A release valve for the financial crisis – Netting trend becomes much stronger through a new technique

-    For more than a decade, we have seen the advantages of Netting. In a situation where the licence of our old factoring system is about to expire, we have been able to realize the technical development that has been going on during this time. Now we are getting a much more flexible and user-friendlier system, says Karin Högberg, Group Treasurer at Mölnlycke Health Care.

Mölnlycke Health Care, with its head office in Gothenburg, is a world leading producer of sterile disposables for the professional health care sector. The company also sees how the new Netting system simplifies the integration work related to business acquisitions.

-    ”With the previous mainframe-based environment, it was complicated and time-consuming to obtain functional reporting and find new common routines. With a web-based system, this is much easier – and communications become more efficient. I particularly appreciate the automatic, well-arranged reports,” Karin Högberg adds.

Mölnlycke looked at several providers before they chose Opus Capita, and the project is to be completed by January 1st 2010.

New technique is driving the development

Netting is not a new phenomenon. The first system was built as early as in the 1970s. However, in pace with the claws of the financial crisis in the world economy during 2008, more and more have begun looking at and replacing their old Netting system.

In spite of the introduction of the euro and the ongoing transition to SEPA, many groups of companies still carry out transactions in other currencies. With Netting, the exchange risk is reduced, and other advantages are both lower transaction costs and more efficient invoice handling.

–    The financial crisis made Sweden’s treasurers open their eyes. Many realize that they employ square systems from the 1970s and are taking the opportunity to make a change. We see a real “revival of Netting”, says Robert Wennerström, Sales Director for OpusCapita Scandinavia.

OpusCapita is leading the industry in automatic liquidity and payment systems in the Nordic countries and the Baltic region. The company addresses enterprises that are in need of renewing their finance and liquidity management. With the agreement with Mölnlycke Health Care, OpusCapita is continuing its pro-action on the Scandinavian market.

Facts about Netting

Netting systems are employed by big companies and groups of companies that work globally and have comprehensive internal invoicing. By settling receivables and liabilities between various subsidiaries, capital is freed.

The benefits of Netting:

• The number of invoices is minimized, a situation which reduces the costs related to transactions and exchange.
• Ingoing and outgoing invoices in the same currency are matched. Even that reduces exchange costs.
• Netting – Factoring facilitates centralization of the whole exchange risk to the central Netting / Factoring company.
• The handling of internal transactions within the company is simplified and becomes more efficient.
• Short-term liquidity prognoses become more accurate.
• The Netting system becomes an important source of information for management.

For further information:
Mona Henriksson, Director, OpusCapita Scandinavia
Tel.: 070-527 96 69
mona.henriksson@opuscapita.com

Karin Högberg, Group Treasurer Mölnlycke Health Care
Tel.: 031-722 30 17
karin.hogberg@mölnlycke.com

About OpusCapita

OpusCapita (www.opuscapita.com) is the number one expert and leading provider of automated financial management solutions in the Baltic Sea region. OpusCapita customers include more than half of Finland's top 200 businesses and thousands of other companies and public sector organisations in the Nordic Countries. OpusCapita is a specialist provider of Cash Management, Invoice Management, Treasury Management and Integration Solutions, and the software is used in almost 50 countries around the world.