Swift, the global leader in financial messaging, is pioneering a new era of transparency in corporate payments with the launch of an API channel designed for ISO 20022 message tracking. Collaborating with 25 top-tier cash management banks and 20 multinational corporations, Swift is developing a white-labelled transaction tracking service that spans the entire payment chain.
This groundbreaking initiative aims to deliver a bank-agnostic solution for payment initiation using the ISO 20022 format, addressing inconsistencies in the standard’s usage. Swift’s innovative service will empower member banks to provide their clients with ready-made, white-labelled ISO 20022 payment tracking capabilities via API or messaging channels. This will offer complete transparency on payment status and receipt confirmation.
The standardization of payment tracking data will ensure that financial institutions can offer a uniform experience to their corporate customers, regardless of geographical location or local infrastructure. Currently, multi-banked corporations receive tracking information through various channels and formats, creating inefficiencies.
Thierry Chilosi, Chief Strategy Officer at Swift, emphasized the transformative potential of this initiative: “Adopting ISO 20022 offers a unique chance to enhance cross-border payments. By capturing rich data at the source, we can improve the entire ecosystem, bringing us closer to instant and frictionless transactions. We are thrilled to facilitate this for our community, simplifying and standardizing crucial services like payment tracking.”
Global pharmaceutical giant Roche has successfully implemented Swift’s new corporate API channel, leveraging a key banking partner to access real-time tracking information for their transactions.
Stefan Windisch, Global Head of InHouse Bank at Roche, highlighted the benefits: “Direct API access to Swift’s payment tracking system gives us greater transparency and enhances our ability to analyze payment performance. This enables us to refine our instructions, identify inefficiencies, and minimize value erosion in cross-border payments.”
Chilosi noted that many members of Swift’s working group are already piloting the new capabilities, with plans to extend these innovations to the broader community later this year.
