Why CFOs Are Redefining Payments Strategy in 2025

Michael Johnson · 2026-08-14

It's a truism in business that the CFO's mandate only moves in one direction: it expands over time. A CFO's responsibilities rarely recede; they simply continue to grow. That's partly a reflection of the fact that financial services has become a larger component of the U.S. economy, but it also reflects the growing influence CFOs have on their organizations' payment strategies. Hugh Thomas, Lead Analyst of Commercial and Enterprise at Javelin Strategy & Research, explains how these shifts have changed the way CFOs approach treasury services and commercial payments solutions in his report, *The Mandate Is the Message: How the CFO's Expanding Remit Shaped Payments Provider Strategy*. The report examines how seismic events—most notably the Great Recession and the COVID-19 pandemic—have permanently expanded the CFO's role. "At one time the CFO was a sort of ops person," Thomas said. "Now it's a seat at the big table." ### New Roles for the CFO The financial component of any business's performance has always been a key focus for shareholders. Today, however, those financial decisions have broader implications for operational performance, including how effectively organizations manage working capital and launch new initiatives. As a result, CFOs are increasingly being judged not only on financial results but also on how they communicate their company's performance to the markets. At the same time, new responsibilities continue to emerge for CFOs around the world. In Europe, for example, a CFO's payments platform may need to provide provenance information. Concerns such as forced labor in manufacturing—including issues tied to recent tariff policies—mean companies must monitor and document their supply chains. "If you want to ensure you can't get hit with those tariffs, you need to understand the provenance of everything that you buy—who manufactured it and how fair were their labor practices," Thomas said. "In Europe, tracing provenance is already a pretty big business for the transaction banking types. And we expect that that will be even more so. This is now an exigency on the CFO." When public confidence was shaken by the dot-com bust, CFOs took on the responsibility of explaining why investors could trust their company's numbers. They also needed to communicate their confidence to the financial services provider managing their transaction banking and payments operations. Ideally, CFOs should share their teams' priorities and objectives with their payments partners, allowing those providers to deliver solutions that align with the company's needs. "Don't take your suite of payment solutions out and be the guy with a hammer looking for nails," said Thomas. "Understand that what the CFO is being asked to do will give you the message about whether you need a hammer or a saw." ### What COVID Changed—and Didn't Change Six years later, it's clear that the pandemic had a lasting impact on the CFO's role. During the early stages of the pandemic, when the future was uncertain, CFOs had to ensure their companies had sufficient cash reserves and balance sheet resilience to withstand a prolonged disruption. That meant stress-testing liquidity scenarios and making tough calls about capital allocation. The other major impact was operational. Companies had to move many critical processes onto employees' remote systems and home networks. This wasn't just an IT headache; it was a financial control challenge. Suddenly, the CFO had to sign off on security protocols for people working from kitchen tables across the country. "We'd rather have as few portals as possible working on something that's effectively our ledger," said Thomas. "The CFO had to give everyone the confidence that they were going to be able to do it remotely and effectively." Over time, it became clear that many aspects of business could continue operating this way. Aside from security considerations, there was little reason that accounts payable teams couldn't perform much of their work remotely. It also became clear that many employees wanted to maintain some degree of flexibility. ### The Hybrid Work Shift and Its Financial Ripple Effects Now there is renewed interest in collaboration and in working together in shared spaces, meaning some of those remote processes are being rethought. But the genie is out of the bottle. CFOs now have to balance the cost savings of remote operations with the cultural benefits of in-person work. That balancing act directly influences where they invest in payments technology. For payments providers, the message is clear: the old playbooks don't apply. A CFO today isn't just looking for a vendor who can process transactions. They want a strategic partner who understands their evolving mandate—from supply chain transparency to hybrid workforce enablement. The providers who thrive will be those who listen first and pitch second. The bottom line? The CFO's seat at the big table isn't going anywhere. And neither are the expanded expectations that come with it. For businesses and payments partners alike, the question isn't whether the role will keep growing—it's whether you'll keep up.