ASX and IWL link up to offer fund processing
TheAustralian Stock Exchange(ASX) andIWLhave joined forces to provide a straight through processing service for the unlisted managed fund and superannuation industries.
Under the terms of an agreement announced today, the ASX will use IWL’s FundLink software as the core technology for its ASX FundConnect, the unlisted managed funds transaction processing service it plans to roll out in early 2003.
FundConnect’s aim is to link financial advisers, dealer groups, stockbrokers, fund managers, IDPS providers, custodians and margin lenders with automated transactions.
The agreement with IWL will allow for a more cost effective development path for FundConnect compared to the alternative of building the core technology from scratch.
Previously competitors in this market space as the industry hub, the two groups have been in discussion for the past six months, with IWL now assisting the ASX in assessing FundLink’s fit with ASX’s FundConnect’s business requirements.
It is expected this confirmation stage and further negotiations will take two months, after which the alliance will conclude.
However ASX executive general manager Clearing and Settlement Chris Hamilton says they are keen to establish some throughput with IWL using its connections with financial planners and dealer groups.
“We want to create an incentive to encourage its [IWL] customers to use FundConnect. It is all about critical mass,” he says.
Hamilton says the early adopters of FundConnect will be key industry players with market size and who can commit early. The success of FundConnect as an industry hub will rely on the support of key players in the funds managements arena as well as platform providers.
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