Swift announced the creation of a distributed ledger prototype together with Consensys and a global consortium of banks. The new project will allow financial organizations to go beyond their classic role as a communication network and start directly recording and validating transactions, forming the foundation for exchanging tokenized assets between institutions.
Banks join the early stage
More than 30 financial institutions from 16 countries have already joined the initiative. Among them are JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, BNP Paribas, Standard Chartered, Citi, and Wells Fargo. Regional players have also participated, including ANZ, Banco Santander, and Emirates NBD.
Consensys is responsible for developing the conceptual prototype, whose first scenario is real-time cross-border payments available 24/7. The architecture and governance system will be refined based on feedback from the banks. The announcement was made at the Sibos conference in Frankfurt.
Universal digital infrastructure
Swift emphasizes that the new ledger will become a secure transaction log with the ability to automate rules via smart contracts. The key objective of the project is interoperability — both between private and public networks, and with existing fiat payment systems.
This should eliminate the risk of fragmentation and ensure the simultaneous use of CBDC, tokenized assets, and commercial bank money.
The path to digital transformation
‘Today we provide reliable payment rails and, together with the community, are rapidly building the infrastructure of the future,’ said Swift CEO Javier Perez-Tasso.
According to him, the new distributed ledger concept will take the settlement industry to a new level, and Swift will maintain a key role in the digital transformation of the financial sector.
Previous experience with tokenized assets
This is not Swift’s first step towards digital assets. Previously, UBS Asset Management, Swift, and Chainlink successfully tested a settlement system for tokenized funds. The pilot was conducted as part of Project Guardian, led by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
Within the project, participants tested the ability to combine digital transactions with traditional fiat settlements using Chainlink technology.
What’s next?
Swift continues to build the digital foundation for global settlements. In the coming years, the project may become a connecting link for CBDC, tokenized assets, and traditional money, maintaining the company’s position as a central player in the global payment system.
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