DBS and Citi carry out weekend USD transfer via Swift’s Digital Ledger with tokenized deposits
The transaction marks the second verified live use of Swift’s blockchain ledger, arriving as the network works to demonstrate it can rival digital payment systems that operate continuously.
— DBS and Citi finalized their first cross-border dollar payment employing tokenized deposits on Swift’s Digital Ledger, completing the weekend transfer within minutes instead of up to two business days.
— The transfer represented the second verified live transaction on Swift’s blockchain ledger, which debuted in July with 17 banks as the network encounters competition from stablecoins and other 24/7 payment systems.
— The trial may help resolve expensive weekend delays, as Asia’s outbound cross-border payments are expected to hit $24 trillion by 2033, compared to $13.5 trillion in 2025.
DBS (D05) and Citi (C) executed the first cross-border USD payment over a weekend using tokenized deposits on Swift’s Digital Ledger, the banks revealed Monday. The transfer, carried out on Sept. 5 between DBS in Singapore and Citi’s New York office, settled in minutes rather than the typical industry timeframe of up to two business days.
It is the second verified live transaction on Swift’s blockchain ledger, following HSBC and Standard Chartered’s initial live cross-border transfer in August. The successive trials come as Swift’s $1.5 quadrillion network confronts pressure from stablecoins and tokenized deposits that settle around the clock, prompting concerns about whether the 53-year-old messaging network can evolve quickly enough to stay relevant. Swift launched its blockchain ledger in July with 17 banks.
Cross-border payments between Asia and the US frequently stall over weekends. A corporate treasurer shifting liquidity from Singapore to New York on a Friday must wait until at least the following Monday. For companies operating 24/7 digital businesses, that gap costs money in delayed supplier payments and frozen working capital, DBS stated in its announcement.
Half of finance leaders are already investigating blockchain’s capabilities for liquidity and FX management, according to a DBS global survey. Asia’s outbound cross-border payments are projected to grow to $24 trillion by 2033, nearly double the $13.5 trillion in 2025, according to a Money 20/20 and FXC Intelligence report cited by DBS.
DBS is the sole Asian-headquartered bank in Swift’s digital ledger core design group of 12 banks. The pilot launched in July with 17 banks across six continents.
«Processing a live transaction over a weekend demonstrates that always-on cross-border payments are already a reality,» said Mridula Iyer, Citi’s head of services for Asia South.
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