Imagine a day in the life of a corporate banker. It’s 9 AM, and payment instructions are pouring in—hundreds of transactions worth billions of dollars. Among them, a high-value payment request from a Fortune 500 client hits a roadblock: insufficient funds in one account.
The banker faces a dilemma. Should they:
Here’s what happens next:
- Reject the payment and risk damaging the client relationship?
- Approve it with a temporary overdraft, exposing the bank to risk?
- Hold the payment, hoping the funds arrive soon?
TLM: The Payment Referral Diagnostic Tool
Imagine an MRI for payments. Like an MRI uses tracers to illuminate problem areas, TLM dissects every transaction in real time, tracing balances, limits, and thresholds across intricate account structures. Here’s how TLM works:- Scans the System:TLM examines the entire payment ecosystem— corporate account and limits structure, thresholds, net and gross positions, urgency of payment.
- Lights Up Issues: Transactions that exceed limits or require special handling are flagged for referral.
- Delivers Precision Results:Based on its scan, TLM provides actionable decisions: Pay, No Pay, or Refer.
A Real-World Example of TLM in Action
A global corporation Nexora Petroleum initiates a high-value payment from its European subsidiary, but the local account lacks sufficient funds.
Here’s what happens next:
- Visual Traceability in Action:TLM dynamically scans Nexora Petroleum’s entire corporate hierarchy, calculating availability at every node—account, account group, customer, and customer group. As seen in the diagram, TLM provides a step-by-step visual trace of how limits and balances at each level contribute to the overall decision. This ensures that the bank has complete control over exposure at every level. Breaches? Eliminated.
- Automated Decisioning:Based on the availability calculated at each node, TLM earmarks the required amount at the account level while ensuring compliance with global, node, and account limits. This precise evaluation enables a seamless “Pay” decision without breaching any thresholds.
- Payment processed seamlessly
- Client relationship intact
- Risks mitigated effectively
Why Banks Need TLM
The cost of uncertainty in payments is staggering:- Each referred transaction costs banks over $12 to reprocess
- Failed payments drive 2% customer churn, translating to millions in lost revenue
- Overdraft mismanagement increases Basel III provisioning costs, reducing overall profitability
TLM eliminates these risks by offering:
- Straight-Through Processing (STP) and drastically reducing manual interventions through periodic and automated retries
- $10 million+ annual operational savings: By reducing manual referrals to <1%.
- >$5 million in Basel III savings: By allowing sharing of limits and balances across a corporate hierarchy
The Future of Corporate Payments
TLM is more than a tool—it’s a Payment Referral Diagnostic Solution that redefines corporate payments. With unparalleled precision and scalability, TLM empowers banks to:- Make informed decisions
- Reduce financial and reputational risks
- Strengthen client relationships


