Society For Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication - Products and Interfaces

Products and Interfaces

SWIFT means several things in the financial world:

1. a secure network for transmitting messages between financial institutions;
2. a set of syntax standards for financial messages (for transmission over SWIFTNet or any other network)
3. a set of connection software and services, allowing financial institutions to transmit messages over SWIFT network.

Under 3 above, SWIFT provides turn-key solutions for members, consisting of linkage clients to facilitate connectivity to the SWIFT network and CBTs or 'computer based terminals' which members use to manage the delivery and receipt of their messages. Some of the more well-known interfaces and CBTs provided to their members are:

• SWIFTNet Link (SNL) software which is installed on the SWIFT customer's site and opens a connection to SWIFTNet. Other applications can only communicate with SWIFTNet through the SNL.
• Alliance Gateway (SAG) software with interfaces (e.g., RAHA = Remote Access Host Adapter), allowing other software products to use the SNL to connect to SWIFTNet
• Alliance WebStation (SAB) desktop interface for SWIFT Alliance Gateway with several usage options:

1. administrative access to the SAG
2. direct connection SWIFTNet by the SAG, to administrate SWIFT Certificates
3. so-called Browse connection to SWIFTNet (also by SAG) to use additional services, for example Target2

• Alliance Access (SAA) is the main messaging software by SWIFT, which allows message creation only for FIN messages, but routing and monitoring for FIN and MX messages. The main interfaces are FTA (files transfer automated, not FTP) and MQSA, a Websphere MQ interface.
• The Alliance Workstation (SAW) is the desktop software for administration, monitoring and FIN message creation. Since Alliance Access is not yet capable of creating MX messages, Alliance Messenger (SAM) has to be used for this purpose.
• Alliance Web Platform (SWP) as new thin-client desktop interface provided as an alternative to existing Alliance WebStation, Alliance Workstation (soon) and Alliance Messenger.
• Alliance Intergator built on Oracle's Java Caps which enables customer's back office applications to connect to Alliance Access or Alliance Entry.
• Alliance Lite2 is a secure and reliable, cloud-based way to connect to the SWIFT network which is a Lite version of Alliance Access specifically targetting customers with low volume of traffic.