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KPWKPW

KPW correspondent banking: who clears the KPW

Banks without direct access to KPW clearing settle through a correspondent that has it. KPW settles through its domestic clearing system.

KPW in the instruction data

Aggregate figures from the current SWIFT standing settlement instruction dataset.

1
banks publish a KPW instruction
1
correspondents serve KPW
100%
served by the top three
1
countries represented

Individual instructions, BICs and account numbers are available to subscribers.

Tracing a KPW chain

Each instruction names the institution holding that bank's KPW account. Following those links repeatedly ends at a bank that publishes no onward KPW instruction — the ultimate clearer, with direct access to clearing. That is where the money actually settles before moving inwards to the beneficiary.

Who clears KPW payments?
KPW settles through the local clearing system. Banks without direct access hold a nostro account with a correspondent that has it, so a KPW payment reaches the beneficiary by settling at that correspondent first and moving inwards. In the current dataset 1 distinct institutions act as KPW correspondents.
How concentrated is KPW clearing?
The three largest KPW correspondents between them serve about 100% of the banks that publish a KPW instruction. Concentration matters because the withdrawal of one correspondent can affect a large number of respondent banks at once.
How do I find a bank's KPW correspondent?
Search the bank's BIC, select KPW, and the chain resolves hop by hop to the institution that clears the currency, including the nostro account number on each relationship.
Trace a KPW chainHow it works

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