New International Payment Platform by SWIFT Backed by Six Leading Banks

According to an announcement made on Thursday, the banks endorsing the SWIFT payment platform that will be launched in the second half of 2022, November, are Deutsche Bank, Stanchart, Bank of China, BNP Paribas, Citi, and BNY Mellon. The statement added that the above-mentioned banks intend to use SWIFT’s expanded capacity to launch new services, cut costs, increasing efficiency in the long run.

The new platform will come with new features like validation of details of a beneficiary will be done upfront, exceptions will be managed centrally, high-speed rails (GPI) to reduce costs and provide rich data-based services while adhering to ISO standards (20022). The high standards will provide the roadmap for the upcoming platform.

About the New Platform by SWIFT

The platform’s growth and maturity builds on the input of the SWIFT community for the past five years to change the way cross-border payments have been working. By use of GPI, nowadays, most cross-border payment platforms reach intended beneficiaries instantly and with high levels of transparency. Additionally, confirmation is received once funds reach their destination. This service is available to 11,000 connected institutions with a total of 4B accounts in 200 countries globally.

The new platform’s capabilities and capacity will push the advancements higher while allowing interoperability with modern types of payments, new technologies, and even services. The platform will provide room for more innovations that will hopefully offer viable cross-border solutions to users. Preparations for the launch are underway and major global financiers have already caught SWIFT’s vision. The endorsing banks believe that the platform has great potential in the processing of both securities and cross-border payments.

The General Manager at Bank of China, Fan Yaosheng was quoted saying that SWIFT is progressing well on the strategy it outlined in 2020 and the features indicated in today’s roadmap show that SWIFT is keen on addressing the needs of today’s market. The head of Treasury Services at BNY Mellon, Paul Camp was also quoted saying that they are thrilled by the opportunities offered by the upcoming platform.

The treasury head also added that SWIFT’s assets are unique, both on domestic and global scenes, and at the same time are global connections to financial institutions coupled with unparalleled resilience. Paul summarized by saying that they were ready to work with SWIFT and other willing players in the industry to change the way value moves around. However, some crypto Pundits, a Bank of Russia official believes that digital assets might make SWIFT’s new platform redundant.

SWIFT is a global leader when it comes to secure financial services related to messaging. The company says that apart from providing messaging and communicating standards, they also provide products and services related to access, integration, regulatory compliance, and identification.