J Trust Royal Bank

Investing in technology

When J Trust acquired ANZ Royal Bank’s share of a joint banking venture, it rebranded to become J Trust Royal Bank (JTRB). It aimed to build on its proud legacy of banking innovation and modernisation services in Cambodia’s commercial market, servicing personal account holders and corporates of every size. To help achieve this, JTRB needed to connect to SWIFT’s worldwide financial community.

“It is our overarching goal to put customers at the centre of everything we do,” says Toru Myochin, CEO of J Trust Royal Bank.“We are here to support business customers as they grow their enterprises. To make banking with J Trust much more convenient for our customers, we have poured substantial resources into our technology.”

Finding the right bureau partner

JTRB wanted to efficiently interact with custodian banks, local market infrastructures, and corporate customers. To achieve this, the Bank needed to work with a best-in-class provider for SWIFT connectivity and, after reviewing various providers, chose Bottomline’s SWIFT Service Bureau. Underpinning this decision was Bottomline’s status as a top SWIFT service bureau globally.

The Bureau’s certification by SWIFT under the Shared Infrastructure Program provided an added level of assurance. This certification ensures the Bureau operates to exacting standards of security and resilience.

In addition to offering secure access to the SWIFT network, it was clear that Bottomline’s proven heritage and onboarding methodology would help the Bank navigate any complexity associated with setting up counterparty connectivity.

Migrating to a new SWIFT Service Bureau

“Bottomline demonstrated strong project management, clear documentation, responsive incident management and efficient coordination of the different elements and parties involved in the SWIFT project,” commented JTRB SWIFT Specialist.

JTRB benefits from a choice of secure internet protocols for SWIFT Connectivity, and the capability to transform, enrich and validate financial messages reduces the number of failed transactions.

“The transition process entailed complex restructuring work, involving changes to technology systems and internal process. Along with Bottomline’s deep domain expertise, there is significant and effective collaboration between our teams, who worked incredibly hard to make our change in partnership possible. This strong relationship was critical in enabling the Bank to go live on schedule,” commented Saly Lor, Chief Operating Officer, J Trust Royal Bank.

Cost-effective access to SWIFT

“Bottomline’s Bureau service gives us the technical infrastructure and expertise we need to connect to SWIFT. The Bureau also applies Annual MT Standards releases and ongoing SWIFT software releases and updates. This eliminates the need for us to invest in infrastructure, maintenance, and personnel to support our SWIFT messaging needs. These benefits have the potential to increase the Bank’s competitiveness in the market.

Outsourcing this service accelerated our ability to migrate to our own SWIFT connection. It’s given us a quick and cost-effective route to achieving SWIFT connectivity without taking on the administrative overhead of managing the SWIFT infrastructure. It’s also helped us reduce operational and technical costs. By using SWIFT messaging standards, we have seen high rates of STP for all our financial transactions, as well as enhanced visibility of the entire transaction lifecycle.”

Performance and innovation

A key long-term strategy is to increase customer-centricity by providing a broader range of products and services that meet customers’ changing needs globally. The project has played a vital part in meeting this goal. By leveraging automation and insights from a single data source, the Bank can predict which services might apply to new and existing customers and serve this to them more effectively.

JTRB offers world-class services and builds on the bank’s proud legacy of innovation and modernisation of banking in Cambodia (when ANZ Royal opened in 2005 it completely revolutionised financial services in the country as the first bank to offer ATMs, credit cards and internet banking). JTRB has already launched a new and improved internet banking experience, a mobile banking app (JTR Mobile), and overhauled its online cash management platform for corporate clients (JTR Connect). And with more growth and improvements underway, the financial future is brighter for JTRB customers.

“We are highly satisfied with both the service we receive from Bottomline and the quality of the SWIFT Bureau for our connectivity requirements. We look forward to continuing this relationship and working with Bottomline as our long-term strategic partner,” said Mr Saly Lor, Chief Operating Officer, J Trust Royal Bank.

JTRB has gained increased flexibility by using SWIFTNet message standards to meet the specific needs of the Bank and its counterparties. This flexibility allows the Bank to scale more effectively as it expands its global reach.