Citi has launched a new service that digitises supporting documents to speed up the process of cross-border payments.

The service, initially being rolled out in South Africa, brings together in a single electronic platform the once-separate submission of cross-border payment instructions and documents associated with them.

When companies initiate cross-border payments they need to submit supporting documents to their banks to meet various regulatory requirements. As standard, these documents are received and processed separately from corresponding payment instructions, which requires manual interventions to link them.

But Citi’s new service enables documents to be completed, processed and tracked digitally via Citi’s CitiDirect BE electronic banking platform

“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,” said, Shahmir Khaliq, global head, Treasury and Trade Solutions (“TTS”), Citi. “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.”

Esther Chibesa, Sub-Sahara Africa head, TTS, Citi, said: “Completely digitising clients’ cross-border payment processes helps them save time and money, and also respond faster to the demands of today’s global marketplace. Digitising 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-emphasised today."

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