The bank now joins 550 banks in over 200 countries to offer the service which also provides transparency on charges involved and allows end-to-end real-time tracking

by ASILA JALIL/ pic by MUHD AMIN NAHARUL

BANK Islam Malaysia Bhd has implemented the SWIFT Global Payment Innovation (GPI) allowing faster cross-border payment transfer to increase efficiency in international payments and helping drive its fee-based income.

The bank now joins 550 banks in over 200 countries to offer the service which also provides transparency on charges involved and allows end-to-end real-time tracking without compromising compliance obligations.

Bank Islam CEO Mohd Muazzam Mohamed (picture) said the bank hopes to see an increment in foreign remittance volume by at least 15% with the implementation of SWIFT GPI and complement the bank’s target on fee-based income within the next 12 months.

He said the implementation of the service marks a significant milestone for the bank in being one of the few banks in the country to sign up and provide SWIFT GPI service.

“This initiative will not only enhance customers experience, but also increase business efficiencies. Bank Islam’s corporate customers now are in a better position to pay for international goods and services in a fraction of the time, shorten their supply cycles and reduce their exposure to foreign-exchange (forex) risks, as well as receive the real-time end-to-end view of their cross-border payments, costs and charges involved,” he said in a statement recently.

Mohd Muazzam added that Bank Islam could instantly stop payment in case of fraud or error, no matter where they are in the GPI transaction chain.

SWIFT is a global member-owned cooperative and provider of secure financial messaging services that facilitates global and local financial flows and supports trade and commerce worldwide.

Its 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.

Since its launch in 2017, SWIFT GPI allows multi-bank corporates to initiate and track payments across multiple banks directly from their treasury and payment systems.

The service has been taken up by 3,550 financial institutions worldwide including 60 top banking groups on SWIFT. It is expected that all institutions on the SWIFT network will adopt the GPI by the end of 2020.

Mohd Muazzam noted that the bank has received the SWIFT Straight-Through Processing (STP) Award by Citibank Malaysia for the past three years.

The award is in acknowledgement of Bank Islam registering STP in remittance and clearing rates of 95% and above for its US dollar payments sent for processing to Citibank Bhd.

“This prestigious award proves the level of effectiveness in adhering to correct SWIFT format and standards. This is indeed an honour and reflects positively on the bank for the high execution success rate.

“Going forward, we will continuously improve our internal payment processes to ensure we achieve and maintain the highest possible standard,” he said.

Bank Islam SWIFT GPI service is available at Bank Islam 144 branches nationwide.