Trio tussle to win Payments Canada’s tech revamp contract
New system named Lynx as a nod to the “fast, agile animal and Canadians’ strong connection to the natural world”.
CGI, SIA and VocaLink are fighting it out to win the contract for Payments Canada’s new core clearing and settlement system.
Payments Canada has invited the three suppliers to participate in a competitive procurement process for the country’s new system, called Lynx.
Jan Pilbauer, executive director of modernisation and CIO at Payments Canada, says this process “will encourage innovation, effective decision making and optimal outcomes” and will take place over the next several months.
In December, Payments Canada announced its plans to improve the infrastructure and rules that underpin financial transactions in Canada. One key element of that plan is to establish this new system.
Following a request for information (RFI), research and analysis of payments system modernisation initiatives around the world and consultation with other international market infrastructure providers, Payments Canada selected the trio.
The name Lynx is a nod to the “fast, agile animal and Canadians’ strong connection to the natural world”. It’s also a homonym for links – to describe the “multitude of connections” between its core system and Canadian financial institutions, global networks, financial market infrastructures and other payment systems.
