An agreement announced between Omgeo and Swift will establish SwiftNet, Swift's secure IP messaging platform, as a preferred messaging solution for settlement notification from Omgeo Central Trade Manager. Implementation of the new solution is not expected to start for over twelve months.
The first project implemented within the agreement will be to enable Omgeo Central Trade Manager (Omgeo CTM) to send settlement notification messages via SwiftNet to custodians, sub-custodians and clearing agents, for domestic and cross-border trades.
According to the announcement, as a result of this first project, SwiftNet now becomes 'a preferred' messaging solution for settlement notification from Omgeo CTM. However, availability of the new solution will take some time. While Omgeo and Swift have promised to provide an implementation schedule for SwiftNet by the end of 2002, implementation is not expected to start until mid-2003.
The companies claim that Omgeo can now offer its clients greater flexibility when communicating with trading counter parties, which in turn allows the same institutions to extend their existing Swift relationship.
Swift users will be able to access Omgeo CTM for settlement notification messages via the same gateway they use to access other business critical services. SwiftNet is Swift's secure and standardised IP messaging platform, which will support FIN and other messaging applications.
The agreement between Swift and Omgeo builds upon Omgeo's TradeSuite Service connection to Swift FIN, which was established back in 1995, and Omgeo CTM's interface to Swift FIN, which was built in September 2001.
The agreement is aimed at helping streamline communication between investment managers, broker/dealers, custodian banks and clearing agents while providing another option for enabling a seamless trade process from notice of execution (NOE) through to settlement communications.
According to Adam Bryan, president and CEO of Omgeo: "Swift's services are complimentary to Omgeo's, especially in the area of communicating post-trade and settlement information to custodians and other settlement agents globally. Firms using SwiftNet for other critical business tools can now consolidate their message traffic over a single network. This will provide customers with the means to achieve greater operational efficiency."
The agreement includes supporting standards convergence on the Omgeo CTM platform.
"We look forward to assisting Omgeo in their adoption of ISO 15022 standards, for which Swift is the registration authority, to increase efficiency along the transaction chain", added Francis Remacle, head of the securities industry division, Swift.