BMI Companies Replaces SWIFT with Acclaim for Cross-Border Claim Payments in 35+ Countries
By Lauren Towner · 6 August 2026

Quick Summary
BMI Companies has integrated Acclaim to replace legacy SWIFT-based claim payments with localized payment methods across 35 countries. This deployment automates the entire cross-border insurance payout lifecycle, reducing transaction costs and delivery times for policyholders and healthcare providers throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.
How Does Acclaim Improve Cross-Border Insurance Payouts?
Acclaim solves the friction of international claim settlements by bypassing the traditional SWIFT network, which is often characterized by high fees and multi-day delays. By integrating directly into BMI’s core systems, the platform allows members to receive funds via local payment methods they already trust. This shift ensures that cross-border claims payouts are no longer a source of administrative burden.
- Automated Payout Triggers: Payments are initiated by system activity, removing manual intervention.
- Up-front Validation: Robust data checks significantly reduce the rate of failed insurance payments.
- Consolidated Remittance: Providers receive single payments for multiple claims, simplifying financial reconciliation.
What Results Has BMI Companies Delivered Through This Integration?
The transition to Acclaim has already scaled from a two-agency pilot to a full-scale rollout across 35 countries. BMI Companies is leveraging this modern payment infrastructure to gain real-time visibility into the status of every transaction, a critical upgrade from the "black box" nature of traditional wire transfers. The group now offers dozens of local methods, ensuring that the "moment of truth" - the claim payout - is seamless.
“BMI Companies has built a rich, more than 50-year history in international insurance, and this partnership shows just how powerful Acclaim can be in the hands of an established, forward-looking carrier,” said Matt Teumer, President of Acclaim. “Latin America is a strategically important market for us, and BMI is exactly the kind of client we’re built to serve. Acclaim creates a win-win by lowering the cost of every claim while improving the experience for members and providers through speed and reliable execution. This is what modern payment infrastructure should do for an insurer and we are excited to continue delivering for BMI.”
Why is Localized Payment Infrastructure Critical for Insurers?
For global carriers, scalable growth depends on removing operational bottlenecks. By replacing manual workflows with enterprise payment software, BMI reduces the labor-intensive task of managing international bank details. The Acclaim platform provides a unified layer for premium collections and agent commissions, not just claims, creating a future-proof foundation for digital transformation.
“For our clients, the claim payment is the moment of truth. It’s when the promise we made actually gets kept,” said Andrew Sierra, President of BMI Companies. “Our transformation is about scaling the business while making that moment better, not just faster. With Acclaim, paying members and providers in the local methods they know and trust turns a slow, uncertain wait into a seamless, wow experience and we’ve laid down payment infrastructure we can keep building on as we grow.”
FF NEWS TAKE:
This move by BMI Companies to ditch SWIFT-based claim payments in favor of Acclaim is a significant indicator of the shift toward specialized insurtech payment rails. By prioritizing local payment methods over generic wire transfers, BMI isn't just cutting costs; they are weaponizing their payout speed as a competitive advantage in the fragmented LATAM market. This definitely moves the needle for regional insurance efficiency.
Companies in this story: Swift, Acclaim, BMI Companies
People in this story: Matt Teumer, Esteban Chinchilla, Andrew Sierra