Momentum builds as industry advances ISO 20022 adoption

Ahead of the upcoming deadline for transitioning to ISO 20022 for cross-border payments (CBPR+), adoption of the data-rich standard continues to gather pace, as institutions learn more about how it will provide them with better structured, richer data, improved interoperability, and more efficient processes.

Since March 2023, we’ve facilitated a coexistence period to allow the community to operate normally as they transition between MT and ISO 20022 format messages. Adoption has been strong, with over 40% of daily traffic now using the ISO 20022 format and more than 1.8 million payment messages exchanged daily across 180+ sending countries and 220+ receiving countries.

Additionally, Swift now carries over 75% of its Payments Market Infrastructure traffic in ISO 20022 format.

Progress in the final stretch

Swift has supported the community’s decision to migrate to ISO 20022 throughout the transition. Since the beginning of co-existence in March 2023, we have played a key role in defining industry standards, offering services that support institutions during the transition, and providing important business continuity.

As we approach the end of co-existence, we are making sure that no financial institution is left behind.

“Swift continues to work closely with the community to ensure a smooth transition, just as we have from the start. We’re committed to supporting our community to make the most of ISO 20022 and ensure business continuity while we safeguard the ecosystem and transition out of co-existence,” says Jerome Piens, Chief Product Officer at Swift.

While community adoption is gaining momentum week after week, Swift will continue to offer guidance and tools to help financial institutions maximise the benefits of ISO 20022. This includes our new Data Quality Analytics tool that enables financial institutions to measure, analyse, and optimise the data in their ISO 20022 cross-border payment transactions.