From real-time visibility to digital assets and smarter standards, the industry is moving forward
This month, progress continues across speed, standards and infrastructure. Let’s dive in.
From real-time visibility to digital assets and smarter standards, the industry is moving forward
April 2026 edition | Read time: 7 minutes
Perspective
Countdown to 2027: Contributing to lasting progress against the G20 goals
With the G20’s 2027 milestones fast approaching, the focus is shifting to what progress can be delivered and scaled. Nasir Ahmed, Head of Payments Scheme at Swift, discusses what has been achieved so far—and where institutions can make the greatest impact.
Highlights
Raising the bar for cross-border payments: faster, clearer, more predictable
How fast are your cross-border payments, really?
Most payments over Swift now reach beneficiary banks within minutes, with many credited in under an hour. End-to-end timing can still vary due to intermediary processing, compliance checks and local infrastructure. Understand what impacts payment speed.
G20 targets: focus shifts to delivery
Global efforts to improve cross-border payments are advancing across speed, cost, transparency, access and choice. With strong gains on speed, attention is turning to consistency and the “last mile” to beneficiaries. Explore progress towards the G20 goals.
Give your clients real-time payment status visibility
As payments accelerate, expectations are shifting from speed alone to clear, accessible status tracking. Real-time visibility reduces enquiries and improves the customer experience. Discover how Swift’s Frontend Tracker delivers this.
ISO 20022: the next milestone is coming
From November 2026, CBPR+ payments will require structured or hybrid addresses, improving data quality and transparency. Learn what you need to prepare.
Turning ISO 20022 into business value
Groupe BPCE shows how richer, standardised data is demonstrating the real impact of ISO 20022 in practice. Watch now.
Leadership insights
Advancing interoperability from instant payments to digital assets
Across recent global engagements, Swift leaders have reinforced a clear priority for the industry: turning innovation into scalable, interoperable solutions that strengthen connectivity across financial systems.
At a high-level policy roundtable co-hosted by the African Union Commission and AfricaNenda Foundation, Javier Pérez-Tasso joined policymakers, central banks and industry leaders to accelerate progress on inclusive instant payment systems across Africa. Discussions focused on moving from ambition to execution, advancing regulatory harmonisation and cross-border interoperability to support the continent’s economic integration. The dialogue highlighted the importance of sustained public-private collaboration, a theme that will continue at Swift Connect Africa, where the community will explore practical pathways to modernise payments and strengthen regional connectivity.
This focus on interoperability extends to the evolution of financial market infrastructure. Speaking at the Blockchain & Finance conference during Paris Blockchain Week, Thierry Chilosi emphasised the need to balance innovation in blockchain, stablecoins and digital assets with trust and global scale. As new asset classes emerge, the discussion underscored the importance of interoperable models that enable seamless integration with existing financial systems, ensuring innovation can scale securely across the global ecosystem.
Together, these conversations point to a consistent direction: collaboration and interoperability remain critical to bridging today’s financial infrastructure with the next generation of payments and digital asset ecosystems. This is reflected in Swift’s dual focus on enhancing today’s customer experience through its payments scheme, while building the rails of the future by integrating a blockchain-based shared ledger into its infrastructure.
In case you missed it
Swift’s blockchain-based shared ledger progresses to MVP implementation
Alongside a group of leading banks from around the world, we’re moving our blockchain-based ledger from design to MVP implementation, with live transactions planned for 2026.
Focused on corporate and treasury flows, the ledger introduces a shared orchestration layer that will record and synchronise interbank payment commitments using tokenised deposits – ensuring funds are available before execution and enabling 24/7 cross-border payments. It is being built on open-source foundations, using an Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible architecture based on Hyperledger Besu. The MVP builds on existing bank payment applications and Swift standards.
Swift will operate the ledger, while banks retain control of assets and funding, and settlement remains off-ledger via existing infrastructures. The result: faster execution, improved liquidity visibility and seamless interoperability at scale.
Upcoming events
1-3 June – Registration is now open. Join us in Cape Town to explore instant cross-border payments, liquidity hubs and the future of correspondent banking. Discover the full programme and secure your spot today.
28 Sept-2 Oct – As AI reshapes finance, connectivity, interoperability and resilience are becoming essential. Sibos 2026 Miami brings industry leaders together to shape digital finance for an AI-driven global economy. Register now.