LONDON — Global financial messaging network Swift officially rolled out a blockchain-based shared ledger on Thursday, bringing together an initial group of 16 banks — including Citi and HSBC — in a major step toward enabling non-stop payments and taking on the rapidly expanding stablecoin sector.
Belgium-based Swift, which serves as the backbone of international bank-to-bank communications worldwide, said the new ledger would allow “tokenised” funds — digital assets that can be programmed for specific purposes — to move around the clock, seven days a week, even on weekends.
The effort represents one of the most ambitious attempts by the established banking sector to harness blockchain technology while still maintaining the compliance and oversight standards that regulators across the globe demand.
Other banks participating in the initiative include UBS, BNP Paribas, BNY, Standard Chartered, MUFG, ANZ, DBS, and Lloyds, among others. Swift described the level of participation as evidence of “strong global demand” for a system that would allow each bank’s internal tokenised payment infrastructure to work seamlessly with those of other financial institutions.
This launch marks the first real-world application of the shared ledger that Swift announced just last year. Longer term, the platform could open the door to innovations such as programmable money and so-called agentic commerce — a model in which automated systems handle payments and transactions on behalf of users without human involvement.
The move also signals a broader shift underway in global banking, as institutions prepare for a future where deposits, assets, and payments are increasingly handled through digital ledgers, all while remaining inside the regulated financial system.
Swift currently connects more than 11,500 banks and financial services firms across more than 200 countries. The organization estimates that the value of transactions flowing through its network equals the entire global GDP every two to three days.
The blockchain ledger arrives at a time of intensifying competition between traditional financial institutions and the $315 billion stablecoin industry. That market is dominated by issuers Tether and Circle, which offer a way to transfer funds directly between parties without relying on intermediaries like banks.
