With the deadline for conversion to ISO 15022 message formats passed, interbank agency Swift says that 94% of securities traffic over its network is now compliant with the new standard.
Swift will be relieved at the last-minute surge in uptake by the industry. The interbank messaging outfit had been criticised for failing to impart a sense of urgency to network users when statistics in August showed a bare 53% migration rate ahead of the 16 November cut-over.
At the time, the Brussels-based collective was forced to implement an ISO 7775 user group contingency procedure for participants who were unable to meet the deadline. Swift says that so far 1000 users have opted out of the 7775 message user group, which was activated post-16 November and allows the continued exchange of redundant message types, choosing to conduct business in ISO 15022 only.
Lenny Schrank, Swift CEO welcomed the latest statistics. "The dramatic progress made since earlier this year demonstrates what our industry is capable of doing when it sets its mind to it," he says.