Big financial institutions worldwide are set to complete the transition from legacy payment-messaging formats (the MT series) to ISO 20022’s XML-based MX format by 22 November 2025.
The deadline has been set by SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication) to fully implement its new system for exchanging financial data.
This marks the end of the co-existence period, where old and new formats operated side by side. Some banks and payment infrastructure providers have already been preparing for this in advance.
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ISO 20022 supports much richer data fields than the older MT standard, including purpose codes, structured identifiers, details about the payer or beneficiary, and remittance data. It allows better transparency for AML and KYC, helps settle transactions more easily, and supports the process of turning physical assets into digital tokens.
The global shift to the new ISO 20022 financial messaging system has been delayed three times since it was first introduced around five years ago.
Interestingly, a report from Central Banking in June showed that almost half of the world’s central banks haven’t yet upgraded their main payment systems to the new ISO 20022 standard. Out of the 49 central banks that shared data, less than 45% had fully implemented it, while just over 6% had only done so in some parts of their operations.
The impact on the crypto industry
This puts crypto companies that deal with tokenized assets, stablecoins, or cross-border payments at a crossroads. They must now decide whether to connect their systems to this new banking standard or risk being left behind when banks fully adopt it.
It also means that digital tokens, which already work with the new banking standard, could become more popular, because banks and fintech companies are now reevaluating which cryptocurrencies to use in their systems.
Crypto projects like XRP and Stellar have long emphasised their ISO 20022 compatibility as a competitive edge, and the upcoming migration makes it a much more powerful argument.
It’s worth noting that if banks run into problems while switching to the new system, they might look at other options as a backup, including private blockchains or public crypto networks, which could briefly create more business for some crypto infrastructure providers.
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