Swiss begin move to ISO 20022
(6 April 2017 – Switzerland) In what may become the country’s largest financial infrastructure project in nearly 400 years, Switzerland has begun the countdown to a whole of market switch to the ISO 20022 standard for payments harmonisation across all consumer, corporate and bank payments.
The move will see Swiss financial institutions complete the changeover to the new standard by the end of this year, while corporates aim to switch by mid-2018.
The project, which is being overseen by market infrastructure provider SIX, marks a response to an inexorable rise in electronic payments, currently accounting for 74 percent of all consumer transactions.
The changeover will also align with a global switch to ISO 20022, raising the prospect of cross-border payments harmonisation based on a proven and future-proof standard.
The seven different payment slips currently in place within the country will be replaced by a QR code (a digital bar code) containing all the data for the payment. The new process, called QR-bill, is aimed at streamlining the processing of bills and credit transfers for companies and consumers.
Companies can print the QR-bill themselves and the recipient can action payment via their smartphone or mobile device. Incorrect entries of payment information will be displayed directly in e-Banking and business software, and can be immediately corrected, saving time and investigation orders.
In the course of the harmonisation, the currently varying direct debit procedures of PostFinance and the other banks will also be aligned, providing for an end-to-end payment process from biller to bill recipient.
Companies and organisations with an operating or an ERP system will be required to adapt their systems to ISO 20022, replace current account codes with standardised Ibans and discuss the process and timing with their respective financial institution and software suppliers.
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