ABSTRACT
The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, SWIFT, has existed for 40 years. 1 In this time, it has signifi cantly reconfi gured the core structure of transaction banking and securities businesses, becoming the most prominent standards body in the global banking community with standards that permeate every corner of international fi nancial messaging. Anyone who has been involved in the transfer of an international cross-currency payment in business or with family and friends living abroad has benefi ted from SWIFT. Performing at 99.999 percent reliability (referred to as SWIFT’s “Five Nines culture”) the cooperative has provided remarkable dependability and effi ciency in the fi nancial services infrastructure, and produced – as noted in its signature storyline – “the world’s most trusted third party secure network.”
