Microgen 5Series Software€¦ · Anti-money laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) Compliance - Microgen 5Series provides comprehensive support to allow the capture and management

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Microgen 5Series is a comprehensive software product that supports the primary business operations of fund administrators and fund accountants. A key feature is its user-configurable workflow which can be used to help manage and automate key business processes and daily activities, for example, client on-boarding, KYC, automated client risk scoring, FATCA reporting and year-end accounts production.

The combination of highly flexible software and powerful in-built workflow capabilities results in a solution that can be quickly tailored to meet specific business requirements, thereby providing high levels of operational control and efficiency that can free up valuable staff time.

Key Benefits

• Improve efficiency: Increased automation and integration improves operational efficiency and reduces errors and costs associated with day-to-day activities.

• Improve control: Workflow processes guide staff through the necessary steps to complete key business processes and provide management with a clear picture of the status of each person’s / department’s work in progress and outstanding tasks.

• Improve flexibility and agility: React quickly to changing market demands and compliance requirements through system-wide, flexible configuration.

• Improve customer service: Achieved through enhanced management control, reliable and consistent data and comprehensive reporting.

• Increase profitability: Increased automation enables existing staff to focus on value-add activities, in turn allowing the business to grow without the need to recruit additional staff.

DocumentStore

Investments

AccountingClient WebPortal

WORKFLOW

COMPLIANCE

CRM / EntityManagement

NAV TransferAgency

a microgen plc company

Microgen 5Series Softwarefor Fund Administrators and Fund Accountants

Helping your business be informed, compliant and efficient


Key Features• Flexible structures e.g. Unit

Trusts, ISAs, OEICS

• Multi-share class

• Multi-currency

• Wrappers

• Multiple deal types

• Dealing day processing

• Investor reporting

• Custodian reporting

• Flexible commissions

• Waivers and rebates

• Dilution levies

• Flexible fees

• Payments

• Distributions

• Compliance

• EMX interface

• Calastone interface

• Fund valuations (NAV)

Modules

Entity Management Module

Microgen 5Series provides a rich repository of information for fund, investor and third party records. Pre-defined data fields for persons, joint persons, trust, company, fund, foundation, bank, third party (non-personal), third party (personal), asset, liability and policy entity types are supplied as standard. To tailor the system additional entity types, data fields, relationship types and other user configurable options are available.

Due diligence information can be captured and saved. Related documents can be attached to entity records, e.g. scanned images of passports, correspondence, etc.

Both prospects and live clients can be maintained including details of client contact, together with any follow up actions. When a prospect becomes a client the historical information is retained.

Functionality includes:

Fund Rules - Hierarchical rules for fund dealing, distributions, fees and commissions can be easily defined and maintained, providing a flexible means of establishing rules across complex fund structures.

Client Relationship Diagrams - Fund and Client structures can be viewed via a relationship diagram which is dynamically created using data from the underlying database in real-time, either as at the current position or as at a date in the past. Various options are available to select diagram format, shapes and colours, and the entity and relationship types to be included. The client structure chart can be run to show the current position, or show the fund or client structure as at a historical date.

Document and Minutes Production - Microgen 5Series produces documents and minutes on demand using configurable Microsoft Word templates. These documents are automatically saved to the relevant client folder or into a document management system.

Client Risk Scoring - Microgen 5Series allows fund administrators and accountants to configure their own client risk scoring questionnaire, with each question having a user-defined ‘pick-list’ of answers, with an associated score if relevant. The questionnaire is configured within workflow to ensure that all questions are sent to and answered by the relevant administration personnel. Where Microgen 5Series can interrogate data and answer questions or update data automatically as part of this process it will.

Anti-money laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) Compliance - Microgen 5Series provides comprehensive support to allow the capture and management of AML and KYC information, for example, client passports. Dates (e.g. a passport expiry date) can be set to automatically produce reminders for administration staff where required.

Sanctions Checking - Microgen 5Series includes an interface which allows data files from sanctions list providers such as WorldCheck to be imported and then used to check against entity data held in Microgen 5Series.

The interface can be configured to check exact matches or similar matches using a number of industry-standard fuzzy and phonetic logic algorithms.

The checking process can be configured to run either across the entire database or just a specific entity, for example a specific name check as part of a client set up process. Potential matches are displayed and functionality is provided to manage these, including the ability to add comments or indicate that a potential match has passed internal due diligence checks.

