SWIFT MT
SWIFT Message Type
Legacy SWIFT message format used for financial transactions and communication between banks.
SWIFT MT messages use fixed-length fields and standardized formats for various banking operations including customer transfers (MT103), account statements (MT940), and securities transactions (MT54x series). MT messages have served as the backbone of international banking communications for decades, providing reliable and secure messaging infrastructure. The format includes specific message types for different transaction categories with defined field structures and validation rules. While proven and widely adopted, MT format limitations include constrained data capacity, limited character sets, and structured field requirements that restrict information richness. SWIFT is migrating from MT to ISO 20022 MX messages to provide enhanced data capacity, improved straight-through processing, and better regulatory reporting capabilities.
Example
MT103 customer credit transfers, MT940 account statements, MT950 account identification