Corporate treasury teams are adding artificial intelligence and automation to their strategic agendas while continuing to wrestle with one of finance’s oldest problems: knowing how much cash the business will need and when. The 2026 AFP Treasury Benchmarking Survey shows AI/automation has entered treasury’s top five priorities, even as cash and liquidity forecasting remains the function’s leading priority and most challenging activity.
Corporate treasury is being asked to do more than manage cash. As finance organizations adopt artificial intelligence, automate manual work and respond to changing business conditions, treasury teams are increasingly expected to contribute to technology transformation and strategic planning alongside their traditional liquidity and risk responsibilities.
That shift is reflected in the 2026 AFP Treasury Benchmarking Survey Report, published by the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) and sponsored by PNC Bank. The survey, conducted in May 2026, collected responses from 425 treasury practitioners across organizations of different sizes, industries and ownership structures.
One of the clearest findings is the rise of AI within treasury priorities. For the first time, respondents placed AI and automation among their five leading priorities, with 30% citing it. Yet adoption is accompanied by practical challenges: 38% identified managing AI opportunities and risks as a major treasury challenge, while 35% cited using AI to automate manual processes.
The numbers suggest that treasury’s AI transition is not simply a matter of deploying another software tool. Teams also need policies, technical knowledge and processes that allow AI systems to be used safely within functions responsible for liquidity, payments, banking relationships and financial risk.
That governance challenge is particularly visible in the survey’s policy findings. Traditional areas such as cash management and bank relationship management received substantially higher effectiveness ratings than policies covering AI and emerging technologies. AI and emerging technology policies received an average effectiveness score of 2.9 out of 5, the lowest among the policy areas measured.
AI knowledge presents another gap. Only 34% of respondents considered themselves effective in AI knowledge, compared with 50% who considered that capability important. The difference points to a workforce challenge that cannot be addressed solely through technology procurement.
Meanwhile, cash and liquidity forecasting remains the central treasury problem. Sixty-three percent of respondents identified it as a top priority, while 49% called it the most challenging treasury activity. AFP says the persistence of the issue comes despite years of technology investment and process improvements.
The finding matters because cash forecasting is increasingly becoming a data and systems problem. Treasury teams must pull information from bank accounts, enterprise resource planning systems, accounts receivable, accounts payable and business units, then translate those inputs into estimates of future liquidity.
AI and automation could potentially help with some of that work by identifying patterns, consolidating information and reducing repetitive processes. But forecasting also depends on the quality and timeliness of underlying data, meaning AI adoption does not eliminate the need for better financial infrastructure.
The wider finance technology market is moving in the same direction. Gartner reported in July 2026 that 45% of CFOs surveyed said their AI investments leaned toward productivity, compared with 20% whose investments leaned toward decision quality. The survey covered 204 finance leaders in March 2026.
That distinction is relevant to treasury. Automating repetitive tasks can free staff capacity, but treasury’s strategic value also depends on forecasting, scenario planning and decision support. AI initiatives that improve those capabilities require more than automation alone.
The AFP survey also shows that treasury’s workforce requirements are changing. Bank relationship management remains the most widely used skill, cited by 86% of respondents, followed by communication at 78%, cash forecasting at 77%, collaboration at 75% and critical or strategic thinking at 75%.
In other words, the move toward automation is not eliminating the human side of treasury. Instead, it is increasing the importance of skills that allow treasury professionals to communicate financial risks, collaborate across departments and translate data into business decisions.
Leadership development is another pressure point. Ninety percent of respondents said vision and future planning are essential capabilities for treasury leaders, but only 61% rated senior treasury professionals as effective in that area. AFP identified the resulting 29-percentage-point difference as the largest leadership capability gap in the survey.
Treasury teams are also operating with relatively lean staffing. AFP found that 46% of organizations have fewer than five treasury employees, even as responsibilities expand to include fraud management, technology transformation, AI adoption and strategic advisory work.
That combination creates a strong business case for automation, but it also raises questions about implementation capacity and governance. A small treasury department may have limited resources to evaluate AI vendors, establish policies, validate outputs and train employees while maintaining day-to-day liquidity operations.
The findings fit into a broader transformation of financial technology. Treasury management platforms, enterprise payments infrastructure, bank connectivity, API-based financial data and AI-enabled finance applications are increasingly converging. Gartner’s 2026 research on corporate and commercial banking similarly identifies unified APIs and AI-driven automation as technologies expected to reshape transaction banking and cash management.
For financial institutions and fintech providers, that creates opportunities around digital treasury platforms, embedded finance infrastructure, open banking, payment automation and AI-powered financial operations. For corporate treasury departments, however, the immediate challenge remains practical: improving the accuracy of core processes while building the capabilities needed for a more technology-driven function.
The AFP findings suggest that treasury’s next phase will not be defined by AI adoption alone. The more consequential change may be the integration of AI, data, governance and human expertise into a function that is becoming increasingly strategic within the enterprise.
Market Landscape
Treasury technology is moving toward connected financial data, automation and AI-assisted decision support. AFP’s 2026 research shows that AI/automation has entered treasury’s top five priorities, but cash forecasting remains the most frequently cited operational challenge.
The technology opportunity spans treasury management systems, bank connectivity, digital payments, open banking APIs, cash forecasting, fraud controls and AI automation. Gartner’s 2026 research also points to AI-driven automation and unified APIs as important developments in transaction banking.
The workforce dimension is equally important. Nearly half of surveyed organizations operate treasury teams with fewer than five employees, making automation and efficient technology increasingly relevant while increasing the importance of governance and skills development.
Top Insights
- AI and automation entered treasury’s top five priorities for the first time, but organizations continue to face governance and skills gaps.
- Cash and liquidity forecasting remains treasury’s leading priority and most challenging activity despite years of technology and process investment.
- AI knowledge trails perceived importance, highlighting the need for workforce development alongside new technology deployments.
- Treasury teams continue to rely heavily on communication, collaboration and strategic thinking alongside technical financial skills.
- Lean staffing is increasing pressure on treasury departments to automate processes while expanding their strategic contribution.
Get in touch with our fintech expert
