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ING Investment Management has chosen Microsoft BizTalk Server 2006 to enable SWIFT connectivity into The Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (BNYM), the settlement counterparty appointed by ING for back-office operations. Having completed the proof of concept, the project is due to go live by the end of 2008 and will enable a timely transfer of settlement instructions and receipt and reconciliation of messages from BNYM. Coupled with a reduction in the number of parties involved in the transaction, these methods are expected to transform ING Investment Management's securities and payments processing to provide a significant, highly efficient message processing structure.

Using Microsoft BizTalk Server including BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT, ING will gain the ability to exchange the complete set of ISO 15022 securities and payments messages directly from their internal applications to increase straight-through processing (STP), support compliance needs and reduce risk. "We were looking for a solution where we could maintain our existing ING architecture, and one that was cost effective, easy to implement and offering more control and visibility of our business processes," said Thomas Schreier, senior vice president, Information Technology, ING Investment Management, in a press release. "Microsoft's BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT achieves all of this without adding complexity or causing disruption to our existing business operations. Microsoft's solution provides us with the required interoperability, reliability and flexibility for rapidly creating and deploying SWIFT-based financial messaging solutions as well as meeting our customers' needs more efficiently and effectively," he said.

In addition, by using Microsoft BizTalk Server, ING will be able to efficiently transmit information to and from a newly established, centralized data storage system. This system will allow the firm to handle the expected increase of transactions that the business will face in the future as part of its expansion plans. "The investment management industry is changing at a rapid pace," said Dayle Scher, research director, Investment Management, TowerGroup, in the press release. "Asset managers need to support increasing volumes and support new securities and portfolio strategies. By outsourcing back-office operations, some of the pressure placed on the operations area can be relieved, allowing the firm to focus on its core activities of investing and providing value to its customers," he added.