Calls for Swift to tap Web 2.0

In a lively conference session on the opening morning of Sibos 2008, Till Guldimann, vice chairman of SunGard, told delegates that the increasing use of Web 2.0 technology was "a wake up call for Swift".

Guldimann put forward a proposal that would see the interbank network use Web 2.0 technologies to fight off the challenge posed by outfits like PayPal. The eBay subsidiary has a rapidly increasing share of the retail payments market - especially in the US - and may eye the wholesale markets in future.

Essentially Guldimann said that Swift could become the "Fedex of cash" if it were to establish a Web services hub.

Swift could then invite its members to voluntarily contribute payment details to the Web services platform, said Guldimann. This would enable all funds to be tracked at every stage of the transaction - in the same way a package sent by Fedex can be tracked through to delivery.

Guldimann's presentation was part of a colourful conference session on Web 2.0 on the opening morning of Sibos. Guldimann was joined by Peter Hinssen, CEO, A-cross and Joachim Von Heimburg, director of corporate R&D, Procter & Gamble.

In a nutshell, this is what they all said: