Multi-Network Messaging Switch
SWIFT is no longer the only rail
For decades, high-value and cross-currency payments ran on one network, one connection, one queue: SWIFTNet.
Major RTGS operators now offer parallel network channels. The Eurosystem's T2 and T2S services are reached through the ESMIG gateway, which is open to more than one network service provider. The Bank of England has stated its RTGS renewal aims at a "message network-agnostic" design. The HKMA now mandates usage quotas across two channels (see below). Instant payment schemes run on their own rails, and ISO 20022 connects them all.
Institutions that ran a single SWIFT pipe now operate two, three or more channels in parallel. They often carry the same ISO 20022 messages to the same counterparties in the same currencies, over different wires under different rulebooks.
Bolting a second connector onto a legacy SWIFT stack duplicates archives, fractures audit trails and spreads routing logic across scripts. A network-agnostic switch talks to every network and decides, per message, which one to use.
One switch, every network
Network Abstraction
Configure each network as an independent channel: SWIFTNet, domestic IP networks such as ICLNet or CIPS, instant payment schemes, internal rails. Back-office systems do not need to know which one is used. See the connector list.
Policy-Based Routing
A visual rule builder routes each message by amount, currency, BIC, counterparty, value date, business unit, time of day or any payload field. Rules are configuration.
Quota Enforcement
Distribute traffic to meet regulator-mandated usage ratios. The Hub keeps running counters and steers routing to stay in band.
Contingency Switching
Calendar-driven single-channel days exercise each rail end-to-end. Operator-triggered or automatic failover moves part or all of the traffic to the alternate network within seconds.
Format & Validation per Network
The same pacs / camt model runs on every channel. The Hub applies each network's rulebook and translates MT↔MX on the way out. Details on standards compliance and translation.
Unified Audit & Visibility
Every message, whichever network it took, lands in one full-text searchable archive with one audit trail. Real-time dashboards show traffic split, queue depth, per-network status and progress against quotas.
HKMA RTGS Dual Network Channel
The mandate
On 20 May 2026 the Hong Kong Monetary Authority issued the Real Time Gross Settlement Dual Network Channel Usage Guideline (Ref B5/12C), conveyed to CHATS members via HKICL Circular 2026/154.
From the DNC service launch (expected end-2026), every Authorised Institution must connect to HKD, USD, EUR and RMB CHATS via ICLNet, HKICL's proprietary IP network, in addition to SWIFTNet. Both networks operate in parallel.
Each AI must keep dual connectivity at all times and switch part or all of its RTGS traffic between channels swiftly, without material delay or disruption.
What you have to prove monthly (from 1 April 2027)
- 20%–80% of outgoing Inter-bank Fund Transfers via ICLNet, per CHATS the AI participates in.
- Receive payments via ICLNet on 5 to 15 working days per month, per CHATS.
- ≥2 working days/month solely on ICLNet and ≥2 working days/month solely on SWIFTNet for contingency.
- Reconcile against the monthly HKICL DNC monitoring report.
Each requirement, one configuration
From the May 2026 announcement, CHATS members have about seven months to be ready for parallel operation at DNC launch and roughly ten months to be inside the usage quotas.
Discuss your DNC readiness plan →Multi-network is the new normal
Cross-border + instant
Route low-value, time-sensitive flows to instant schemes (SEPA Instant, FedNow, The Clearing House RTP, UK Faster Payments, NPP). Keep SWIFTNet for higher-value or non-supported currencies, per payment and automatically.
CIPS + SWIFTNet for RMB
CIPS direct participants can reach the system via CIPS's own messaging or SWIFTNet. The Hub splits CNY traffic between the two by counterparty reachability and cost, with no change to back-office integration.
Cost-aware routing
Use the cheapest reachable network per corridor. Policy rules can take pricing tables, value date and currency into account.
Internal vs. external
Route on-us payments through an internal book-transfer rail and keep external traffic on the regulated networks, with the same workflow and audit on both sides.
Migration windows
Run new and legacy networks in parallel during cutovers, with a controlled volume ramp on the target network. The Hub keeps a single view across both.
Ready for new mandates
The HKMA RTGS DNC is among the most prescriptive dual-network mandates a major regulator has issued. The architecture is already in place if your regulator follows a similar template.