs) increases significantly if the information accompanying the payment is incomplete. 

Q: How have business concerns around fund safety and compliance evolved? 

A: Concerns around fund safety and compliance aren’t limited to just SMEs. We see the same priorities across MNCs and larger corporations as well. What has changed over the years is the level of sophistication in fraud and scams. Risks now come from both external actors and internal operational gaps, which means SMEs are far more aware of the need for robust controls and a trusted partner. 

Statrys is a payment specialist focused on Asia. The company's Unified CAB platform integrates accounting directly into payment flows and makes reconciliation easier, resulting in a smoother, more reliable cross-border experience. 

*Koh refers to the domestic payments in the Singapore context. FAST is an electronic funds transfer service for participating banks in Singapore, while PayNow allows individuals and businesses in Singapore to send and receive money to each other using mobile numbers or business registration numbers if they have an account with a participating bank.