SWIFT: Ecosystem approach deepens in global payments

The ecosystem approach in global payments is deepening further, Hikmet Can Yilmazsoy, SWIFT's head of Türkiye, the Caucasus and Central Asia, said at the 10th International Banking and Finance Summit, Report informs.

According to him, it is impossible to deny that digital value transfers will increase further in the future.

"In this context, if we look at the issue of interoperability and the points related to SWIFT, we as an industry organization position ourselves as a 'hub of hubs' and a 'network of networks.' One of the main initiatives currently being implemented is to ensure the integration of different digital ecosystems with one another. The goal is to enable these systems to work in interaction with each other. Without scale, the impact needed to deliver value to a broader ecosystem is also limited. In this direction, we are working on digital trade platforms and, at the same time, cooperating with other payment networks to ensure their connection to SWIFT and interoperability. Therefore, when we look at current trends, we see that although many well-known payment networks are usually perceived as competitors to SWIFT, at the industry level we play more of a role as a platform that connects and integrates them," he said.

Yilmazsoy stressed that the transfer of tokenized deposits and other regulated forms of digital assets is currently of great importance.

"In such a model, regardless of the different networks, we can act as an infrastructure that ensures each of them uses the registry we are developing. In this framework, we will mainly perform the function of a coordinating and orchestrating institution. In other words, the direct settlement of funds will not be carried out by us," he said.