Swift’s recently introduced Payment Pre-validation service, allows for the verification of beneficiary account details before initiating international payments. While such verification has long been commonplace for domestic payments in several countries, it was not so for cross-border transactions. They are more complex and often involve one or more intermediary banks. The new service aims to reduce errors, expedite transaction speed and improve straight-through-processing, resulting in a more seamless customer experience.

StoneX is one of the first financial organisations to adopt the new technology for its clients. The StoneX Technology Services division specialises in connecting organisations to the Swift network. It says that it is leveraging the latest innovations from Swift, including its advanced APIs and automating manual payment processes.

Mireia Guisado Parra, Product Owner of the Payment Pre-validation service at Swift, said: “Payment Pre-validation utilises pseudonymised and aggregated data from billions of historic transactions on the Swift network to provide enhanced security and speed in cross-border payments. We are pleased that StoneX are extending these benefits to more financial institutions, thereby reducing friction in the payments ecosystem.”
Clients of StoneX’s payments business, StoneX Payments, will benefit from the adoption of pre-payment validation technology. StoneX Payments facilitates foreign exchange payment transactions in more than 140 currencies and spanning over 180 countries.

A distinctive feature of StoneX Payments is its extensive network of over 350 correspondent banking relationships worldwide, each maintained independently. These relationships are leveraged to provide the effective and secure execution of cross-border payments, particularly in regions where transparency is often limited.