Swift has announced the addition of a blockchain-based shared ledger to its technology infrastructure, marking a new stage in its efforts to modernize cross-border payments. The initiative, unveiled at Sibos 2025 in Frankfurt, is designed to extend Swift’s trusted financial messaging platform into a digital environment that can support instant, always-on transactions across more than 200 countries and territories. Swift CEO Javier Pérez-Tasso highlighted that while some may see traditional finance and blockchain as opposites, the company believes both can co-exist in a regulated system of the future, with banks increasingly requesting Swift to play a more central role.
The new shared digital ledger is being developed in collaboration with over 30 global financial institutions, with the first use case focused on enabling real-time, 24/7 cross-border transactions. The ledger, which will initially begin with a prototype designed with Consensys, will serve as a secure and real-time log of transactions between financial institutions. It will be designed for interoperability, enabling smooth integration with both existing and emerging payment networks, while ensuring the compliance, resilience, and security standards that Swift has built its reputation on. Pérez-Tasso emphasized that combining this ledger with Swift’s current messaging, APIs, and ISO 20022 standards would create a more robust system that embeds risk management, compliance, and controls directly into transaction flows.
The blockchain-based ledger will complement ongoing improvements to Swift’s existing infrastructure and interoperability solutions, strengthening the reliability and scalability of global payments. According to Pérez-Tasso, the strategy is built around two parallel tracks—maintaining operational excellence, regulatory compliance, and governance on one side, while preparing financial institutions for a future defined by digital asset flows on the other. He noted that Swift’s layered approach ensures the best of both traditional and digital systems, arguing that the combination of existing rails and emerging technologies will result in stronger and more resilient payment infrastructure.
Over 30 banks across 16 countries are actively shaping the development of the new system. Institutions involved in the collaboration include Absa, Akbank, ANZ, Banco Santander, Bank of America, Banorte, BBVA, BNP Paribas, BNY, Bradesco, Citi, Commerzbank, Crédit Agricole, DBS Bank, Deutsche Bank, Emirates NBD, First Abu Dhabi Bank, FirstRand Bank, HSBC, Itaú Unibanco, JP Morgan Chase, Mizuho, MUFG, NatWest, OCBC, Royal Bank of Canada, Saudi Awwal Bank, Shinhan Bank, Societe Generale-FORGE, Standard Chartered, TD Bank Group, UOB, Wells Fargo, and Westpac. Their participation is central to defining the governance, rules, and future functionality of the shared ledger.
Pérez-Tasso added that Swift is also continuing to explore interoperability between private and public digital asset networks, ensuring value can move seamlessly across different systems. He said the shared ledger builds on years of live trials with digital assets, representing a logical step in supporting the evolution of payments at global scale. With major banks engaged in co-development, the blockchain-based ledger underscores Swift’s role in balancing innovation with resilience as financial institutions increasingly demand faster, more predictable, and digitally enabled cross-border payment experiences.
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