Maxwell Williams 
This year, the Belgian-based Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) is taking a giant leap forward by introducing blockchain and cryptocurrency functions. SWIFT‘s Standards Release 2023 explicitly states that securities reports will accommodate digital assets, with the addition of a three-digit precision number to allow fractionalization and an option to use wallet blockchain addresses instead of custodian accounts. This highly anticipated development will no doubt change how people view virtual currency in the years ahead.
Previous Standards Will Be Relaxed for the Use of Blockchain
In 2023, the regulation on requiring a blockchain address or wallet account number for digital token use will be loosened. This opens up new possibilities for storing and using digital assets through normal depositories. The Securities Market Practice Group (SMPG) is actively developing market guidelines focused around utilizing Category 5 messages for these digital assets.
As part of the 2022 Release standard, support for confirmation and settlement of non-deliverable FX trades, as well as options in digital currencies that don’t have an ISO 4217 currency code, has been included. This format’s identification field will be altered to accord with the ISO 24165 – Digital Token Identification (DTI) standard, which comprises a 9-digit DTI code, including an additional check character. These advancements on the SWIFT network are set to become effective come November 19th, 2023, along with other breakthroughs.
