2024 Public Sector Perspectives

World Vision’s Global Treasury: A Tool Supporting Transformation Chris Tynan Public Sector Group, Corporate Banking W orld Vision (WV) is a Christian relief and development organization with annual revenues of over $3 billion and operations in nearly 100 countries. It delivers community- based, sustainable transformational development initiatives, focused especially on the needs of children. WV also provides emergency relief that assists people impacted by conflict or disaster and promotes justice by seeking to change inequitable structures that negatively affect the poor. For WV’s Global Treasury, facilitating this mission is a complex and constantly changing challenge. Ensuring financial oversight, managing risk, and moving money to and within fragile countries is a formidable task. “Certainly, the mechanics of making payments to many of these countries are incredibly complex,” says WV’s Head of Global Treasury Kathryn Powers. “Moreover, because of the nature of these countries, the challenges can be compounded by the need to ensure compliance with U.S. regulations such as Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions. While these controls are important for reasons such as the prevention of terrorism, they can have unintended consequences such as inhibiting the ability to access banking services that are required to fund life-saving operations and supplies.” Powers joined WV as its first full-time treasurer in 2006, and since that time has overseen a transformation from a department tasked with sending U.S. dollars to local offices on a monthly basis to a full-fledged department comprised of three major operating functions: cash management, foreign exchange and risk, and insurance. A fourth function, treasury innovation, leadership and education (TILE), facilitates dialogue and collaboration amongst peer organizations, including other global development organizations (GDOs), foundations, and universities that operate globally. John Finnigan Global Head of Development Organizations Citi Perspectives for the Public Sector 69 For almost two decades, Global Treasury has delivered enormous benefits for World Vision while building a valuable network with peer development organizations. 68 World Vision’s Global Treasury: A Tool Supporting Transformation