A senior Russian official indicated an intention to reduce reliance on the SWIFT financial messaging network over time. The deputy head of Russia’s economy ministry stated that the aim is to make foreign economic activity less dependent on SWIFT by creating compatible mechanisms domestically and with international partners. He emphasized that the primary task is to ensure that cross-border payments can operate smoothly without SWIFT, and that work is already underway to streamline transactions for Russian businesses abroad. He noted a shift away from the old pattern where global settlement was dominated by Western-led channels and currencies, pointing to the growing role of alternative currencies and faster domestic settlement. The official described a proactive plan to implement payment systems and settlement mechanisms that ease international trade and finance, while reducing exposure to external shocks from the traditional Western financial network (Source: Ministry of Economic Development briefings).
The discussions with Turkish partners are slated for next week to explore how payments could be arranged to support bilateral trade. At the same time, talks with Chinese counterparts are ongoing to examine new approaches that may significantly impact the current payment landscape, including potential innovations outside the conventional framework (Source: official announcements).
Russian analogues
Russia rolled out its financial messaging system in a test phase in 2014, shortly after sanctions began to bite. While it can transmit data in a SWIFT-compatible format, it operates independently of SWIFT channels. Since 2017, the national SPFS has been fully functional. By 2020, its share in Russia’s internal financial data exchange rose to 20.6%, surpassing SWIFT in domestic usage. Today, the system processes roughly 180 thousand transactions each day (Source: Central Bank reports).
In parallel, the Central Bank noted that around 70 foreign institutions from 12 countries had begun using the SPFS by mid-year, with ongoing efforts to broaden partner participation. The bank signaled openness to new entrants, stressing that integration requires two-way cooperation and solid technical readiness (Source: Central Bank statements).
Additionally, the NTI Platform is advancing a blockchain-based analogue to SWIFT. A pilot version has been prepared for testing and deployment in banks. Technical briefings indicate that the system delivered strong load-test results, with transmission speeds exceeding 25 thousand messages per second at a single node, and room to scale further (Source: NTI Platform press releases and RIA Novosti interviews).
The project team explained that the platform does not rely on a classic blockchain model but uses a three-tier architecture designed to accommodate many new users. All participants would enjoy equal rights and capabilities, making it difficult for any single country or bank to be disabled in the network (Source: NTI Platform developers).
About SWIFT
Following the start of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, several Russian banks, including VTB, Otkritie, and Sovcombank, were disconnected from SWIFT. European officials argued that severing ties with SWIFT would impact Russia’s export and import flows (Source: European Commission communications).
SWIFT is a cooperative comprising more than 11,000 financial institutions and has its headquarters in Belgium. It was established in 1973 and operates a global network for secure financial messaging (Source: SWIFT overview).
Historically, SWIFT faced bans affecting certain states. For example, in 2017, North Korea exited the system, and in 2018 there was pressure on Iranian financial institutions under U.S. policy (Source: historical records on SWIFT participation).