Fund Structure Diagram


Accounting Module

The multi-entity, multi-currency, Accounting Module provides a general ledger facility to hold accounting information for funds, management companies and administration companies.

The chart of accounts, reporting formats for balance sheets, profit & loss statements, capital accounts and income statements are provided as standard, but can be modified or replaced with user-configurable definitions. Multiple reporting formats can be defined and then assigned at an entity level to enable reporting to be customised according to differing client requirements. This flexibility enables financial statements to be produced in line with various reporting standards including IFRS, UK GAAP and US GAAP.

Transactions can be posted manually, via electronic import processes or are posted automatically by other processes in Microgen 5Series such as Transfer Agency transactions, investments or fees associated with the NAV process. When capturing transactions, selected general ledger accounts can be designated as requiring “sub-accounting” information. This “sub-accounting” enables transactions to be recorded at a detailed level, for example, to identify the specific bank account being posted to when inputting to a general ledger account designated as “Bank accounts”. Other sub-accounting options include related entities (e.g. names of suppliers for the Creditors account), investments information (e.g. product types or asset names), or user-definable multi-level cost centre analysis codes (e.g. departments, geographical analysis).

Automated Final Accounts

Draft and final accounts can be generated automatically in Microgen 5Series and multiple template formats can be used as described above. This final accounts production facility includes items such as Directors’ or Trustees’ reports, details of key officers and other statutory information and the generation of notes to the accounts, as well as the core financial information.

The notes production facilities enable standard or bespoke text to be included, and the details can be varied for each entity for whom accounts are being produced. Previous years’ notes can be re-used to eliminate duplication of effort, and a history of prepared accounts including the notes that have been produced for each entity is available.

Investments Module

The Investments Module captures details of investments held by funds. Each fund can have its assets assigned to a single portfolio, or split between multiple portfolios. Investments are categorised into 4 main types:

• Stocks – investments which have a profile and are usually traded on an exchange. This includes equities, bonds, options, indexes, private equity and funds. The configuration options available allow for a wide range of instruments.

• Contracts – deal based investments, typically fixed term deposits or loans and spot and forward FX deals.

• Assets – investments which are not usually traded on an exchange such as property, land, art, valuables, yachts, vehicles etc.

• Cash Accounts

Transactions can be captured manually or can be imported electronically. Recurring transactions for asset type investments remove the need to re-key the same information on multiple occasions, for example, rental income. Bulk transactions for sales, income, stock income and stock movements (e.g. splits and consolidations) can be applied to multiple portfolios from a single transaction input.

Reporting of investment transactions, positions and fund valuations can be produced at portfolio, (individual) fund or fund structure level. Latest securities prices can be updated manually or by imported files provided by information vendors such as Bloomberg.

Transactional activity automatically generates and posts the associated general ledger accounting transactions according to flexible, user-definable rules.

Enquiries and reports are provided to analyse information across Microgen 5Series, providing valuable management information which can also assist with mandate reviews and risk assessments. Examples include details of all portfolios holding a particular stock, analysis of cash held with various banks and the ability to monitor the value of assets under management (AUM) with various filtering options.

Transfer Agency Module

Microgen 5Series provides a standard set of transaction types which cover the regular activities associated with fund processing including subscriptions, redemptions, switches, transfers, exchanges, conversions, transfers from other schemes etc. Microgen 5Series also enables bespoke transaction types to be created to fit individual requirements.

Example client portfolio valuation report

Simple to use input screens capture all the required information plus additional items to assist with marketing and communication such as referrals and adverts.

Standing instructions can also be created for any type of transaction that is typically used for regular savings plans or planned withdrawals. These can be for individual funds or for more complex structures such as umbrella funds.

The trend towards electronic capture and transfer of transactions to increase automation and reduce risk is reflected in the open architecture of Microgen 5Series which allows the importing of deals and integrates with industry message standards e.g. EMX and Calastone.

Investors can also enter transactions online, if required, which are then authorised by administration staff, helping to increase STP, whilst maintaining full control.

Support for the following is provided:

• Initial dealing fees, exit fees, switch fees, transfer administration fees

• Dealing and trailer commissions for Introducers/IFAs/IFA Networks

• Dilution levies

• Advices for custodians of movements in fund units/shares – either on paper or electronically

• Managers box

• Distributions processing on an amount per share basis

• Commission rebates

• Payments processing for dividends, redemptions and commissions via cheque or electronic funds transfer e.g. BACS

• Client output for contract notes and detailed client statements

NAV Module

This module automates the calculation of fund prices. The investments are re-valued using latest prices supplied by market data providers. Balances from the general ledger are included and fees & expenses are amortised and allocated across each of the sub-funds. Valuation adjustment, review and finalise functions ensure each step in the process is controlled and signed-off.

