SASFS – Swiss Association for Swift & Financial Standards

Required knowledge

• Knowledge of (inter)national standards bodies 

“When it comes to developing standards, only the best experts will do.” An apt and timeless statement by Professor Max Engeli, who in 1973 designed the message standards architecture for the Swift network, the structure of which is still in use 50 years later.

Yes, we are dealing with standards at SASFS. However, they are not only Swift standards, but also ISO standards for the financial sector, more specifically for the ISO 68 “Financial Services” technical committee and its subcommittees and various working groups. SASFS is the Swiss and Liechtenstein financial markets’ link to Swift and ISO. It maintains specialized and Transversal Committees that mirror the ISO committees in their respective areas of expertise. These specialists prepare assessments and requests for amendments to proposals for all financial issues raised in Swift and ISO. The aim is to provide our markets with what we believe is needed for the development or refinement of standards, always taking into account global developments. As we regularly hear from the “outside world,” constructive and technically sound input from the Swiss and Liechtenstein community is highly appreciated and accepted by other communities. The SASFS is the body to which you too can address your concerns regarding standards relevant to our financial center.

But SASFS is much more than that. It is the result of the merger of the Swiss Commission for Financial Standardization and the National Member & User Group of Swift in Switzerland, under the auspices of the Swiss Bankers Association. We are organized as an association. Membership is designed to be open, as it is in our interest to represent and integrate as many different interested and affected stakeholders as possible. After all, standardization only works if it is implemented, and therefore experienced. For years, technological progress in the financial sector has been rapid, highly complex, and challenging, as have the legal issues that accompany the efforts at standardization efforts. In this way, IT can look forward to pre-checking data between the sender and recipient of messages, enabling automated, error-free, efficient, and equally cost-effective processing. On the other hand, such intentions may also be associated with legal issues. Often, these challenges result from differing conditions or interpretations in the various jurisdictions that apply these standards.

Global Best Practices

Next, it's a matter of best practices that need to be coordinated and agreed upon at a global level. This is also the role of the SASFS and its committees: to coordinate and formulate opinions on topics related to the application and development of standards. And from time to time, we are contacted by Swiss members of international committees, such as the Payments Market Practice Group, to discuss specific issues from our community's point of view. These are all areas of tension that require solutions. And everywhere, our voice counts and our contribution is valued.

The SASFS Board is made up of delegates from large, medium, and small institutions. There are also representatives from various sectors, such as Swift Corporate Group Switzerland and Swiss Fintech Innovations. SIX as an infrastructure service provider with its various business areas is also represented, as are national and international bodies such as swissSPTC and PMPG. The committee’s permanent guests are the two Swiss board members of Swift and Swift Switzerland.

The current focus is on payments. But as the markets around us evolve, we want and need to address securities and post-trade issues more intensively in the future. Just think of the harmonization efforts within the EU and the desire to shorten settlement cycles.

What’s In for Me?

I've had the pleasure of leading the SASFS as President since 2022, and I'm always fascinated by the variety of topics that are dealt with in the committees or that are submitted to me. I also see even more clearly how useful our work is for the financial center and its development. You may think that none of this concerns me, that a service provider will do it for me and implement all the necessary changes. In many cases that is true. But before a service provider implements anything, there has to be specialist work, coordination (national and international), and consensus building. Not everything is “handed down from on high.” No, there’s a lot more to it than that, which is rarely seen, but very important. And all of you are involved in one way or another (actively or passively) through your work. But you can also have your say and participate in the organization.

Our members regularly receive Swift meeting materials and board papers. So you’re on the front line of information. And we plan to extend that frontline even further in the future to get closer to our members and gather their feedback. Towards the end of 2023, we plan to host regular webinars for our members, where Swift will provide updates on current developments and trends, as well as a forum for discussion and other topics.

For more in-depth information about the SASFS, I encourage you to visit our website. In addition to technical articles, our bylaws, a presentation of our network, and an overview of our commissions and members, you will also be able to register for the upcoming webinars.

If you or your institution is already a member of the SASFS, please take advantage of this unique opportunity to learn more about us. This also applies to current non-members. Please contact our office or me directly.

Denise Tischhauser
President, SASFS