On Thursday, March 9, 2023, tens of thousands of companies that had all of their assets in Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) accounts went into a state of panic. Cash they depended on to make payroll and pay critical bills disappeared, as the 16th largest bank in the United States by assets defaulted.

On Friday, March 10, SVB account holders found their cash frozen and unavailable. And numerous applications that non-SVB companies depend on for accounts payable, payroll and cash management also went into a frenzy given their reliance on their central banking infrastructure. In light of this calamity, businesses around the country are increasingly worried about the security and availability of their funds in U.S. bank accounts.

The collapse of SVB reflects an endemic risk within the U.S. central banking system. Banks are single points of failure and ultimately customers do not control their deposits. If a bank becomes insolvent, all of their customer deposits are insolvent too.

The SVB Crisis and How Businesses Can Deal

Now, every business--former SVB client or not--is worried about how to protect their cash flow and treasury against this risk so that they can continue to make payroll, pay vendors, get paid, and grow.

Today Paystand, the leading blockchain-enabled B2B payment network, announces a new suite of AR and AP tools designed to help businesses manage their full-cycle treasury and to better optimize their cash flow under any set of market conditions:

• Smart Treasury Management for Accounts Receivable. Businesses can route their receivables automatically as they come in, directing the funds to the bank accounts they deem appropriate. By enabling deposit routing between unlimited banks and financial networks, CFOs can more easily diversify AR Deposits and Treasury Sweeping between multiple institutions and maximize the FDIC insurance benefits they offer.

• Instant bill pay using AR funds; no need to interact with bank accounts. As receivables come in, merchants can immediately direct their funds to their DeFi Cards without leaving the Paystand Network. They can use their cards to seamlessly pay vendors and manage operating expenses without the risk, delay or friction associated with first settling to a bank. Merchants earn 1% back in bitcoin on every purchase with DeFi Cards.

"The SVB situation exposes a risk in banking that few paid attention to. CFOs should not have to worry about the integrity of their financial infrastructure," said Jeremy Almond, co-founder and CEO, Paystand. "Paystand, with its decentralized payment network operating on the blockchain, gives CFOs a better solution to collecting, accessing and managing their funds no matter what. These new tools reinforce our commitment to transforming the financial network for businesses around the world."

In light of these events, the question for companies is now what? Practically every business leader is thinking about how they receive, store and send cash. The decentralized Paystand Network transforms the way merchants transmit and manage money. Network transactions are zero-fee, settle within one banking day, and are automated with smart AR and AP accounting tools. These new treasury and cash flow tools are available now, and businesses can sign up directly at Paystand.com.