DBS and Citi complete first weekend cross-border USD payment via Swift ledger

DBS Bank and Citigroup have successfully completed the first weekend cross-border US dollar payment between Singapore and the United States using tokenized deposits. The transaction, conducted on September 5, was processed via Swift’s blockchain-based Digital Ledger and took only minutes to complete.

This milestone demonstrates the ability to bypass traditional banking constraints, such as time zone differences and weekend closures, which typically cause cross-border transfers to take up to two business days. Unlike stablecoins, these tokenized deposits represent regulated commercial bank deposits held on the banks' own balance sheets, using the Swift ledger as an orchestration layer to coordinate movement.

The successful test is part of a broader pilot program involving 17 banks across six continents testing 24/7 settlement capabilities. While the blockchain coordinates the transaction, final settlement still occurs through existing real-time gross settlement (RTGS) systems. This technology aims to provide greater liquidity agility for sectors like e-commerce and digital services that operate continuously.