Central Cooperative Bank the first Bulgarian bank to sign up for SWIFT’s global payments innovation service

Central Cooperative Bank, one of the largest banks in Bulgaria, will be the first to provide its customers with a rapid cross-border payments service (SWIFT’s gpi) , with real-time payments tracking and transparency on bank fees and foreign exchange rates, according to a press release.

“Adopting SWIFT gpi is an important step towards providing a fast and transparent service to our customers,” said Evgeni Bonev, Director, International Operations Division, Central Cooperative Bank. “Consumers expect to access money any time, any place and anywhere. SWIFT gpi addresses the frictions, costs and delays associated with cross-border payments and the result is a much more efficient service that will benefit the financial community.”

The widespread adoption of SWIFT gpi has been driven by demand for a faster, more transparent cross-border payments service. „Nearly half of gpi payments are credited within 30 minutes, many within seconds – and almost 100% within 24 hours.”, the company said.

The service also enables end-clients to track the status of their payments from end-to-end, and provides an unprecedented level of visibility into each payment – including information about each bank in the payment chain and any fees that have been deducted.

“We are delighted that Central Cooperative Bank will adopt gpi,” said Matthieu de Heering, Head of Central and Eastern Europe, SWIFT. “SWIFT gpi is the most transformational change in cross-border payments in 30 years and is fast becoming the new industry norm, thanks to its take-up by innovative and forward-thinking organisations such as Central Cooperative Bank.”

To date, more than 300 financial institutions around the world have signed up to SWIFT gpi, with more than USD 110 billion in SWIFT gpi payments being sent daily across 800+ international payment corridors. Following the SWIFT community’s recent endorsement of global gpi adoption, SWIFT gpi will be the standard for all cross-border payments by the end of 2020.