ABSTRACT
On 31 May 2011, SWIFT broke the 20 million messages per day threshold for the fi rst time since its network “went live” in 1977. Today SWIFT has more than 10,000 live users in 212 countries who exchange on average 4.5 billion messages between them on an annual basis. Though the aggregate value being transmitted through these messages is not publicly disclosed, it is believed that the average daily amount exceeds 7.7 trillion US$, 1 nearly half of US GDP, or three times UK GDP. These fi gures provide insight into the scale of the SWIFT network and its signifi cance for international trade and fi nancial markets around the world.
