Revolutionizing the Financial Markets
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
22<br />
Sibos i2i Interview<br />
Kris Kubiena,<br />
International Sales Director, VocaLink<br />
Payments in 2016:<br />
Where next?<br />
There is a global move towards immediate payments,<br />
but that is only part of <strong>the</strong> story, as <strong>Financial</strong> IT<br />
learned in its interview with Kris Kubiena, VocaLink’s<br />
Proposition Delivery Director, at Sibos 2015<br />
Finantial IT: Kris, tell us about VocaLink.<br />
Kris: VocaLink is an interesting company: it is part of <strong>the</strong> UK’s critical<br />
national infrastructure and is <strong>the</strong> provider of <strong>the</strong> Faster Payments<br />
Service (which has securely processed over 4 billion payments since its<br />
launch in 2008), <strong>the</strong> UK ATM service and <strong>the</strong> ACH. Outside <strong>the</strong> UK, we<br />
are a provider of international payment solutions and, in particular,<br />
real-time payment solutions. The combination of operations<br />
experience and solution delivery means we can provide assistance to<br />
our clients based on real-world experience.<br />
Finantial IT: I think people do not realise just how much VocaLink<br />
underpins <strong>the</strong> new initiatives that are being released.<br />
Kris: We are <strong>the</strong> silent partner behind many of <strong>the</strong>se new innovations;<br />
VocaLink provides <strong>the</strong> technology for platforms to build upon. We<br />
understand <strong>the</strong> complexity <strong>the</strong> delivery and operation of national<br />
payment infrastructures and we aim to partner with and support in<br />
country stakeholders in <strong>the</strong> delivery and operation of <strong>the</strong>se services,<br />
Finantial IT: What are <strong>the</strong> industry trends that have led to <strong>the</strong> use<br />
of <strong>the</strong>se solutions?<br />
Kris: Instant payments seem to be a widely-discussed topic; however,<br />
it is no longer only about instant payments, as <strong>the</strong>y have become <strong>the</strong><br />
norm. Discussions now centre on instant payments combined with as<br />
e-commerce and m-commerce and alternative payments in general.<br />
We are now talking about solutions that help financial institutions to<br />
provide impactful products and services to corporates merchants and<br />
consumers. For example Thailand is in <strong>the</strong> process of implementing a<br />
service that enables payments to be made using a national ID and we<br />
expect this to be real-time<br />
Finantial IT: Is it fair to say that you’re merging <strong>the</strong> old with <strong>the</strong> new<br />
and being more innovative with <strong>the</strong> infrastructure you’re providing,<br />
and can you give us more information?<br />
Kris: Ra<strong>the</strong>r than merging <strong>the</strong> old with <strong>the</strong> new, I think it is instead<br />
<strong>the</strong> new with <strong>the</strong> new. In <strong>the</strong> UK VocaLink launched <strong>the</strong> Faster<br />
Payments Service in 2008 and at <strong>the</strong> time it was considered to be a<br />
significant step forward in payments capability. However Singapore<br />
has implemented our new Immediate Payments Solution and <strong>the</strong>ir<br />
FAST service is functionally richer than Faster Payments in <strong>the</strong> UK.<br />
Consequently we have found ourselves working on enhancing our UK<br />
propositions based on our international solutions.<br />
Whilst we’re really proud of <strong>the</strong> technology we have, something that<br />
differentiates us is our experience as an operator. While technology<br />
is king –it is not just about <strong>the</strong> technology. There also needs to be an<br />
understanding of how to operate it. Instant Payments services need to<br />
be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Delivering<br />
truly excellent service is always based on a combination of technology<br />
and proven operating procedures and processes, and our ability to<br />
combine operational experience with leading edge technology is one<br />
of <strong>the</strong> key things we bring to our relationships in this industry.<br />
Finantial IT: As a leader in <strong>the</strong> payments industry, what do you see<br />
going forward?<br />
Kris: I think <strong>the</strong> next exciting development in <strong>the</strong> payments industry<br />
will be cross-border interoperability. VocaLink has recently<br />
announced a deal with The Clearing House to bring real-time<br />
payments to <strong>the</strong> U.S. and Europe is now looking very hard at<br />
implementing real-time services I believe that <strong>the</strong> next step will<br />
be to interoperate in real-time: if a consumer can make crossborder,<br />
instant payments using <strong>the</strong>ir mobile device – or any o<strong>the</strong>r<br />
device in fact – that is going to be a very exciting innovation. This<br />
development should have a dramatic impact on <strong>the</strong> way in which<br />
international business is carried out, as well as providing <strong>the</strong> global<br />
economy with a growth dividend.<br />
Finantial IT: VocaLink’s solutions underpin individual countries –<br />
will <strong>the</strong> next step be getting those countries to speak toge<strong>the</strong>r?<br />
Kris: The next step is to enable individual countries’ solutions to speak<br />
toge<strong>the</strong>r. The ASEAN (Association of Sou<strong>the</strong>ast Asian Nations)<br />
countries have an ambition to become interoperable throughout<br />
<strong>the</strong> region and VocaLink is delighted to be involved in some of those<br />
discussions. In Europe, although a single payments area exists, <strong>the</strong><br />
individual countries have <strong>the</strong>ir own real-time payment systems<br />
which will have to interoperate cross-borders and will be a very<br />
interesting development. Finally, <strong>the</strong> new national real-time system<br />
in <strong>the</strong> U.S. brings <strong>the</strong> world’s largest payments market into <strong>the</strong> mix,<br />
and is a huge step towards building a global, ubiquitous real-time<br />
payment solution.