SWIFT, a global payments giant, has made progress in integrating a blockchain-based ledger into its payments network. According to the announcement, it has collaborated with global banks to design features such as real-time transaction validation and smart contract enforcement for tokenized assets.
In an interview, Thierry Chilosi, our Chief Business Officer, said: declared, “We Swift will lead the way at the infrastructure level and ensure the technology is in place. We worked with Consensys for the first phase of the prototype, but working with the financial institutions is critical.”
Swift partners with more than 30 global financial institutions
Swift will initially focus on enabling real-time, 24/7 cross-border payments, which should make the process more cost-effective. The main advantage is that the existing network is already usable in more than 200 countries, connecting more than 11,000 banks that use it to send trillions of dollars every day.
The group of more than 30 global financial institutions that will help design and build the ledger includes JPMorgan, HSBC, Deutsche Bank, MUFG, BNP Paribas, Santander and OCBC. It also has branches of other banks in the Middle East and Africa.
Thierry Chilos stated that they are currently consulting with the Central Bank to ensure they choose the best settlement model and tokens for the exchange to take place.
The ledger project is based on Swift’s digital asset tests over the past two years. Through a number of pilot programs involving banks and other financial institutions, the organization has explored how well distributed ledger technology works with existing fiat currency systems.
If reported from Cryotopolitan, Swift has so far experimented with Ripple’s XRP Ledger and Hedera’s Hashgraph (HBAR). This led to some excitement in the crypto community. SWIFT processes more than $150 trillion in cross-border transactions annually.
Analysts say even a small portion of that flow going to blockchains like XRP or HBAR could create huge demand for these coins.
Other analysts say Swift is “building Ripple without saying Ripple.” According to them, the development of SWIFT is consistent with the framework that Ripple has developed over the past decade. This model is based on a neutral settlement layer that allows financial institutions to finalize transactions in real time while maintaining visibility into a shared ledger.
Traditional banks are ready to enter the crypto space
Banks are getting ready to become more involved in the crypto market in 2026.
In 2026, State Street will also begin offering crypto custody services. The project relies on the bank’s current connections with technology companies such as Taurus, which positions the bank well to serve asset managers in need of regulated storage of digital assets.
Deutsche Bank is also working on plans for a crypto custody platform to be launched in 2026. The project includes collaborations with companies such as Bitpanda’s technology division and Taurus. This allows the bank to provide compliant custody for digital assets in European and other markets.
In the meantime, analysts and executives, including those at Bitwise, said 2026 could be a big year for banks to get involved in crypto, thanks to clearer regulations and more interest from users.