Tue 18 - Thu 20 November 2008 - Frankfurt am Main, Exhibition Grounds, Hall 5.1
EU expansion: New challenges for finance industry
22 April 2004, Wiesbaden - The eastward expansion of the European Union presents new challenges for banks and insurance companies.
How to meet these challenges will be the subject of the leading trade fair in the financial industry, the European Banking and Insurance Fair (E.B.I.F.) in Frankfurt on the Main, Germany. It all begins on May 1: The European Union gains ten new members. Eight Eastern European countries, plus the island nations of Malta and Cyprus, will join the previous 15 members of the European community.
In order to get ready for EU membership, the new candidates have instituted many national reforms within the past few years – political, cultural and economic changes. And still, the differences between the old and new EU countries are great. This fact also has consequences for the finance and insurance industries. One of the primary questions is: How will payment transaction be carried out in the “New Europe”?
In the area of individual payment systems for large amounts, many diverse practices are being used. Various different payment systems exist side by side in Euroland today. Each country operates a so-called Real Time Gross Settlement System (RTGS) of its own to handle payment transactions. The “interpreter” between the diverse systems is an interlink to the TARGET system operated by the European Central Bank. It ensures the technical compatibility of the various systems. Originally, TARGET was planned to be expanded to include the new member states. But this turned out to be impossible in the short term, and would have greatly compromised the consistency of payment procedures. The big challenge in the coming years will be the integration of RTGS systems, some of which will use country-specific formats.
Solutions for these problems will be demonstrated at the upcoming E.B.I.F. For example, ABK Systems, a company headquartered in Dreieich, Germany, will be introducing its E.F.I.S platform at the fair. “E.F.I.S is already capable of receiving, checking and processing all incoming formats as well as accommodating all conventional settlement procedures,” explains Willi Kohl of ABK. “This includes the global standards SWIFT and EDIFACT in addition to formats used by various nations. Of course, within the framework of the Payment Factory, which is based on the E.F.I.S application, it is also possible to implement the procedures common to many Eastern European countries.”
In the insurance industry, the EU expansion has placed multi-lingual IT solutions in the spotlight. “Both in the back office and among the (external) sales force, everyone is looking for systems with a choice of language interfaces. The focus is on systems that are easily compatible with those used in Western Europe and which users in the new EU members states can operate without coming up against language barriers,” according to Uwe Becker of presales management. For the manufacturers of appropriate solution approaches, the E.B.I.F. is the ideal presentation platform.
European Banking & Insurance Fair 2004
Conference: Monday, 25 – Wednesday, 27 October 2004
Trade fair: Tuesday, 26 – Thursday, 28 October 2004
Location: Frankfurt/Main, Hall 3
Simultaneous with: LinuxWorld Conference & Expo
