DBS and Citi have completed what they describe as the first successful weekend cross-border USD payment between Singapore and the United States using tokenized deposits on the Swift Digital Ledger. The banks announced the transaction on September 7, after the payment was completed on September 5 between DBS and Citi’s New York office.
The transfer settled in minutes, according to DBS, rather than the industry norm of up to two business days cited for conventional cross-border payments. Its completion during a weekend is the immediate test of whether payment commitments can be made outside normal banking hours in the Singapore–US corridor.
DBS and Citi complete weekend Singapore–US USD payment in minutes
The transaction involved a USD payment between DBS and Citi’s New York office.
DBS said the payment used tokenized deposits on Swift’s Digital Ledger, framing it as an instant, 24/7 cross-border payment capability.
The banks said the transfer was completed on a Saturday and settled in minutes. Conventional international payments can be delayed by operating-hour differences and non-business days, and DBS gave up to two business days as a benchmark for existing cross-border payment processes.
Tokenized deposits extend payment commitments beyond banking hours
Conventional international payments can be delayed by operating-hour differences and non-business days; DBS cited up to two business days as a benchmark for existing cross-border payment processes. Against that backdrop, a Saturday transfer between DBS and Citi was completed in minutes.
That transaction demonstrated that tokenized deposits on Swift’s shared ledger can support always-on payments beyond traditional banking hours and weekend closures, CoinDesk reported.
Citi’s pilot is designed to make payment commitments available around the clock, including when conventional bank operating windows are closed. The weekend transaction therefore offered a live example of the capability, while the tokenized-deposit layer does not replace established settlement infrastructure.
Final settlement remains tied to existing RTGS systems
The pilot does not replace established settlement infrastructure. Its tokenized-deposit layer is intended to make cross-border payment commitments available around the clock, including outside conventional bank operating windows.
Final settlement still runs through existing systems, including real-time gross settlement, according to Citi’s September 2 announcement on live Swift Ledger transactions, which described the Swift ledger pilot as enabling 24/7 payment commitments through tokenized deposits.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
Source: Crypto Daily