Compliance

Swift is a global member-owned cooperative and the world’s leading provider of secure financial messaging services. As the financial industry’s neutral and trusted infrastructure provider, we help our global community of over 11,000 institutions to find a better way to move value with a reliable, safe and secure approach that the community can trust, completely.

We believe all transactions should be secure, instant and frictionless, with end-to-end integrity and global reach. We cooperate closely with our community in setting standards, shaping market practice and developing new services. We think and act long-term. As a member-owned cooperative, we look beyond quick fixes and try to craft affordable, sustainable solutions.

Headquartered in Belgium, Swift’s international governance and oversight reinforces the neutral, global character of its cooperative structure. Swift is subject to central bank oversight as a critical service provider.

Swift shareholders elect a Board composed of 25 independent Directors which govern the Swift group and oversee management.  The Board delegates the day-to-day management to the CEO who leads an Executive Committee.  Within the board there are 7 committees providing strategic guidance and review progress on projects in their respective areas taking into account Swift’s vision and strategy.

In the UK, S.W.I.F.T. UK & Ireland Limited, as member of the Swift group is committed to full compliance with all statutory obligations and full disclosure to relevant tax authorities in a way which upholds its reputation as a responsible corporate citizen.

S.W.I.F.T. UK & Ireland Limited abides to the following Swift Group tax principles:

• Compliance - Swift is committed to ensuring that its tax affairs are conducted in compliance with all applicable tax laws and practices.
• Sustainability - Swift’s tax affairs are managed taking into account the group’s wider strategy, overall high standards of governance and risk management.
• Fairness - applying diligent professional care and judgment to ensure all decisions on tax matters are in line with national and international best practices, well-analyzed and properly documented. Swift does not undertake tax planning which could be considered artificial in any way.
• Trust and Transparency - acting positively and transparently towards Tax Authorities in order to develop and sustain fair and honest working relationships.

Enterprise Risk Management aims to ensure that risk management is part of the organisation’s culture, practices and decision-making to enable business sustainability and growth.

To achieve this objective, Swift has adopted the Three Lines of Defence model and implemented an ERM framework which defines a comprehensive risk management process and governance with clear roles and responsibilities for the Three Lines of Defence. The ERM framework is applicable to all types of activities carried out by Swift, whether internally or externally facing.

S.W.I.F.T. UK & Ireland Limited manages its tax affairs based on the Enterprise Risk Management framework set by the group.

S.W.I.F.T. UK & Ireland Limited is committed to accurately and timely file tax returns and tax payments in line with UK tax laws and seeks support and assistance from an external tax advisor to comply with these obligations. 

S.W.I.F.T. UK & Ireland Limited seeks to have a transparent relationship with HMRC built on trust ensuring that tax risks in respect of new developments of Swift’s business and/or significant uncertainty in interpretation of (new) law in relation to all relevant taxes, are to be openly disclosed when required and solutions are sought in a constructive and long-term manner.