Swift has launched a case management service aimed at addressing payment defaults, which it claims could save member banks millions in operational costs and drastically reduce the time required to identify and resolve issues arising from delayed international payments.
The member-owned co-operative highlights that financial institutions currently allocate over $1.6 billion annually to labor-intensive processes for investigating payment delays—an issue that can occur regardless of the technology or network in use. Major global banks reportedly incur penalties and fees of more than $20 million each year due to these delays.
Swift’s Case Management solution aims to streamline the investigation process by utilizing ISO 20022 data and the unique end-to-end transaction reference (UETR) standard, enhancing transparency and interoperability across networks. By centralizing information capture, the service reduces the numerous manual touchpoints that typically complicate investigations between sending and receiving institutions.
According to Swift, this new service has the potential to cut the industry’s operational and liquidity costs associated with payment investigations by over $600 million annually, while also decreasing resolution times by up to 80 percent.
Shirish Wadivkar, Swift’s global head of transaction management, stated, “Inefficient investigation processes significantly impact the industry in terms of cost and time, adversely affecting customer experience. Our enhanced solution addresses the main challenges in investigating incidents, allowing our community to improve efficiency, reduce time, and lower costs to meet customer expectations.”
Juan Olaizola, CEO of PagoNxt Payments Hub, supports this view, adding, “With faster resolution times and improved transparency regarding investigation status, we can greatly enhance our customers’ experience. Efficient management of payment incidents will also help to lower our liquidity and operational costs. This creates a beneficial cycle where everyone can gain.”