The system, developed by Decillion using Microsoft BizTalk 2004 Server and the Microsoft BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT 2.1, has been in live operation since early November. It enables Cuscal's clients to create and manage SWIFT RTGS payments via a highly secure internet based portal. With annual transaction volumes in excess of $13 billion the system is critical to the Cuscal's service offering.

When the need to replace Cuscal's previous SWIFT RTGS payment solution was identified, a rigorous vendor selection process was undertaken. "Being a mission critical system, mitigation of risk was an important factor in vendor selection" says Oliver Hudson, Cuscal's Head of Financial Markets and Treasury. "There were two key elements in this area that marked Decillion out. One was the domain knowledge and previous experience of Decillion both in SWIFT and Microsoft BizTalk. We were confident that Decillion could leverage their partnerships with both SWIFT and Microsoft to overcome any issues faced during the development. Secondly, the Microsoft BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT has been gold certified by SWIFT assuring us of compliance with the complex SWIFT standards both now and in the future."

The use of Microsoft BizTalk was another important factor in the decision. "Cuscal is a very customer focused organization with a reputation of innovation in financial products and services" says John Carroll, Head of Operations. "Having made a significant investment in technology, we wanted to ensure that we were empowering ourselves to bring new products to market quickly. The flexibility and scalability of BizTalk, coupled with the fact that the Microsoft BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT supports all SWIFT FIN messages, will provide the basis for the ongoing evolution and enhancement of our service offering."

Decillion employs a client driven design process, with a focus on platforms not products, to enable the development of highly customized solutions tailored to the specific business process of their clients. In the case of Cuscal, it was critical that the project went live before the annual change in SWIFT message standards which the old system was unable to process. With less than 6 months from project initiation to go-live, project management was critical to the success of the initiative. Anthony Saber, Cuscal Project Manger, in reviewing the project commented that "the commitment shown by Decillion staff to delivery of the project was outstanding. Moreover, in large complex projects such as this, the integration of teams is a critical component to the success of the project. I was particularly impressed with the ability of the Decillion staff to integrate into our working environment and work together with us as one team."