Swift’s $1.5 quadrillion network faces a blockchain test
Crypto executives say new blockchain payment infrastructure could make Swift obsolete. Bankers say its 11,500-institution network gives it the power to absorb the technology instead.
Source: CoinDesk
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DW NOTE
Swift moves $150 trillion annually through message rails built in the 1970s. The blockchain threat isn't technical speed — it's that Swift's settlement still requires correspondent banking, two-day float, and FX spreads that amount to a 3-6% tax on cross-border payments. The 11,500 institutions aren't an advantage when the alternative is peer-to-peer settlement that doesn't need them.