tl;dr
SWIFT partners with Consensys to launch a blockchain payments platform on Ethereum's Layer 2 Linea, bridging traditional finance and DeFi with scalable, cost-effective solutions.
**SWIFT Joins Forces with Consensys to Launch Blockchain Payments Platform on Ethereum’s Layer 2 Linea**
In a major move bridging traditional finance (TradFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi), SWIFT—global leader in financial messaging services—has confirmed it will build its new blockchain payment settlement platform on Ethereum’s Layer 2 solution, Linea. This revelation came from Consensys CEO Joe Lubin during a fireside chat at the Token2049 conference in Singapore, shedding light on a project that has sparked widespread industry anticipation.
SWIFT’s initiative, announced earlier this week, aims to create a 24/7 real-time crypto payments system in collaboration with over 30 TradFi institutions. While the initial announcement did not specify the blockchain platform, Lubin clarified that Linea was the chosen infrastructure. “SWIFT had to ‘soft roll out’ the big news, but the sentiment was positive—‘thank you for doing this.’ It’s about time to bring DeFi and TradFi together,” Lubin said, emphasizing the significance of merging these two financial ecosystems.
**Linea: A Scalable Solution for Global Payments**
Developed by Consensys, Linea is a Layer 2 scaling solution leveraging zk-EVM rollup technology. It processes approximately 1.5 transactions per second at one-fifteenth the cost of Ethereum’s base layer, making it a cost-effective and efficient choice for high-volume financial transactions. With $2.27 billion in total value locked (TVL), Linea ranks fourth among Ethereum Layer 2s, trailing only Arbitrum One, Base Chain, and OP Mainnet.
SWIFT’s adoption of Linea could revolutionize cross-border payments, which currently rely on slow, costly, and intermediary-heavy traditional banking systems. By utilizing blockchain, SWIFT aims to enable near-instant settlements, reduce errors, and lower operational costs—a critical shift for an industry handling around $150 trillion in annual payments.
**Big Banks Back the Initiative**
Prominent financial institutions, including Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan Chase, and Toronto-Dominion Bank, are set to participate in trials of SWIFT’s blockchain payments rail. This collaboration signals growing confidence in blockchain’s potential to streamline global finance.
The project also positions SWIFT as a direct competitor to Ripple’s XRP Ledger, a blockchain platform already used by banks for cross-border transactions. However, SWIFT’s scale and partnerships could give it a significant edge in the race to redefine financial infrastructure.
**Beyond Payments: A Vision for Decentralized Innovation**
Lubin highlighted Linea’s broader potential, envisioning it as a platform for “user-generated civilization.” By leveraging Ethereum’s trustless settlement layer, Linea empowers communities to build decentralized applications, governance systems, and infrastructure from the ground up. This aligns with the rise of decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), which aim to operate without centralized leadership through smart contracts and decentralized voting.
While DAOs have faced challenges in achieving scalability and sustainability, Lubin believes Linea’s robust infrastructure could provide the foundation for more resilient, community-driven ecosystems. “It’s a shift from top-down hierarchies to bottom-up innovation,” he said, underscoring the transformative potential of blockchain beyond payments.
As SWIFT’s project moves forward, its success could mark a pivotal moment for the convergence of TradFi and DeFi, reshaping how the world handles financial transactions and digital governance. With Linea’s scalability and the backing of global financial giants, the future of blockchain in finance looks increasingly promising.