SWIFT, the messaging backbone connecting more than 11,000 financial institutions in more than 200 countries, has confirmed that its blockchain-based shared ledger is moving into its first MVP iteration.
After completing a design phase with a global group of banks, the network is now preparing for real-world transactions later this year.
What SWIFT’s Blockchain Ledger actually does
The shared ledger is not a public blockchain and does not use a native cryptocurrency. It is a permissioned infrastructure layer built on Linea, an Ethereum layer-2 network developed by ConsenSys.
The ledger records, sequences and validates transactions between financial institutions using smart contracts, allowing tokenized deposits, regulated stablecoins and central bank digital currencies to move between institutions in real time and 24 hours a day.
Our plans to build a blockchain-based shared ledger have reached an important new milestone.
After completing the design phase with a global group of banks, we are now shaping the first MVP iteration of the ledger, which will enable interoperability between banks’ tokenized deposits and… pic.twitter.com/CPB8ucMhqu
— Swift (@swiftcommunity) March 30, 2026
The problem it solves
Traditional cross-border payments rely on correspondent banking networks that operate within business hours, involve multiple intermediaries and generate significant reconciliation overheads.
SWIFT’s ledger collapses that process by combining messaging and settlement into a single layer, giving banks faster payment executions, better visibility into liquidity, and dramatically reduced reconciliation effort.
The design phase brought together more than 30 global financial institutions, including JPMorgan, HSBC, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank and Bank of America.
Their input shaped the ledger’s functionality, governance model and roadmap for future development.
What comes next
The intention is for the MVP to go live this year with real transactions. SWIFT is positioning the ledger not as a replacement for existing messaging infrastructure, but as a parallel track, one that gives institutions access to blockchain-based settlement without redesigning internal workflows or compliance processes.
For the $183 trillion per year cross-border payments market, the implications are significant.
The post SWIFT Moves to Blockchain Settlement with Live Trials appeared first on BeInCrypto.