The need for a secure and common messaging System that would serve as the basic platform for intra-bank and inter-bank applications, and would fulfill the requirements of domestic financial messaging, gave birth to the Structured Financial Messaging System (SFMS). The SFMS was launched on December 14, 2001, at the IDRBT.

The SFMS is built on the lines of SWIFT but has many more utilities to offer. The major advantage of SFMS is that it can be used practically for all purposes of secure communication within the bank and between banks. The intra-bank part of SFMS, which is most important, can be used by the banks to take full advantage of the secure messaging facility it provides.

The inter-bank messaging part is useful for applications like Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT), Real Time Gross Settlement System (RTGS), Delivery Versus Payments (DVP), Centralised Funds Management System (CFMS) etc. The SFMS provides easy to use Application Program Interfaces (APIs), which can be used to integrate all existing and future applications with the SFMS. The Banks can develop comprehensive and efficient tools and applications and integrate them easily with SFMS for use on the Corporate Intranet.

Banks can link all their important, high volume branches, irrespective of their category to the SFMS through appropriate connectivity like PSTN/ISDN or Leased Lines. Moreover, use of SFMS is not restricted only to computerised or partially computerised branches.