SWIFT delays CBPR+ to March 2023

In a statement, to be found on Swift announcement released Thursday 27 October, Swift clarified:
"An overwhelming majority of our global community has requested that Swift align the start of the global ISO 20022 migration for CBPR+ with the ECB’s updated timetable to ease implementation. 
In response, we have taken a decision to accommodate this request, and Swift will begin the ISO2022/MT coexistence period for all users on 20 March 2023 (the end date for the coexistence period will not change running until November 2025)."

At the same time, Swift has reiterated that the revised start date of 20 March 2023 will be definitive.

The announcement to postpone to March 2023 does not change ING’s current approach other than the moving of the migration date itself.
 

ING Bank approach

Payment Flow Messages

MT103, MT202, MT202Cov (pacs.008, pacs.009, pacs.009COV) as of 20st of March 2023.
For banks sending payments instructions via the SWIFT network (throughout the coexistence period from March 2023 – November 2025) ING will provide the flexibility across all locations to receive both, MT and MX, at the choice of our counterparties.
For banks receiving payment instructions from ING, there will be a different approach per BIC. BBRUBEBB, INGBNL2A and INGBBGSF BICs will send all payments in MX format as default. The rest of the BICs will send MT or MX format. Banks that are not yet ready to process MX messages can make use of SWIFT Translator tool.

Reporting messages

ING will continue to send MT reporting messages after 20st of March 2023. We plan to introduce CAMT reporting messages as of the beginning of 2024. Our clients will have the choice between MT and MX reporting, or have both in parallel, to facilitate a smooth migration. Ultimately, the MT reporting will be provided till the end of the coexistence period defined by SWIFT, currently planned to end November 2025. 
ING will not accept MX reporting until further notice.

Availability of SWIFT Transaction Manager

An important tool to support the global community in its journey to ISO 20022 is the new SWIFT Transaction Manager (TM). Access to the transaction copy that is created by the first MX message captured by the SWIFT network and its data integrity functionality will help to bridge message standard differences between CBPR+ and legacy MT formats that are currently used between banks.
SWIFT announced a new start date of filling in transaction data in the SWIFT Transaction Manager. It has been moved to the end of May 2023. This means, that the risk of data truncation remains for the period from the go live of ISO to the end of May, and also in the next 6 months period, when the traffic is gradually build up. 

ING will follow recommendations of PMPG - SWIFT Payments Market Practice Group

We will not originate rich data in the recommended data elements: Ultimate Debtor, Ultimate Creditor, Category Purpose, Structured remittance data and Related Remittance info, during the first year of the ISO implementation. We encourage our clients to follow the same approach.
 

FAQs (provided by Swift)

Who requested the shift in timing for the start of the ISO 20022 migration for CBPR+?

A number of major institutions, national communities and community groups requested the change in timing. The Payments Market Practice Group (PMPG), which brings together payments industry experts from around the world, also recommended the change on behalf of the global community. More information about the PMPG can be found on swift.com.

Does this change have any impact on the annual Standards release?

No, Standards Release 2022 will proceed as planned in November 2022 as per the annual release cycle.

Will this impact the timeline for the activation of Swift's transaction management capabilities?

Our transaction management capabilities will go live as planned in November 2022, and the build-up of traffic processed will be complete by September 2023, also as planned. Swift will start to build up traffic within transaction manager from the end of May 2023 rather than end of March 2023, after the go-live of ISO 20022 for CBPR+. The intention is to mitigate risk, allowing time to monitor live traffic and ensure that the introduction of transaction management processing does not disrupt payments flows.

What do I need to do to ensure readiness for go-live on ISO 20022 for CBPR+?

The steps remain the same. To ensure readiness by 20 March 2023, you need to upgrade the messaging interface, configure connectivity to the FINplus service, prepare the Relationship Management Authorisation (RMA) setup for FINplus and complete testing of the In-flow Translation service. You can use the Test Sparring Partner service for accelerated testing.

Can I exchange ISO 20022 messages sooner?

Absolutely. Since August 2022, all required capabilities have been deployed and institutions have been able to exchange ISO 20022 messages for CBPR+ on an opt-in basis. Institutions that would like to realise the benefits of ISO 20022's rich data format for CBPR+ sooner than March 2023 can continue to exchange ISO 20022 messages on an opt-in basis.

Does this change have any impact on the remaining timeframe for the coexistence period?

The coexistence period will run until November 2025 as planned.

Do you expect other domestic market infrastructures will change their timelines for ISO 20022?

Decisions on domestic migrations rest with each market. Communities will need to prepare to support CBPR+ from 20 March 2023, independent of their local market payment systems.

Swift currently has the Disaster Recovery Initiative (DRI) community business continuity exercise planned in Q1 2023. Will this change in light of the updated timing for ISO 20022 for CBPR+? 

We expect the date of the annual DRI exercise to change as we continue to assess the impact of the updated ISO 20022 start date for CBPR+ on other community plans and scheduled events. As these impacts are understood, we will update the community accordingly with a new proposed date.