• Many valuation frequencies supported including daily, weekly and monthly

• Amortisation of fees and expenses

• Automatic inclusion of selected general ledger accounts (e.g. debtors, accruals)

• Review and run valuations as many times as required prior to each dealing day

• Support for umbrella funds

• Full history of NAVs and unit prices

Document Store Module

For those organisations that want more control, security and efficiency than storing documents in network folders and sub-folders, and for those organisations that don’t want the expense of a third party dedicated document management system, the Microgen Document Store module provides an ideal solution.

Emails and documents can quickly and easily be saved against relevant client or entity records in Microgen 5Series and security controls will ensure that only relevant staff have access.

Functionality includes:

• Users can search for specific text within documents.

• Simple bulk extraction of documents e.g. for audit purposes.

• Electronic filing cabinets mirror paper filing systems to ensure a uniform approach.

• Reading lists identify documents for pre-defined groups to read and powerful in document searches are available.

• Document check in/out functions protect against multiple staff editing a document at the same time.


Entry of investor instructions is via simple, intuitive input screens or via electronic data imports.

Easy and quick access to documents

There is clear visibility of which workflow tasks are due or overdue.


Core Functionality

Workflow and Task Management

Historically fund administrators have had to rely on their staff to follow corporate policies and procedures and have had no system controls other than checklists (typically paper-based) in place with which to enforce these.

As the financial services regulatory environment continues to broaden it is becoming increasingly challenging for fund administrators and accountants to comply with such regulations as legacy technology does not provide a solution.

Microgen 5Series is a modern and flexible solution that includes comprehensive workflow tools that will allow a business to define its key administration policies and procedures within the software. In this way, the system allows management to ensure that activities follow their defined corporate policies and procedures with no deviation by staff, and this can then be demonstrated to regulators to prove compliance.

For example, the activities associated with a client on-boarding process, annual review process, or dealing day process can be setup within the Microgen 5Series Software. When such a process is then started Microgen 5Series automatically sends workflow tasks to the relevant staff to complete or authorise in the sequence or process that management has determined must be followed.

Operational Control

• The use of Microgen 5Series workflow allows fund administrators to mandate the tasks, and the order in which they are done, that its staff have to undertake as part of a process.

• Management and staff have comprehensive search facilities to view completed, outstanding and future tasks and workflow processes.

• A workflow task, such as the requirement to input a piece of data, and the workflow task reminder are one and the same. A task is automatically marked as completed once it has been executed. This provides much greater levels of control and efficiency than a simple checklist.

• Processing logic can be configured into workflow processes to guide staff through the right set of tasks depending upon particular scenarios e.g. a high risk client may require more due diligence tasks to be completed.

• Workflows steps are audited providing a solid foundation for supporting regulatory compliance.

Operational Efficiency

• Workflow will automatically route tasks to the relevant staff when due.

• Workflow can make decisions based on pre-determined criteria and automate the update of data within Microgen 5Series automatically.

• Workflow can send email alerts for example, when tasks or workflow processes become overdue.

• There is clear visibility of which workflow tasks are due or overdue.

Reporting

Microgen 5Series includes a comprehensive set of reports and enquiries across business functions including operational, audit, management and client reporting. These comprehensive reports and enquiries assist both management and administration staff in managing the core operational activities. Reports can be exported to a variety of formats including Microsoft Word and Excel and Adobe PDF. These can be stored or emailed as required.

Query Tool designed for Business Users

Where a Microgen-provided report or enquiry does not exist to provide information that a business user might need, the business user will need to be able to quickly and easily query the data held in Microgen 5Series. To enable this, Microgen 5Series provides a flexible query tool that allows users to run queries across the Microgen 5Series database as required. It is possible to save and share queries so that they can be run again in the future. Query results can be exported from Microgen 5Series as well as being integrated to Microgen 5Series’ in-built workflow capabilities.

This tool enables business users to respond rapidly to requests and to construct reports or lists based on previously unforeseen criteria. No technical or in-depth database knowledge is required to construct and run these queries.


