Global Real Estate Firm

Global Real Estate Firm Receives $588K in First-Year Savings

Challenge

A real estate investment firm with operations across the globe realized it was time to take control of rapidly rising bank fees. Its business and subsidiaries had over 40 banking partners across the US, Canada, and Mexico, making treasury operations fragmented and manually managed. Each regional office controlled accounts independently, creating blind spots in total spend and inconsistencies throughout.

• Consolidated billing was unavailable, requiring manual reconciliations.
• Bank fees were charged directly to accounts with little visibility into true costs.
• Core treasury resources were already stretched thin, running two systems during a global TMS transition.
• Bank charges had escalated – One major relationship rose from $200K to $300K per month.

In the firm’s words, the treasury team knew it was time to “clean house,” get clarity on what it was paying, and have a better understanding of why the firm was paying it.

Solution

Redbridge conducted a complete review of cash management fees across the client’s largest North American banking partners. The engagement included:

• An analysis of service utilization and costs across five incumbent banks.
• Bilateral negotiations with each relationship manager to benchmark, validate, and reset pricing.
• Education for the treasury team to better understand fee drivers and service categories.
• Coordination with the client’s parallel TMS transition to avoid additional resource strain.

The parent company both owns and manages approximately 14,000 units throughout North America. Redbridge engaged at the enterprise level but ensured the negotiated savings flowed directly down to local entities, improving P&L results across the portfolio.

Note: One of the banks required a deposit commitment before extending pricing adjustments. Redbridge worked with the client to structure a temporary cash-parking arrangement (placing funds for just a few days) that satisfied the requirement, secured a signed contract, and protected the client’s liquidity.

Results

The engagement delivered measurable impact:

• 20% total reduction in cash management fees resulting in north of $500K savings
• Multi-year agreements secured across all major banking partners

The client finally had a consolidated view of bank fees and savings that could be shared with leadership and used to support internal decision-making, strengthen relationships with their subsidiaries, and set their business up for investment opportunities in the near future.

Key Takeaways

This engagement proved two things:

First, savings do not have to stop at the corporate level. By negotiating as the parent company and then passing those benefits down, the client delivered savings to every office in the network.

Second, working with your banks on meeting their liquidity needs can go a long way in negotiations. The client increased its operational balances within certain banking groups to align the contractual cash management fees to be within market standards. Working with your banks on meeting liquidity needs can go a long way in negotiations. The client was able to increase its operational balances within certain banking groups to further align the cash management fees proposals to be within market standards.