Swift accepts community request to start ISO 20022 migration in March 2023

Swift has worked extensively with its global community to prepare for the start of the ISO 20022 migration for cross-border payments and reporting (CBPR+) and since August, all required capabilities have been deployed and institutions have been able to exchange ISO 20022 messages on an opt-in basis.

On 20 October 2022, the ECB shared its decision delaying the ISO 20022 migration of the Eurosystem by four months. In light of this announcement and in line with our earlier scenario planning, Swift committed to further analyse and validate impacts on the timeline for CBPR+ with a view to maintaining operational and business continuity across the global financial system.

„An overwhelming majority of our global community has requested that Swift align the start of the global ISO 20022 migration for CBPR+ with the ECB’s updated timetable to ease implementation. In response, we have taken a decision to accommodate this request, and Swift will begin the ISO 20022/MT coexistence period for all users on 20 March 2023.” – according to the press release.

At the same time, it is clear from our community feedback that there is strong momentum across the industry to implement and gain value from ISO 20022 rich data, so the revised start date of 20 March 2023 will be definitive.  Financial institutions are therefore encouraged to continue preparation for the 20 March start date and consider all potential scenarios in their planning to ensure readiness for the start of ISO 20022 coexistence for CBPR+ from that date.

Institutions that would like to realise the benefits of rich data sooner can continue to exchange ISO 20022 messages on an opt-in basis.  Extensive resources to assist Swift customers with their ISO 20022 readiness are available along with a list of FAQs on this updated timeline.