Swift Partners with Major Indian Banks to Transform Cross-Border Payment Standards

TLDR:

• Swift processes 75% of payments to beneficiary banks within 10 minutes, exceeding 2027 G20 speed targets.
• India processes over 20 billion digital payments monthly through IMPS, NEFT, and UPI payment platforms.
• Research shows 80% of cross-border transaction time occurs in the last mile at beneficiary banks.
• New payment scheme will provide upfront cost, delivery time, and amount transparency before initiation.

India’s leadership in real-time domestic payments is expanding to international transactions through a collaboration with Swift and major banks.

Four leading Indian financial institutions—Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, and State Bank of India—are partnering with Swift to establish new standards for cross-border payments.

This initiative aims to deliver faster, more transparent transactions for consumers and small to medium enterprises across 40 countries.

Global Payment Infrastructure Meets Indian Innovation

Swift has supported India’s financial ecosystem for over three decades, connecting the country to 200 nations, 11,500 institutions, and 4 billion accounts worldwide.

The organization now processes transactions where 75% reach beneficiary banks within 10 minutes, surpassing G20 speed targets set for 2027. This achievement reflects years of implementing ISO 20022 rich data standards across the global network.

The Reserve Bank of India outlined its Payments Vision 2025 to align with G20 objectives for enhanced cross-border transaction efficiency.

As the world’s fastest-growing major economy and largest recipient of inbound remittances, India processes more than 20 billion digital payments monthly through platforms including IMPS, NEFT, and UPI.

The country’s Unified Payments Interface, launched a decade ago, transformed domestic transactions by establishing benchmarks for speed and accessibility.

Swift research from September 2025 revealed that 80% of cross-border transaction time occurs in the last mile after payments reach beneficiary banks.

This delay stems from regulatory reporting requirements, manual processes, and limited 24/7 infrastructure availability.

The RBI addressed these challenges in a November draft circular, acknowledging delays between payment receipt at beneficiary banks and account crediting.

S. Shetty, Chairperson of State Bank of India, stated that “faster and more predictable cross-border payments accelerate trade, investment and economic growth.” He emphasized that collaboration across the ecosystem is key to unlocking that value for all stakeholders involved.

Consumer-Focused Payment Standards Drive Market Transformation

The pioneering bank group is developing rules to provide consumers with upfront information about costs, delivery times, and receivable amounts before initiating payments.

The scheme incorporates instant settlement capabilities where local infrastructure permits, alongside 24/7 transaction availability.

End-to-end tracking, stop-and-recall functions, and dispute resolution mechanisms preserve consumer protection throughout the payment journey.

These standards extend benefits beyond Swift’s network to transactions moving through various channels. Indian businesses expanding internationally and individuals managing remittance flows will experience consistent service quality across borders.

The framework establishes globally interoperable standards requiring coordination between regulators, banks, and market infrastructures.

Thierry Chilosi, Chief Business Officer at Swift, noted that India’s financial community has already demonstrated the power of real-time payments at scale.

He added that “this collaboration strengthens how we can support Indian businesses as they expand globally, while enhancing the payments experience for individuals and SMEs.”

Swift continues platform development by integrating blockchain-based ledger technology to support emerging value transfer methods.

This evolution prepares the infrastructure for digital commerce requirements while maintaining security, resilience, and operational standards.

The initiative enables money transfers in any form between participants worldwide with transparency and certainty.

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