San Francisco-based financial services company BankServ is to compete with the big US moneycentre banks for domestic and international wire transfer business after receiving approval from messaging co-operative Swift to act as a certified member service bureau.
Although a number of the nation's largest financial institutions are currently equipped to process all aspects of international wire transfers, most of the nearly 7000 regional and community banks in the United States are not. BankServ's GFX TurboSWIFT technology, says chief technology officer Randy Gutierrez, will allow even the smallest banks to move money across borders without the added time and expense of maintaining an account at a larger institution.
"We are offering a number of the same services traditionally provided by larger banks, but at a fraction of the price. For community and regional banks, this means quick, cost-effective access to the Swift network," Gutierrez says. "Even institutions that are already members of Swift can make significant savings on operating costs. This system eliminates the need to have extra people and equipment working only on international transfers."
By the end of 2004, according to CEO David Kvederis, BankServ will have its system fully open to Swift members, throughout the world.
BankServ's expansion into the US global money transfer business comes on the heels of its recent acquisitions of London-based Symtec Solutions, and the TurboSwift division of Netik. Between them, the two companies handle Swift transactions for nearly 300 banks in Europe, Asia, Latin America and the rest of the world.