Finastra, a London-headquartered financial software provider, has launched Assist.AI, an artificial intelligence-enabled assistant designed to enhance trade finance operations.

The tool, powered by Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service, bridges the knowledge gap in the trade finance industry, providing users with instant, accurate, and context-aware assistance.

The trade finance industry faces significant challenges, including a diminishing knowledge base and a widening disparity between seasoned professionals and new entrants, the company says.

Assist.AI addresses these issues by offering prompt-based assistance, allowing users to interact with the tool by entering specific questions related to trade processes. This ensures that users receive precise answers sourced from relevant resources without the need to sift through extensive documentation.

The solution ensures users can access support 24/7, boosting efficiency by automating routine enquiries and freeing up valuable time for more strategic tasks. Moreover, it learns and adapts based on interactions, ensuring ongoing relevance and continuous improvement in responses.

"This timely and much needed solution represents a significant leap forward in our commitment to advancing open finance and leveraging AI technology to solve real-world challenges in financial services,” says Andrew Bateman, executive vice president, lending, at Finastra. “By providing instant assistance to bank employees, we are empowering our clients to navigate the complexities of trade finance with greater ease and efficiency."

In trade finance, banks need to invest in training new staff on the latest developments in the business. Assist.AI uses Microsoft Copilot technology to facilitate this training and support, making it a timely and essential addition to the industry, Finastra says.

“Using the robust capabilities of Microsoft Azure, this solution exemplifies the power of AI in enhancing operational efficiency and user experience,” says Bill Borden, corporate vice president of worldwide financial services at Microsoft. "This collaboration not only showcases our shared vision for the future of financial technology, but also strengthens the long-standing relationship between Microsoft and Finastra.”