Citi unveils digitized documentation for cross-border payments

By Pavithra R

Citi has unveiled a new service for its institutional clients to speed up the processing of cross-border payments through the digitization of supporting documents.

The service significantly streamlines and eases the processing of overseas payments by bringing together cross-border payment instructions and documents on a single electronic platform. The service will initially be rolled out in South Africa.

“At Citi, we’re investing heavily in digital technologies and platforms to simplify, integrate and automate our clients’ payment and FX-related activities, end-to-end. Our ultimate objective is to create frictionless payments that can be delivered electronically and uniformly, 24/7, to any country, via any channel and in any currency. This new service brings us a step closer to that goal,” said Manish Kohli, Global Head of Payments and Receivables, Treasury and Trade Solutions, Citi.

When companies initiate cross-border payments, they have to submit supporting documents to their banks to meet various FX control and regulatory reporting requirements. Till now, these documents were received and processed separate from corresponding payment instructions and required manual interventions to link them. With Citi’s new service, documents can be completed, processed and tracked digitally via Citi’s CitiDirect BE electronic banking platform. The platform provides users with upfront details about the documentation and data requirements for different payment types.

The single-window service creates clear linkages between payments and related documents and cuts document fulfilment and processing times by more than half. Besides, users can leverage Citi Payment Insights to track the status of their documents on the platform and can also access valuable reporting and analytics that stregthens the management of cash and cross-border transactions.

“We have chosen to launch our programme in South Africa thanks to the digitization efforts of South African Reserve Bank (SARB) in the past couple of years. We recognize that completely digitizing clients’ cross-border payment processes helps them save time and money, and also respond faster to the demands of today’s global marketplace. Digitizing cross-border payments documentation processes also sets the stage for further innovation and deepening our engagement with various important stakeholders on how to achieve better sustainability outcomes, a theme that cannot be over-emphasized today,” said Esther Chibesa, Sub-Sahara Africa Head, Treasury and Trade Solutions, Citi.