TARGET2-Securities (T2S)

 

T2S Pricing

SWIFT, in agreement with the Banca d’Italia and in line with its tender process, has decided to provide a standalone T2S price list up to the T2S live date. This price list covers all the SWIFT T2S products and services that make up the SWIFT solution which meets the T2S tender requirements. In order to obtain this T2S price list and/or customised quotes for SWIFT products and services to connect to T2S, please contact your SWIFT sales representative. He/she will help you assess your needs and provide a formal quotation for the T2S configuration and services you require.

TARGET2-Securities (T2S) is a European initiative, coordinated by the European Central Bank (ECB), to establish a single platform for the settlement of securities. T2S aims to improve the efficiency and safety of securities settlement by providing harmonised Delivery-versus-Payment (DvP) settlement in central bank money on a real-time gross basis. It will not be a central securities depository (CSD) but will provide services to CSDs. CSDs that opt to settle using T2S will continue to provide other services to their clients as they do now.

SWIFT's involvement with T2S began in 2006, when SWIFT was selected as the sole network provider for TARGET2, the Eurosystem real time gross settlement system that will handle the cash settlement process for T2S.

For more information on T2S please visit the ECB website

SWIFT and T2S

SWIFT has two roles in the T2S project:

1. Supporting Standards
2. Network and services provider

1. Supporting standards

The T2S project was launched on 17 July 2008 by the ECB and 4 Central Banks (4CB), Banco de España, Banque de France, Banca d'Italia and Deutsche Bundesbank.

SWIFT Standards has been involved in the project from the beginning, helping to develop the messages required to support the agreed user requirements.

The work on messages to be used by T2S can be divided into two work-streams:

(i) Specification, development and maintenance of new and existing messages
(ii) Obtaining ISO 20022 registration.

From a timing aspect, the two work-streams are running concurrently.

For the first work-stream, there are three categories of messages:

Pillar I messages are existing ISO 20022 standard messages. Maintenance requests for these messages may be submitted to the ISO 20022 registration body to adapt them for use by T2S. The 4CB are working together with SWIFT Standards as the ISO registration authority to prepare the maintenance requests.

Pillars II and III are messages yet to be developed.

Pillar II messages will be used more widely than T2S and will be developed by SWIFT Standards. Development of these messages will be driven mainly by the 4CB and T2S requirements.

Pillar III messages are T2S-specific and will be developed mainly by the 4CB with SWIFT Standards providing technical and consultancy support.

The dedicated sub-group on message standardisation set up by the T2S Advisory Group in November 2008 provides additional expertise.

In the second work-stream, ISO20022 registration will follow standard procedures.
The ISO 20022 Registration Authority, which is operated by SWIFT, ensures that messages are developed in accordance with ISO 20022 rules. These guarantee that messages are not limited only for use with a particular network or service provider.

2. Network and services provider

Following a public procurement process run by the Banca d’Italia on behalf of the Central Banks of the Eurosystem, SWIFT has been awarded a licence to provide connectivity services to T2S.

As a future Network Service Provider, SWIFT will design, implement, deliver and operate its own connectivity solution for the secure exchange of business information, in ISO 20022 format, between directly connected T2S participants and the T2S platform.

Following the execution of a licence agreement with the Eurosytem, SWIFT will proceed to the implementation of a proof of concept (POC) of its T2S connectivity solution during the first half of 2012.

SWIFT is perfectly positioned to provide connectivity to T2S, offering unrivalled business continuity and availability, relevant expertise, ease of integration, cost efficiency and a range of consulting services to support our customers in their T2S implementations. These will include services around ISO 20022 standards, project management, business consultancy, gap analysis and later technical implementation.

We are confident our T2S solution will offer the widest geographic coverage and the highest levels of service availability at the best price, in line with our commitment to helping our community transition to a T2S environment with maximum efficiency and at least cost.

For more information on SWIFT's work with T2S, please contact Oreste Di Francesco.