SWIFT Bridges TradFi and Distributed Ledger Technology With 17 Banks

SWIFT has introduced its own blockchain-based shared ledger after nine months of development, moving a pilot project into operational use with 17 major banks set to pioneer tokenised cross-border payments.

The participating banks include ANZ, BNP Paribas, BNY, Citi, DBS, First Abu Dhabi Bank, FirstRand Bank, HSBC, Itaú Unibanco, Lloyds Bank, Mashreq, MUFG Bank, OCBC, Standard Chartered, UBS, UOB, and Wells Fargo.

The ledger combines distributed ledger technology (DLT) with SWIFT’s existing secure messaging network, which covers over 200 markets. The project aims to enable seamless token recognition and settlement.

Carl Slabicki, head of commercial, global payments & trade at BNY, said: “We are pleased to continue collaborating with SWIFT on the use of shared ledger technology to support greater interoperability in cross-border payments. This work is an important step in understanding how these capabilities may evolve over time in a way that complements existing infrastructure and meets the needs of clients globally.”

Traditional interbank payments involve multiple correspondent banks, adding time and complexity. The SWIFT ledger solves this by enabling tokenized deposits to settle between participating banks on a shared network that operates 24/7. The 17 banks are running real-time transactions, indicating growing institutional trust in the infrastructure.

SWIFT has also outlined next steps, describing the ledger as a “platform for programmable money and agentic commerce, with payments made automatically when conditions are met without having to be manually authorized.”

Regarding Ripple and XRP, Ripple Treasury previously joined SWIFT, enabling direct global bank access and unified fiat and crypto control. Over 30 banks connected to the Ripple ecosystem are listed on SWIFT’s payments framework, including HSBC, Deutsche Bank, Santander, Standard Chartered, and JPMorgan. XRP is expected to potentially serve as a liquidity-providing platform for SWIFT’s digital transformation, allowing banks to access instant liquidity without pre-funding foreign accounts.

Long-term, this move represents a real step towards blockchain adoption, as 17 institutions implement live transactions on a common blockchain ledger. Blockchain is now being built into the settlement infrastructure by the biggest institutions. The key question remains whether the pilot can expand quickly and attract more banks.

Source: https://coingape.com/swift-bridges-tradfi-and-distributed-ledger-technology-with-17-banks/