Blockchain/distributed ledger technology (DLT) is taking the spotlight at the SIBOS conference in Toronto this week, put on by the financial messaging services and systems cooperative SWIFT. SWIFT itself has a preliminary report on its DLT efforts while vendors R3 and Calypso Technology announced a DLT pilot for BBVA and BBVA Bancomer, and BNP Paribas… Read More >>
AcadiaSoft’s Consulting Services Target Non-Cleared Derivatives
AcadiaSoft Introduces New Suite of Services AcadiaSoft Inc., the Norwell, Mass.-based provider of margin automation solutions, has launched AcadiaSoft Expert Services, a suite of consultative offerings targeting securities firms complying with new regulations, officials say. The first available offering within Expert Services is AcadiaSoft’s ISDA SIMM Approval Guidance, a service that to assist firms via… Read More >>
The Bangladesh Bank Hacking Case Remains Unsolved
The SWIFT financial messaging cooperative, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and Bangladesh Bank quietly issued a statement this week revealing that they are still trying to resolve “the cyber fraud event that occurred in February 2016.” I found the cryptic communique (apparently written by Mohua Mohosin, deputy general manager, Bangladesh Bank) as I was… Read More >>
Actiance & Hootsuite Sign Social Media Compliance Pact
Vendors to Target Global Compliance for Social Media Actiance, a digital compliance, archiving, and analytics vendor, has signed a global partnership with Hootsuite, a social media management platform provider, to offer a comprehensive compliance solution for financial services firms. The partnership will combine Hootsuite’s platform with Actiance’s Socialite offering for compliance across public social… Read More >>
Six CSDs Join T2S Push via SWIFT
In the largest migration to date, the Wave 4 group of the Target 2 Securities (T2S) effort saw six central securities depositories (CSD) going live, doubling the volumes on the pan-European securities settlement platform. This brings the total to 18 CSDs from 16 countries representing more than 80 percent of European securities. Five of the… Read More >>
SWIFT’s DLT Sandbox to Help Securities Solutions Too
The SWIFT cooperative for financial messaging systems recently announced that it is exploring how distributed ledger technology (DLT)/blockchain can help its global payments system. Upon further digging, I found out that the “underlying DLT sandbox” will be helpful in testing other proof-of-concepts (PoCs) such as one to come for securities processing. To quickly recap, SWIFT… Read More >>
Hackers Still Targeting SWIFT Customers
Apparently, some customers of the SWIFT cooperative for financial messaging and related systems have been enduring an onslaught of cyber-attacks, even throughout the end of 2016 and after SWIFT began pushing to make cyber protections mandatory. A SWIFT public relations representative confirmed last week that a letter was sent to customers in early November, a… Read More >>
SEC to Explore DLT at Nov. 14 Fintech Forum
Second SEC Panel Focuses on Clearing and Settlement SEC officials and industry participants will explore distributed ledger technology (DLT) and other IT innovations impacting trading, settlement and clearing via a panel session during the regulator’s Fintech Forum, slated for Nov. 14, at the SEC’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. The forum, which is open to the… Read More >>
SWIFT Customers Under New Cyber-Attack
The customers of the SWIFT cooperative for financial messaging and related systems are facing a new set of cyber-attacks, a month after SWIFT unveiled an effort to make cyber protections mandatory. The new attack upon SWIFT clients was discovered by anti-virus/anti-malware vendor Symantec, which is identifying the culprit as the “Odinaff group,” which while challenging… Read More >>
SWIFT Pushes Mandatory Cyber-Security at SIBOS
Financial messaging and systems cooperative SWIFT underscored its commitment to cyber-security protections at its SIBOS conference in Geneva last week with a set of core security standards and an associated assurance framework that the cooperative is making mandatory for all customers. Throughout this year, SWIFT officials have been grappling with a series of cyber-attacks among… Read More >>
