Swift is extending the reach of its KYC Registry by opening up the platform to corporates from Q4 2019, it has announced.
The KYC Registry is an online portal for financial institutions to exchange institutional KYC Due Diligence information. The platform allows banks to share KYC data and documents with their correspondents in a secure, standardised and controlled way, as well to get access to their correspondents’ complete and validated KYC profiles, resulting in efficiency and cost savings in KYC processes.
Once opened up to corporates, all 2,000 Swift-connected corporate groups will be able to join The KYC Registry, and use it to upload, maintain and share their KYC information with their banks.
The move is predicted to be transformational for corporates, especially those who use a range of banks in different jurisdictions around the world, with whom they need to exchange information to enable KYC checks. Data is held in different places and is often incomplete or out of date, making the process time consuming for both corporates and their banks. The absence of uniformity, differing jurisdictional requirements and the lack of standardised data across the corporate KYC space increases these inefficiencies further.
The opening up of the registry will enable corporates to upload standard information to The KYC Registry as well as to exchange other KYC-relevant documents that are requested by their banks, thereby ensuring the highest level of usability of the platform. Banks will benefit by having access to corporates’ information through the same central repository they use for their correspondent KYC checks, thereby enabling efficient data sharing through a secure central utility, eliminating duplication and inefficiency.
Marie-Charlotte Henseval, Head of KYC Compliance Services, said: “Corporate treasurers cite KYC as one of the top three challenges they face in their bank relationships. We’re pleased to be extending what is already the largest KYC registry for banks in the world to corporate customers. This unique and well-established utility already delivers huge benefits to banks, and its extension to corporates will extend them the same advantages, with a standard agreed by the community and a secure platform enabling efficient data sharing.”
Stephan Ziegler, Head of Bank Relations at Siemens Treasury, said: “As a global corporation, the efforts of Siemens to perform KYC-related tasks across the institution is a repetitive, lengthy and a cumbersome process. At Siemens Treasury we are constantly looking for ways to increase our efficiency. With Swift announcing KYC for Corporates, we are delighted to see a well-positioned player moving ahead to answer this need with the full strength of its banking and corporate community.”