SWIFT has announced a new global payments scheme to make cross-border transfers for consumers and small businesses as fast and predictable as domestic payments. The initiative, revealed on January 29, will launch in phases in 2026, with a minimum viable product planned for the first half of the year. More than 40 banks are already involved in developing the framework. At first glance, the announcement reads like a routine infrastructure upgrade. In reality, it signals a strategic shift — and one that mirr ...