TOMATO CATCH-UP - Newsletter Issue 277 – June 2025

Your monthly resource on working capital, process optimization, and issues related to the world of corporate treasurers, IT professionals, and bankers!

This newsletter is bilingual, English or German, depending on the source.

Introduction

What for would you use ChatGPT? Some would say they use it for writing emails, summarizing information, generating images, or writing code. Others may express its usefulness for investing.

This NZZ article highlights ChatGPT's usefulness in enhancing financial knowledge. It can help users understand the structure of a diversified portfolio, explain the rationale behind currency hedging, and caution against investing in penny stocks. Additionally, ChatGPT is beneficial for clarifying buy-and-hold strategies within Warren Buffet's value investment approach. For more information, refer to the Warren Buffet article below.

This edition includes topics such as Treasury for Newcomers, AI, ACT-SR Suisse Romande, Instant Payment in Camt-XML, SOC 2 Compliance, Swiss Taxes, Investment Tips, Career Advice, and more.

Remember that for any challenge related to your financial issues, you can ask Martin Schneider for a discussion that will clarify it. Contact Martin via email or call +41 44 814 2001.

Contents

  1. Tomato in Zürich-Flughafen und in Osnabrück
  2. Treasury Für Neueinsteiger - Werden Sie Schatzmeister
  3. Tomato speaks on AI at ACT-SR Suisse Romande
  4. Swiss PostFinance integrates Instant Payment into Camt
  5. SOC 2 Compliance in Switzerland
  6. Clarity on Swiss Taxes Amid Trade Tensions
  7. Stocks Fall, Gold Rises, Real Estate Still Best Investment
  8. Warren Buffett’s Best Advice for a Successful Career
  9. Book Tip: What I Learned About Investing From Darwin
  10. Termine & Events
  11. From the Desk of Tomato

 

1. Tomato in Zürich-Flughafen und in Osnabrück

Seit zwei Jahren ist Martin Schneider in der Region Bielefeld, Osnabrück, Münster präsent. Monatlich sind wir circa vier Tage im Norden von Deutschland unterwegs.

Unseren Treasury-Kunden und weiteren interessierten Gesprächspartnern stehen wir für kostenfreie Meet&Greets zur Verfügung.

Kunden der Tomato AG sind typischerweise Corporates mit Hauptsitz in Deutschland, Österreich, Nord-Italien, Frankreich und in der mehrsprachigen Schweiz. In dreissig Jahren haben wir geschätzt über 300 Projekte geleitet. Lösungen orchestrieren wir für weltweit tätige Konzerne und deren Tochtergesellschaften mit einer Umsatzgrösse von 200 Mio. bis 2 Mrd. Euro. Themen sind seit vielen Jahren die Digitalisierung von Financial-Flows, die tägliche Visibilität aller weltweiten liquiden Mittel und daraus die Liquiditäts-Planung.

Wie wir dies machen? – Hier eine Auswahl von Fachberichten auf Tomato’s Site https://www.tomato.ch/industrie.html bzw. auch die Dezentrale Payment Factory

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2. Treasury Für Neueinsteiger - Werden Sie Schatzmeister

In der deutschsprachigen Region kennen wir diese vier Ausbildungen zum Treasurer.

  1. In der Schweiz ist dies die HSLU mit CAS Swiss Certified Treasurer (SCT) mit 5 Kursteilen
    Zusätzliche Vertiefungskurse in Controlling, Transfer Pricing usf. sind möglich.
  2. In Deutschland bei Roland Eller den Onlinekurs CTM Certified Treasury Manager
  3. Beim Verband Deutscher Treasurer, VDT gibt es drei Lehrgänge
  4. In Österreich kann bei SLG Wien der Grundlagen-Lehrgang besucht werden: Treasury-Management mit Zusatzmodulen. Kurse finden meist in Wien, aber auch Online statt.
    Link zu Schwabe Ley Greiner Weiterbildung

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3. Tomato speaks on AI at ACT-SR Suisse Romande

Français : Martin Schneider intervient sur l'IA à Lausanne le 18 juin 2025 chez ACTSR - Association of Corporate Treasurers - Suisse Romande

Tomato est persuadée que l'IA permet en particulier de planifier les liquidités. Les données sont basées sur des volumes de données MT940 / Camt.53 obtenus et tracés depuis des années dans toutes les filiales du monde entier.

Ces données doivent être conservées dans un système de stockage de données d'entreprise et ensuite analysées par l'IA.

English: Martin Schneider is invited to speak on AI in Geneva Region on June 18, 2025. https://www.swisstreasurer.ch/

Martin Schneider is convinced that AI, in particular, enables effective liquidity planning. The data is based on MT940 / Camt.53 data volumes obtained and tracked over many years in all subsidiaries worldwide. This data is to be stored in an enterprise data storage system (BI) and then analyzed by AI.

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4. Swiss PostFinance integrates Instant Payment into Camt

Bisherige Praxis: Gutschriften aus Instant Zahlungen werden separat zu Sammelbuchungen im Kontoauszug der PostFinance aufgeführt. Das ist unpraktisch und führte bei unseren Kunden zu Mehraufwand.

PostFinance berichtet: Gutschriften aus Instant-Zahlungen können neu in die Sammelbuchung integriert werden. Die Bank Transaction Codes (BTC) auf Stufe C-Level werden in einer Sammelgutschrift nicht verändert.
Details in PDF bei PostFinance Schweiz Seite 1

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5. SOC 2 Compliance in Switzerland

This KPMG Switzerland guide examines SOC 2 compliance in Switzerland. SOC 2 (System and Organization Control 2) is a compliance framework for managing data securely and is relevant for service organizations like SaaS providers and cloud computing services. This is of particular importance for IT professionals and compliance officers.

