Calastone, the global funds transaction network, today announced a new automated solution to support a faster, safer and more efficient transfer of clients’ managed funds holdings across platforms.
Following a successful pilot, several of Australia’s leading fund managers, administrators and platforms are now connected to Calastone’s Transfers solution, which automates in-specie transfers, accelerating the typically two-week transfer process to possible completion in under an hour.
Platform operators BT, netwealth investments limited and Macquarie have joined major fund firms including Vanguard, Platinum, APN Property Group and BTIM as the first adopters of this new innovative solution. Additionally, registry service providers RBC Investor & Treasury Services and White Outsourcing have also connected on behalf of the collective 11 fund managers under their administration.
Calastone Managing Director Australia & New Zealand Sarah Hayward said, “broader industry adoption of the solution can further accelerate the process to just minutes, bringing massive relief to back offices that support Australia’s competitive investment sector.
“Transferring a client from one platform to another, initiated typically by an adviser, involves a complex and manual exchange of signed forms at the platform, custodian
registry and fund levels to allow holdings to move without a capital gains tax event or forcing the investor to exit and re-enter the market.
“Working in collaboration with our clients we have adapted the solution from our proven UK Transfers solution to suit Australian requirements and provide a unified and automated way of managing the transfer process, with more certainty and less risk,” she said.
Paul Hagger, Head of Custody at netwealth investments limited commented: “We signed up to Calastone Transfers because a faster, more secure and electronic transfer process enhances our ability to service our clients. Visibility is also a key feature of the solution, allowing us to see a real-time audit trail and status of the transfer so both the sender and receiver can follow the process and know once the transfer is complete.”
Calastone’s Transfers Solution follows the firm’s well established order routing solution that was introduced in 2011 to automate the order flow of managed funds between platforms and fund managers. In 2016 Calastone rolled out its reporting solution that automates the flow of information involved in unit holding reconciliations and income distributions.
