Swift Goes On-Chain: 17 Banks to Pilot Tokenized Deposits Around the Clock 🚀

SWIFT, the interbank messaging network that links more than 11,500 financial institutions across over 200 countries and territories, said its blockchain-based ledger is live for initial use following nine months of development. Seventeen major banks, including HSBC, Citi, BNP Paribas, UBS, ANZ, DBS, Standard Chartered, Lloyds Bank, UOB, BNY and Wells Fargo, are preparing to pilot cross-border payments using tokenized bank deposits on the new ledger, the organization announced on Thursday. The infrastructure is designed to support 24/7 cross-border payments, including overnight and weekend transfers, while keeping existing compliance, credit, risk and control standards embedded in current payment processing.

The launch follows SWIFT's announcement last year and adds momentum to banks' efforts to deploy tokenized deposits within regulated infrastructure. SWIFT said 75% of payments on its existing network already reach beneficiary banks within 10 minutes, often in seconds. The messaging operator said it plans to expand the ledger's functionality and availability after the initial controlled go-live phase.

Thierry Chilosi, chief business officer at SWIFT, called the addition to SWIFT's "resilient global platform" a "key milestone for regulated digital assets" that could lay the foundation for future innovation in programmable money and agentic commerce. "It allows tokenised value to move across borders with the velocity and flexibility modern commerce expects, while maintaining the same high levels of resiliency, security, and compliance global finance requires," he said.

The initiative comes amid a broader push by major banks into tokenized deposits and on-chain settlement. A consortium including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citibank, Barclays, BNY and Wells Fargo announced plans a month ago to launch a tokenized deposit network in the first half of 2027, with The Clearing House operating the network and connecting traditional payment rails with digital asset infrastructure for 24/7 settlement. On March 24, the New York Stock Exchange partnered with tokenization platform Securitize to build blockchain-based infrastructure for tokenized stocks and exchange-traded funds, and in January the NYSE's parent company, Intercontinental Exchange, shared plans for a tokenized securities venue designed for 24/7 trading, instant settlement, stablecoin-based funding and onchain settlement.