With the November 2025 deadline for ISO 20022 migration on the horizon, financial institutions find themselves at a pivotal juncture. As the coexistence period draws near its end, the clock is ticking. While some view the transition as a compliance chore, Bottomline considers it a catalyst – the foundation for smarter, faster, safer, and more customer-centric payments.
The payments landscape is increasingly defined by demands for real-time, global interoperability, and regulatory scrutiny. ISO 20022 emerges as the linchpin of payments modernisation, and Bottomline seeks to help financial institutions not just ‘tick the box’ but unlock real competitive value.
Although it suffered multiple delays, the numbers don’t lie; SWIFT projects that 80% of global high-value payments will be ISO 20022-compliant by the November 2025 deadline. However, deadlines alone don’t tell the full story. As Bottomline experts emphasise, ISO 20022 is far more than a regulatory requirement – it’s a transformative force for the industry.
At its core, ISO 20022 presents a globally standardised messaging format with richer, more structured data. This data allows for faster payments, improved transparency, better customer service, and smarter fraud prevention.
As Vitus Rotzer, Chief Product Officer – Financial Messaging at Bottomline put it:
'ISO 20022 is the foundation of payments modernisation and so you can use this as a springboard to address many of the other challenges on your roadmap – real-time, cross-border, compliance, sanctions screening, customer expectations, and fraud mitigation.'
Let’s examine how ISO 20022 delivers impact across five crucial areas of modern payments and how Bottomline helps customers seize that opportunity.
Real-time rails can only be as effective as the data they carry. With the new structured format introduced via ISO 20022, payment messages can be processed instantly with fewer errors or exceptions.
Be it through FedNow, RTP, or regional schemes like Singapore’s FAST or Pay.UK, Bottomline’s cloud-native platforms enable ISO 20022-native real-time payments across the globe.
For years, cross-border payments have been infamously defined by opacity and unpredictability. ISO 20022 increased efficiency with richer data fields and standardised messaging. Financial institutions can now track transactions end-to-end, reducing delays, disputes, and manual investigations.
Bottomline helps its clients with integrated support for Swift gpi and other ISO 20022-native initiatives, giving them the tools to provide their customers with accurate, self-serve tracking, and faster settlements.
One of the most tangible benefits of ISO 20022 is improved compliance screening. The structured format reduces false positives and improves name matching, which were key challenges in sanctions enforcement. As an example, consider a transaction flagged for the term ‘Bar Cuba’. Under legacy formats, this might’ve triggered sanctions reviews. However, ISO 20022 allows you to distinguish from ‘Bar Cuba in London’ from actual Cuba-based entities, improving accuracy and speeding up throughput.
Bottomline’s fraud prevention and compliance solutions leverage this upgraded data to provide smarter screening, while reducing costly investigations.
The payments environment is evolving fast, and flexibility is crucial. Bottomline has a SaaS-first approach, to allow financial institutions to deploy ISO 20022 capabilities quickly and scalably, with regular updates, minimal disruption, and lower total cost of ownership.
That’s why 300+ financial institutions worldwide have chosen Bottomline to power their ISO 20022 strategy.
With ISO 20022, customers can obtain full visibility over their transactions – from initiation to settlement. Self-service tools built on ISO 20022 (such as Swift gpi’s Tracker) reduce inbound inquiries and operational strain, while empowering corporate clients with greater control.
Instead of chasing down payment statuses, treasury teams can now focus on value-added work and deliver better service.
It’s tempting to assume this deadline might shift, like others in the past. However, this time is different. Bottomline is sounding the alarm: November 2025 is final. The consequences of non-compliance are real and costly.
If a financial institution remains reliant on MT formats, it risks:
Damage to reputation with counterparties;
Transaction failures across ISO-native chains;
Expensive translation fees from Swift for unsupported formats;
Penalties or restrictions from local market infrastructures (e.g., ECB, FedNow).
Put simply, if you’re not ready, you’re not in the game.
ISO 20022 aligns directly with the G20’s cross-border payments goals: cost, speed, transparency, and access.
Source: Lammer, T, T Rice (2022): The G20 cross-border payments programme: A global effort. Journal of Payments Strategy & Systems Vol. 16, No. 3 2022, pp. 1-12
Cost: by reducing false positives, eliminating manual investigations, and enabling better STP rates, ISO 20022 lowers total transaction costs.
Speed: with fewer errors , payments clear faster. Intelligent routing across multiple rails becomes possible.
Transparency: rich data fields support full traceability, better reporting, and superior customer service.
Access: standardisation levels the playing field, enabling global interoperability and expanding financial inclusion.
To help institutions get ahead – not just compliant – Bottomline is hosting an exclusive ISO 20022 webinar focused on the final stage of implementation.
Sara Amara, Director Head of Currency Clearing at HSBC, Egle Skomskyte, Senior Payment Market Expert, Europe, Swift, and Frédéric Viard, Head of Commercial Product Management – Financial Messaging, Bottomline, will join Zhenya Winter, Global Head of Marketing – Financial Messaging at Bottomline to discuss the current status of the ISO 20022 migration and the key next steps to ensure that you can meet the deadlines and fully maximise on the benefits of the new standard.
Why November 2025 is a non-negotiable and how to address the main barriers;
What’s at stake for laggards – and how to catch up fast;
How ISO 20022 supports cross-border, real-time, SaaS and compliance innovation.
'This is your last chance to get sorted before the deadline. You don’t want to be left behind while your competitors surge ahead.'
Frédéric Viard, Head of Strategic Products – Financial Messaging at Bottomline
Register now to reserve your spot – and see how ISO 20022 can transform your payments roadmap, not just update it.
While the deadline may feel like the end of a long compliance journey, Bottomline views it differently: it’s the beginning of a new era in payments. One where data powers innovation, transparency builds trust, and real-time is the new standard.
With the right partner and strategy, ISO 20022 is more than just a regulatory box to check, it’s a launchpad.
And Bottomline is ready to help you take off.
Vlad is a Senior Editor at The Paypers, working in the Banking & Fintech team. He uses his research, content, and people skills for all activities revolving around Open Banking and Open Finance. Vlad has a degree in Biology and Molecular Genetics and an extensive background in creative writing. You can reach out to him on LinkedIn.
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