SWIFT and banks in the Philippines join forces to achieve greater automation for Filipino corporates

The launch of the Philippines guidelines for Account Reporting (MT940) will help Filipino corporates optimise their finance operations

MANILA, Philippines, May 2, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- SWIFT announces today the publication of the Philippines (PH) MT940 guidelines, marking a successful completion of the first phase of the Corporate-to-Bank (C2B) initiative. Announced in January 2016, the initiative aims at aligning the communications standards between corporates and banks in the domestic Filipino market. The guidelines were developed with the support of 25 global and local banks along with 10 corporates including Ayala Land, Globe, and Meralco.

Leveraging international best practices and keeping in mind the Filipino market specific requirements, the initiative will bring greater levels of automation and standardisation to multi-banked corporates, enabling improved straight through processing (STP) using MT940 for auto-reconciliation of bank statements and consolidated cash visibility, all on one single platform. By providing a forum to define enhanced standardisation in the Philippines financial community, SWIFT is playing an essential role as it brings the community together to identify and overcome current challenges.

The first phase of the C2B initiative is now completed with the launch of the Account reporting (MT940) guidelines for the Philippines. The initiative is carrying on with its mission to develop a standard language for Corporate-to-Bank message flow in accordance with global and domestic market practices. The next phases will see the C2B initiative defining common standards for payment instructions (Phase 2), foreign exchange confirmations, fixed deposits and fixed loans confirmation (Phase 3). The C2B initiative will bring greater alignment between corporates and banks on financial requirements. SWIFT is committed to enable the PH C2B guidelines and foresees strong adoption by the financial community of these newly developed standards in the coming months.

Lisa O'Connor, Head of Standards, Asia Pacific at SWIFT said: "It is great to see so many banks and corporates participating to SWIFT's Corporate-To-Bank initiative. The launch of the PH MT940 guidelines is a display of the industry's capability in collaborative innovation. We live in a world of speed and interconnectivity. When it comes to guidelines, focus on standardisation should be a priority with international regulations and making sure auto reconciliation goes smoothly. Our C2B initiative will drive improved communication between corporates and banks following global standards. This is a great project for SWIFT and the domestic Filipino community through the drive to improve existing message flow and combine it with well-defined international standards to support the strongly developing Filipino economy. As the community becomes more aware of the value of these guidelines, we expect an increase in adoption."

Isabelita M. Papa, Philippines NMG Chairperson and SWIFT User Group Chairperson said: "This initiative is a further proof of the power of collaboration as the Philippines community and SWIFT came together to align the communication standards between corporates and banks. In the larger context of ASEAN integration, this is a critical step to drive efficiency in the Filipino economy as it aligns closely with AEC 2025 goals and global trends such as ISO 20022 adoption. The Corporates-to-Banks initiative is a fantastic example of the private sector responding to these evolving needs".

Notes to Editor:

In addition to the participation of the central bank of the Republic of the Philippines, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, below is the full list of banks that took part and actively supported the development of the guidelines:

About SWIFT for Corporates

SWIFT for Corporates offers a wide and growing range of products and services for multi-banked corporates to connect with banks and financial institutions through a single, secure and reliable channel. SWIFT provides corporate treasurers and finance managers global visibility on cash and trade, lower cost of financial transactions and improved security and reliability. SWIFT for Corporates also includes additional capabilities such as Bank Payment Obligation (BPO)/Trade Services Utility (TSU), 3SKey, SWIFTRef, MyStandards and Sanctions Screening. For more information, visit http://corporates.swift.com/

About SWIFT

SWIFT is a global member-owned cooperative and the world's leading provider of secure financial messaging services. We provide our community with a platform for messaging, standards for communicating and we offer products and services to facilitate access and integration; identification, analysis and financial crime compliance. Our messaging platform, products and services connect more than 11,000 banking and securities organisations, market infrastructures and corporate customers in more than 200 countries and territories, enabling them to communicate securely and exchange standardised financial messages in a reliable way. As their trusted provider, we facilitate global and local financial flows, support trade and commerce all around the world; we relentlessly pursue operational excellence and continually seek ways to lower costs, reduce risks and eliminate operational inefficiencies. Headquartered in Belgium, SWIFT's international governance and oversight reinforces the neutral, global character of its cooperative structure. SWIFT's global office network ensures an active presence in all the major financial centres.

For more information, visit www.swift.com or follow us on Twitter: @swiftcommunity and LinkedIn: SWIFT

Contact:
Kathy Kwan
Communications Specialist, Asia Pacific
SWIFT
+852-2107-8451
kathy.kwan@swift.com

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