SOC 2 has been a standard in the US for many years and its international equivalent can be found in the ISAE 3000 standard. SOC 2 evaluates organizations based on how they:

  • Safeguard systems against unauthorized access
  • Ensure systems operate as intended
  • Guarantee the accuracy of data processing
  • Protect sensitive data
  • Ensure responsable personal data collection and use.

When seeking SOC 2 compliance, companies choose between SOC 2 Type 1 and SOC 2 Type 2 reports, the latter being often the preferred choice for many Swiss businesses. SOC 2 Type 2 offers a more comprehensive view and long-term commitment to security compliance.

Further reading on the KPMG blog

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6. Clarity on Swiss Taxes Amid Trade Tensions

Trade tensions under the current US administration are evolving and ushering in a new era of global commerce. Is the stability of the OECD’s global tax initiative in jeopardy? How will US initiatives shape the future of trade?

KPMG’s latest report covers the following:

  • Trade and Tariffs: How Switzerland is navigating new global tax challenges (global trade, Switzerland's economic and free trade agreements (FTAs), opportunities for business).
  • Global minimum tax in Switzerland in 2025: progress, uncertainties and US influences (implementation in Switzerland and in other countries and how can Switzerland prepare for global tax and trade distortions).
  • Swiss corporate taxation in 2025: A competitive analysis of a changing world.
  • Swiss income tax in 2025: Stability in the midst of global shifts.

Corporate Taxes in the cantons (trend from 2007 to 2025):

Download the KPMG insights (no personal details are needed):

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7. Stocks Fall, Gold Rises, Real Estate Still Best Investment 

In generally Americans spend more time and are more invested in stock markets than Europeans. Many American have retirement and savings plan

According to a recent poll by Gallup, Americans' inclination for stocks as the greatest long-term investment has decreased amid April's stock and bond market turbulence. Gold has become more popular, but for the 12th year in a row, real estate is still the most popular option.

Some key findings:

  • 37% of respondents say real estate is the best long-term investment, 23% say gold, 16% stocks
  • 62% of US adult’s own stock; 59% have a retirement savings plan
  • Real estate has been ranked as the top investment for Americans each year since 2014, with between 30% and 45% of people selecting it
  • People earning $100,000+ are the most likely to favor stocks, while those with lower incomes are more likely to choose safer options like gold and savings accounts.

Further insights at Gallup

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8. Warren Buffett’s Best Advice for a Successful Career

Warren Buffett, the American investor and philanthropist who will step down as Berkshire Hathaway’s CEO at the end of the year, has gained a reputation for warmth, fairness, and a people-first approach to business.

Buffett made himself, his shareholders, and other people extraordinarily rich: Berkshire Hathaway’s stock rose by 5,502,284% between the time Buffett took the helm in 1965 and 2024. The S&P 500 company delivered a total return of 39,054% over the same period.

At this year’s meeting for Berkshire Hathaway shareholders, among others, Buffett said people may be better off focusing on who is hiring them, rather than what they are paid, especially if they’re still early in their career. People should be careful who they work for, because they will take on the habits of the people around them. Buffett himself only knew his salary when he took a job with his mentor Benjamin Graham at the end of his first month in the job. On top of that, Buffet advises job seekers to find a gig “they would select if they had no need for money.”

Further reading on CNBC

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9. Book Tip: What I Learned About Investing From Darwin

Given the current crisis in the financial industry, one may wonder where investors might look for a fresh strategy.

Based on evolutionary biology, Pulak Prasad presents a patient, long-term investing strategy. By combining stories of successful and unsuccessful financial choices with striking instances from the natural world, he extracts important insights from fundamental Darwinian ideas. Drawing from effective evolutionary tactics, Prasad presents his unconventional ideas for sustained success. He offers three investing maxims: Avoid big risks; buy high quality at a fair price; and don’t be lazy—be very lazy. Prasad presents a strong argument for an approach that eliminates the great majority of potential investments.

By fusing language with real-world knowledge, this book shows how evolutionary biology can help fund managers improve their skills.

Link to the book on Amazon.

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10. Termine & Events

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11. From the Desk of Tomato

Start-Ups interessieren mich als Gründungsmitglied von Tomato weiterhin. Auch nach 30 Jahren freue ich mich am Erfolg von selbständig Erwerbenden. Ebenso bieten mir so gennannte «Misserfolge» Lernstoff. Lesen Sie den Werdegang der Tomato AG - die Gründung, den Aufbau, den Wechsel von Höhen und Tiefen, Erfolg und Misserfolg, Finanzierungen und Stolpersteine, letztendlich die tägliche Disziplin dranzubleiben - in einem Interview mit Ana Pastravanu zu 30 Jahre Bestehen von Tomato https://www.tomato.ch/30-jahre-tomato.html

Das Schweizer Fernsehen und das NZZ-Format begleiten Gründerinnen durch Höhen und Tiefen. Die tägliche Realität ist eine andere, was uns Medien aufzeigen. Dagegen sind wir in Tomato glücklich als stille Schaffer und mit einigen hundert Digitalisierungslösungen für unsere Kunden in Mitteleuropa.

In English: As the founder of Tomato, I am very interested in start-ups. Even after 30 years, I compare myself with my own Tomato career, with its development, changing highs and lows, success and failure, financing and stumbling blocks, and yet I still get the daily discipline to keep going. Read the 30-year look back interview of Martin Schneider with Ana Păstrăvanu.

Further, Swiss-Television and NZZ-Format accompany female founders through the highs and lows. What is written in the press has little to do with real, daily reality. In contrast, we at Tomato are happy as silent creators and proud of the several hundred digitization solutions for our customers in Central Europe.

The SRF NZZ video is in German on 29 minute:

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