Is it through the telephone system?ie phone/fax/e-mail .

How is money transferred nationally & internationally.I had heard something years ago about a dedicated "banking" satellite?

What about the stock exchanges too ? What is the chance of serious malfunctions?

Simple questions but complicated answers probably.

-- Chris (griffen@globalnet.co.uk), May 10, 1999

Answers

Via Fedwire and SWIFT, usually using dedicated clearing Banks for overnight processing (i.e. Chase Manhattan), possibly via VISA or AMEX or MCARD, depending on the transaction, using secure encryption, with public and private keys, possibly using atalla and other proprietary security modules, with proprietary and homegrown encryption algorhythms, using private, public and leased land lines, undersea lines, and satellite uplinks (The GPS rollover in August could have consequences with time stamping of these transactions for example - see todays Gary North latest links for an example of this).

Credit and Debit card transactions go through a process known as clearing and settlement, which can be immediate (realtime) or take up to three days or more for reconciliation and balancing purposes.

The complexity is mind-boggling Chris. There is no typical transaction, each is pretty unique, each can follow it's own route around the world, depending on pre-set parameters and switching logic in the physical hardware the data passes through.

The chances of serious problems IMHO are extremely high. Check out recent threads in the archives, VISA IS TOAST is one that I initiated, with a more recent follow-up one. The problem is going to be one of Imported Data - i.e. corrupt data that can originate from a non-compliant financial entity, pass all the EDI and EFT protocols of the receiving bank and be processed according to the logic of the receiving bank. The problem however is that the receiving bank will be manipulating apparently good, accurate data. Obviously this will not be the case. the downstream calculations will be bogus. What happens to the downstream data is anyones's gues - the theory is that it will slosh around the financial system, becoming more inaccurate as time goes by. Imagine at rollover the 200,000 or so worldwide financial entities communicating with each other in this manner. It has been likened to a financial Ebola.

For an overview, check out these links:-

Yardeni Fears The Corrupt Imported Data Scenario

VISA IS TOAST

Imported Data Infecting Compliant Programs

Good luck - despite what my detractors say - IMPORTED DATAIS REAL and will BYTE!!! Later,

-- Andy (2000EOD@prodigy.net), May 10, 1999.

Chris,

I suggest that you (and everybody else in this forum) check out...

http://home.att.net/~arnold.trembley/tmr.htm

Arnold is a programmer for Mastercard, (ok, not a bank but close) and publishes a series of weekly reports on progress at M/C.

They're fairly technical but well written and interesting (I think so anyway, but I'm also in the remediation business). I'm amazed that Mastercard have allowed him to publish the detail that he does, you will get a real insight into the problems of Y2K fixing and especially testing.

RonD

-- Ron Davis (rdavis@ozemail.com.au), May 10, 1999.

how do banks comuinicate with each other? computers, silly!

-- ed (edrider007@aol.com), May 10, 1999.

Notice that Arnold Trembly, the mainframe guy referred to above, uses the standard date format YYYY-MM-DD. Not M/D/YY. Not MM/DD/YY. Not MM/DD/YYYY.

When are YOU people going to start using the standard format and so help to raise awareness?

When are you going to get with it? When are you going to set an example for your family, your friends, your coworkers, even the wogs in other countries?

(Settings: My Computer | Control Panel | Regional Settings | Date
short date: yyyy-MM-dd, separator "-"
example: 1999-05-10
long date: dddd, yyyy MMMM dd
example: Monday, 1999 May 10


-- vbProg (vbProg@MicrosoftAndIntelSuck.com), May 10, 1999.

You prove my point vB ;)

-- Andy (2000EOD@prodigy.net), May 11, 1999.

Thanks everyone.

In my simplistic way,I have been thinking that somewhere in the whole financial network there must be a critical dependence on the international telecommunication system.We have been told in the UK for instance,the workings of overseas networks cannot be guarenteed,This has to make a nonsense of any statement of compliance. As a business person I have to take compliance as meaning I can continue to operate my business normally.With doubts about international tel/fax I know I am going to be in trouble both in getting orders & receiving payment from overseas. Millions of Euros have been electronically lost since Jan'99 during interbank transfers..which doesn't bode well for established transaction formats in the Millenium.

I guess it boils down to a total lack of understanding on my part as to why investors are not taking on board the consequences of Y2K.These are supposed to be intelligent people.I know,we had various threads before on this topic but it is totally mindboggling.These guys are not one whit concerned about panic or bank runs.All they are after is profit so how can they be so ignorant ????

-- Chris (griffen@globalnet.co.uk), May 11, 1999.