Bank Collaborations Key To Faster Payment Initiatives

SWIFT’s latest product launch signals its continued efforts to accelerate and boost transparency in global B2B payments. But it’s also a reflection of the importance of industry collaboration between banks and FinTech innovators, with traditional financial institutions (FIs) often an important vehicle to test and quickly roll out the newest disruptive solutions.

BBVA Hops Onto SWIFT’s New X-Border Payments Tool

SWIFT announced the launch of its SWIFT Go solution this week, an accelerated cross-border payments service for low-value transactions. Designed to move and settle funds in seconds with enhanced transparency, SWIFT Go was built for consumers and small businesses for a variety of use cases, including SMBs’ global supplier payment needs. The technology is built on SWIFT’s gpi rails and key to gaining traction is collaboration with financial institutions.

Among the first banks to adopt the solution is Spain’s BBVA, which announced that it has completed its initial pilot testing of SWIFT Go. The bank is joined by BNY Mellon, CNB, MYBank, UniCredit, SberBank and Société Générale.

In the statement, SWIFT Chief Product Officer Stephen Gilderdale said, “This new service will allow banks to compete effectively in one of the fastest-growing segments of the payments market, delivering a seamless experience for their customers.”

Mambu Boasts Flexibility For Small Business Lenders

Banking-as-a-Service FinTech Mambu is rolling out a new solution for banks to optimize their small business lending operations with greater flexibility. The firm said this week that its fully digital SMB lending tool can accelerate time-to-market for banks and other lenders. In addition to loan management, the platform enables identity authentication, credit check and loan origination solutions.

“Small businesses have been greatly affected by the pandemic. Whether that’s starting a new company or growing an existing one, there’s never been a bigger requirement for [SMB] lenders to offer the services their customers need,” said Elliott Limb, Mambu’s chief customer officer, in a statement. “And with Mambu’s composable approach we provide an agile way for our clients to build and shape new financial services around the businesses they want to help.”

Infosys Finacle, Santander U.K. Team Up For Cash Management

Santander UK is turning to FinTech Infosys Finacle to upgrade its cash management platform. A recent announcement said Santander UK has debuted its international cash management solution, a part of the bank’s broader digital transformation initiatives, and a tool that is powered by the Finacle Cash Management Suite that includes online banking, payments and liquidity management solutions. Santander will link its corporate and commercial customers to the platform, currently operating in pilot mode, to manage cash and liquidity on a global scale.

“This new platform will allow us to support UK businesses of all sizes to seamlessly manage their international transaction and cash management banking needs,” said John Carroll, head of International and Transactional Banking, Santander UK. “It will also help us to develop and grow relationships with existing customers and support the international growth needs of new customers. There has never been a more important and exciting time for businesses to consider international expansion.”

Yapily Secures Funding For Open Banking Technology

U.K.-based Yapily operates open banking infrastructure to support third parties looking to embed financial services into their own solutions. The firm allows those companies to integrate with the financial data of their customers and initiate payments under U.K. open banking regulations. Investors at Sapphire Ventures have led a $51 million Series B investment round in the company, which Yapily said will be used to expand into new markets, including France and Spain. As Open Banking regulations proliferate, the company said it plans to follow suit and move beyond Europe.