German Swift service bureau EFiS has gone live with a connectivity set-up that makes Bankhaus Zwirn the first bank to use Deutsche Bundesbank's retail payment system (RPS) via SwiftNet FileAct.
The Deutsche Bundesbank announced in February that it plans to use SwiftNet FileAct as an additional messaging channel for low-value retail payments, relieving local banks of the burden of maintaining proprietary protocols and driving convergence with the national real time gross settlement system (RTGS) in preparation for the creation of the single euro payments area (Sepa).
The Deutsche Bundesbank already uses SwiftNet to transmit large value payment instructions across its RTGS. The RPS, by contrast, has traditionally relied on proprietary communication channels and protocols.
EFiS says the standardised filetransfer brings a secure and reliable bulk payment transmission to the Deutsche Bundesbank, which in addition is cost efficient and aligns with Swift's 'single window' concept.
Making this announcement at Sibos in Sydney, Frankfurt-based EFiS pointed out that it was awarded the status of Swift service bureau the last time the event was held in Australia in 1997.