GLEIF, Swift to link the Market Identifier Code and LEI

The purpose of the new open-source file mapping the MIC to the LEI is to help market participants that use GLEIF and / or Swift data, such as financial institutions and public authorities involved in risk analysis and market monitoring, to link and cross-reference key entity identifiers, free of charge. 

This process will streamline gathering, aggregating, and reconciling counterparty information based on interoperability across parallel identity platforms.

GLEIF and Swift collaboration

This collaboration between GLEIF and Swift stems from an initial agreement established in 2018. At the time, the aim was to link the Business Identifier Code (BIC) to the LEI. The MIC is an International ISO code that is used to process and clear trades and is gaining traction as the securities industries move toward straight-through processing. 

Stephan Wolf, CEO at GLEIF has stated that this expanded collaboration with Swift continues to provide identity management efficiencies across global markets. The mapping of open LEI data to the MIC enables market participants to efficiently and accurately gather and cross-check counterparty information, decreasing the cost and potential for manual error.

Next steps for the MIC certification

GLEIF will publish open-source relationship files monthly, in a CSV format, which will map the MIC to the LEI. Currently, more than two million LEIs have been issued to legal entities globally. Of the approximately 2,600 MICs assigned to date, currently approximately 50% of them pertain to organisations that are legal entities or foreign branches and therefore, qualify for the mapping against LEIs, as explained in the official GLEIF press release. In the first published file, there are about 600 mapping pairs. 

Swift provides actionable global ID and reference data services and products, like the MIC, to global market participants, including regulators and the financial services industry. This data helps in the unique identification, classification, and description of exchanges, trading platforms, regulated or non-regulated markets, and trading reporting facilities.

According to their official statements, GLEIF encourages engagement with the GLEIF Certification of LEI Mapping service, which is available to interested data vendors and other organisations free of charge. GLEIF is already working with its Vendor Relationship Stakeholder Group to advance its mapping certification objectives.

Apart from providing MIC-LEI and BIC-LEI mapping certification, GLEIF has also certified a mapping relationship between International Securities Identification Numbers (ISIN) and the LEI in the past, working in collaboration with Association of National Numbering Agencies (ANNA).