Cyberplat, a major operator of cash and electronic payment services, has a product ready that can serve as a functional analog of the global interbank financial notification exchange system SWIFT for domestic operations.
Cyberplat sent information about its product, CyberFT, to almost 300 Russian banks, reported Russian tech publication CNews.ru.
The CyberFT software, according to Cyberplat representatives, was developed by domestic specialists and all its servers are located within the Russian Federation. Thus, the company says, the system maximally conforms to national security criteria and the latest legislation on localizing financial transactions within the country.
At the end of August, Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseev stated that the ministry, in conjunction with the Central Bank, had prepared a draft law that would make it possible to create an analog to SWIFT in Russia. It was said that the new law would require financial organizations to carry out transactions within Russia using this system.
Meanwhile, Russia does not intend to compete with SWIFT for international data transfers, which would require agreements with other countries.
Cyberplat claims it is cooperating on this project with Russia’s Central Bank – which that institution declined to confirm or deny.
Should tightening sanctions cause Russian banks to be blocked from access to SWIFT (a precedent for that was set in Iran in 2012), it would have a negative impact on their ability to make interbank settlements and process client payments in foreign currency inside the country. Thus, Cyberplat’s product is being positioned as a supplement to SWIFT that will reduce such risks.
Source: CNews.ru