Misys is currently building and testing a Swift Service Bureau that it expects to go live in December for an official launch in early 2004. The service is based on the infrastructure and expertise it acquired earlier this year when it bought Crossmar Matching Service (CMS) from Citicorp subsidiary Crossmar.
When Misys acquired CMS for US$13 million in April it was claimed that it would enable future Application Service Provider (ASP) hosted service development across other Misys banking products. The new Swift Service Bureau is evidence of this.
Bob Chomut, business line manager at Misys Wholesale Banking Systems, says that there has been strong demand from the vendor's clients for such a service.
"Most of the interest has come from medium-sized firms in the asset management community. Although financial messaging is critical for these companies, they don't see the Swift infrastructure in the same way as banks," he says. "For them, the operational aspects of networks and connectivity are not considered a core part of the business, so outsourcing is an attractive option for meeting their messaging needs."
Misys says its service will benefit clients because they can also make use of its related software such as Meridien middleware without having to manage multiple vendor relationships. The company also intends to provide services for bank and corporate connectivity to Member Administered Closed User Groups.
Chomut adds that Misys will be showcasing the new service bureau at the industry forum and vendor show held by the International Securities Association for Institutional Trade Communication (ISITC) in Boston in March.