Dashboards and Key Performance Indicators

Microgen 5Series includes dashboard and KPI functionality. These graphical dashboards can be designed by, and used by business users to provide clear visibility to management and other users of activity across a business’s operations. With key business insights only ever a few clicks away, the dashboards feature intuitive graphics, drill-down capability and enable users to view information, make better decisions and react faster.

Microgen 5Series users are able to define KPIs relevant to their role (or have these pre-defined for them by their organisation) and choose relevant dashboard gauges and dials to display these within Microgen 5Series – so information appropriate to each user can be displayed in the format that the user finds most insightful. Clicking the gauges and dials then drills down to the underlying data.

Typical graphical dashboard examples might include: displaying the current workload across the business; tracking new business performance across markets, products, teams etc.; analysis of investor transactions; displays of fund prices across selected date ranges; monitoring key compliance processes and statuses; displaying a graphical summary of an individual user’s outstanding work, categorised by type (for example by due date, by importance, by customer, by type of activity).

Document Production and Management

Microgen 5Series produces documents and minutes on demand using Microsoft Word templates. In addition to the standard document templates provided, service providers can add user-defined document templates, as required to meet changing requirements.

Microgen 5Series can save and retrieve documents:

• in network folders and sub-folders, or

• in the integrated Microgen 5Series Document Store module, or

• in a 3rd party Document Management system (via a standard API) e.g. Microsoft SharePoint

Microgen 5Series allows documents to be stored either at entity level, against pieces of data on an entity record e.g. a passport can be stored against the passport data fields within an entity record, or a document can be linked to accounting transactions.

Flexibility

Microgen 5Series is designed with flexibility in mind, enabling organisations to configure the software to meet the way the business wants to operate, both today and in the future.

User-defined Entity Types: Organisations can create additional entity types, and entity subtypes to complement the ones provided by Microgen as standard.

User-defined Entity Data Fields: Organisations can create additional user-defined fields for entities, bank accounts, relationships and portfolios. The following types of user-defined fields are supported: Boolean, Date, Decimal, File Path, Integer, List of Values, Path and String.

User-defined Relationship Types: A comprehensive set of relationship types is provided as standard. In addition, Organisations can add additional relationship types.

User-defined Registers: Organisations can add user-defined registers. Registers are a collection of related user-defined data fields, which may have multiple entries recorded e.g. a trustee decisions register, a complaints register.

Positioning of user-defined Data Fields: Unlike most competitor systems that only allow user-defined fields to be added at the end of an entity record, Microgen 5Series allows user-defined fields to be interspersed between Microgen supplied fields.

Microgen Supplied Data Fields: Organisations will be able to rename and/or hide many of the Microgen supplied data-fields

An extensive set of drop-down lists: Drop down lists for items such as currency, countries, address types, review types, analysis codes are provided as standard and user-definable drop-down lists can be added.

Global Tax Reporting

Microgen continues to invest and enhance Microgen 5Series to provide organisations with a comprehensive solution to support both the regulatory and internal compliance of the growing Global Tax reporting requirements, including US FATCA, UK CDOT and OECD Common Reporting Standards (‘CRS’). Whilst it remains Microgen customers’ responsibility to ensure accuracy of submissions to global tax authorities, Microgen 5Series provides comprehensive functionality to support global tax reporting as detailed below.

Example Microgen 5Series Dashboard


Client and Entity Data

Microgen 5Series provides a rich repository of information for client and entity records, which contains the data required by FACTA and the other Tax reporting regimes. Additional user-definable data and other user configurable options are also available.

Documents

Microgen 5Series enables documents / images to be attached to entity records, e.g. Due diligence related documents, e.g. passports, correspondence, self-certification forms. ARR related documents e.g. election self-certifications.

Client Structures and Entity Relationships

Client structures are maintained using data from the underlying database, with the relationships between entities within a structure identified using the concept of ‘roles’. Microgen 5Series uses these relationship links to identify those entities and ‘persons’ whose classification, roles, etc., brings them within the scope of FATCA and the other tax reporting regimes.

The classification associated with an entity determines what further analysis is required in order to identify reportable accounts, account holders and Controlling Persons, who are ‘specified persons’ of the US, UK, CDOT and OECD countries. Once a reportable account has been identified, Microgen 5Series determines what information is required for reporting purposes, including consideration of the specific requirements of such categories as ‘Trustee Documented Trusts’, ‘Sponsored Closely Held Investment Vehicles’ and ‘Sponsored Investment Entities’.

