On July 9, the international financial messaging network SWIFT officially announced that its blockchain infrastructure is ready for the first phase of implementation. This is a landmark event that changes the rules of the game in cross-border payments.
The pilot project focuses on organizing 24/7 cross-border payments using tokenized deposits. The initiative involves 17 major banks from six continents, including giants such as Citi, HSBC, BNP Paribas, Standard Chartered, BNY, DBS, and MUFG Bank. Implementation took only nine months, and the system is ready for global use from day one.
SWIFT's solution will connect various distributed ledgers, synchronize payment obligations between participants, and ensure transactions can be conducted at any time — including overnight hours and weekends. At the same time, final settlements will remain within existing payment systems, guaranteeing the preservation of current security, risk management, and compliance procedures.
Context and Evolution of the Project
Development began in 2022, when SWIFT experimented with compatibility between traditional systems and CBDCs and cryptocurrencies. After a series of pilots in tokenized assets and cross-border settlements, in September 2025 the company announced the integration of blockchain into its technology stack and the assembly of a conceptual prototype together with ConsenSys. At the same time, it announced its own distributed ledger platform in partnership with Chainlink — a project SWIFT has been collaborating with since 2016.
On March 30, 2026, the company completed the design phase and began developing a minimum viable product. The solution is built on open source code with an EVM-compatible architecture based on Hyperledger Besu. SWIFT takes on system management, while participating banks are responsible for assets, keys, funding, and settlements.
Recall that in June, plans were announced for JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and other major US banks to launch a tokenized deposit network in the first half of 2027. This confirms the global trend toward tokenization of financial assets.
My analysis: This move by SWIFT is not just a technological upgrade, but a strategic maneuver aimed at maintaining dominance amid growing competition from blockchain solutions. The integration with Hyperledger Besu and Chainlink indicates a pragmatic approach: the company takes the best from DeFi but retains control. However, the key question is whether SWIFT can compete in speed and cost with purely cryptocurrency networks, where there are no intermediaries in the form of banks. For now, the answer is not obvious, but the direction is chosen correctly.