Going beyond payments compliance
The ISO 20022 standard is a new dawn for global payments.
Many major payment schemes, banks and payments providers have already adopted the new standard, which has been designed to replace the older, less flexible formats. Those that have not must do so soon because the compliance deadline for cross-border payments is November 2025.
This paper discusses how banks can seize ISO 20022 as an opportunity to transform and improve business processes and procedures.
Key benefits of ISO 20022 include:
- Richer data
- A global standard
- Future-proofing payments
- Enhanced security
- Cost savings
- Enhanced customer experience
In our experience the new standard offers a unique opportunity to adopt modern methods and technologies and build a better bank that is more agile, robust and future proof.
Download our white paper to find out more about the benefits of the new standard, some of the major challenges, and the role that AI can play in payments modernization and in meeting the ISO 20022 deadline.
- Banks can leverage AI to accelerate their migration to ISO 20022, whilst reducing the costs and mitigating the operational risks
- 75% of firms have adopted AI with a further 10% planning to use it within the next three years (research by the Bank of England).
FAQ: ISO 20022, Payments Modernisation & Beyond Compliance
How can AI help banks modernise payments and accelerate ISO 20022 adoption?
AI - particularly GenAI - can automate legacy‑to‑ISO mapping, enrich missing data, validate and cleanse payment records, and generate comprehensive test scenarios for ISO 20022 message flows.
It also supports compliance monitoring, fraud detection, and simulated transaction processing, reducing operational risk and shortening implementation timelines. Banks increasingly view AI as essential, with 75% already using AI and a further 10% planning to adopt it within three years.
For real use cases, download the full report.
How should banks structure a successful ISO 20022 transformation programme?
A successful ISO 20022 programme rests on six pillars: business analysis, governance, architecture design, software development, testing, and production readiness.
Banks must assess cross‑departmental impacts, design target microservices architectures, implement new message formats, automate testing, and ensure readiness for customer rollout. A structured, consultative model helps reduce technical debt while unlocking long‑term modernisation value.
Download the full report for a detailed breakdown of each phase.
How can banks create value beyond compliance with ISO 20022?
Banks can move beyond simple format translation and use ISO 20022 as a catalyst for broader business transformation. Richer data enhances fraud prevention, customer experiences, reporting accuracy, and revenue‑generation opportunities.
With modern architectures and AI‑driven platforms such as Wynxx - which enable up to 90% faster story creation and 95% faster code test/fix cycles - banks can accelerate innovation while lowering operational costs.
Explore opportunities for value creation in the full Thought Leadership report.