Workflow for Identification and Classification

Standard workflows will assist the identification and classification of client and entity records under FATCA and the other Tax regimes and with the identification of ‘changes to circumstances’ that may have an impact on the tax categorisation of an entity.

Indicia

Specific reporting is available to assist organisations when conducting their US, UK, CDOT and OECD Indicia searches.

Reportable Transactions and Balances

Microgen 5Series’ multi-entity, multi-currency Accounting Module provides the accounting information required to calculate the majority of the reportable tax values. The Microgen 5Series Accounting and Investment modules provide links to appropriate Final Accounts or Entity Valuations to identify the overall Entity value. Account ledgers and individual cash and investment transactions can be identified as required for inclusion in the appropriate section of the tax reporting for the relevant ‘reporting’ entity. Selected general ledger accounts can be designated as requiring “sub-accounting” information, which enables transactions to be recorded at a detailed level. Users have the added ability to manually enter the required reportable values against the entity.

Production of Reports for submission to Tax Authorities

Microgen 5Series will produce files as required for US FATCA, UK CDOT and CRS, in the appropriate .xml or other format, for submission to the Tax Authorities in the major jurisdictions where Microgen 5Series is used by our customers. Where these tax authorities have introduced specific variations to the standard, e.g. Guernsey, these will also be catered for by Microgen 5Series.

Microgen 5Series provides the ability to record information required by the UK Alternative Reporting Regime, e.g. Record details of Client Elections. Identify journals for inclusion in ARR reporting.

Security

Microgen 5Series provides comprehensive functional and data access controls, enabling service providers to define which users have access to which system functions and client records. Individual entity data fields can be marked as containing Confidential Client Data (‘CCD’), which will then be visible only to authorised users and masked for those that are unauthorised.

Microgen 5Series also provides functionality that delivers high levels of security in the following areas: User Log-in; Database Encryption; Secure Sockets Layers for data in transit between the database and users’ PCs; Context Switching to protect access to the Microgen 5Series database from applications other than the Microgen 5Series software.

Standard Data Imports

Microgen 5Series includes a set of standard data imports to allow the following data to be imported into Microgen 5Series: Accounting Journals, Bank Statements (Auto-reconciliation), Cash Accruals, Cash Reconciliations, Contract Accruals, Contract Reconciliations, Contract Transactions, Custom Fields, Exchange Rates, Forward Rates, Interest Rates, Stock Accruals, Stock Prices, Stock Profile, Stock Reconciliations, Stock Transactions. The following file formats are supported: XML, CSV and TSV.

Data Take On (Migration) Tool

Microgen 5Series includes a comprehensive standard data take on tool to assist customers in migrating historic data from one or multiple data sources.


www.microgenfs.comFor more information about any of Microgen’s products, solutions or services call +44 20 7496 8100 or email [email protected]

Copyright © Microgen Wealth Management Systems Ltd 2016

Microgen ® Microgen plc

All rights reserved Publication No: pf-5series-fundadministration-8.3-11052016

We understand that the fund administration market has experienced unprecedented change in recent years – and this looks set to continue. The compliance burden that companies in these markets face continues to grow following the financial crisis and resulting increase in regulatory oversight. Customers are demanding better service and increasingly moving their business to providers that offer this. Competition for business continues to intensify leading to pressure on profit margins.

Facing these challenges, it is becoming increasingly important for companies to improve efficiency whilst keeping tight control over all aspects of their business. Investing in new technology – particularly accounting and administration software such as Microgen 5Series – can have a major part to play in helping achieve these goals.

Microgen Financial Systems has been serving the fund administration market with software for over 30 years, and has a proven track record of delivery and quality. Customers, located in 27 countries across 6 continents, range from some of the world’s largest organisations with multiple global offices to smaller independent organisations with a single office.

Microgen Financial Systems is one of two operating companies of Microgen plc, a leader in the delivery of software, solutions, consultancy and services. The Group was founded in 1974 and has been listed on the LSE (MCGN) since 1983. It is head quartered in London with offices worldwide.

About Microgen

Client Web Portal (Optional Module)

Microgen 5Series Client Web Portal is a secure online client servicing tool that provides an online view of wealth holdings and associated documents to clients, intermediaries and relationship managers. Developed specifically to meet the online needs of the international financial services sector (including private banks, fund managers/administrators, and trust and corporate service providers), it provides a solution that can be delivered rapidly. Using robust security measures to ensure client protection and open standards, it is platform-independent and integrates with both Microgen and third party systems.

Secure Internet Access for Clients and Intermediaries