It’s a fascinating time in the financial world. The rise of ISO 20022, a new global messaging standard that will soon take the place of these older formats— SWIFT MT, for example. This change allows for more clear and specific messaging, including important regulatory and compliance information. Banks and payment systems are moving fast to embrace the new ISO 20022 standard. In the meantime, a number of other crypto projects are already establishing themselves to benefit from the added transaction metadata and greater transparency it offers. Though adoption is accelerating, it has not yet reached all corners. Despite the ongoing FUD, these cryptocurrencies have enormous potential to create lift traditional finance and venture capital with the innovation that blockchain technologies are creating.
This article explores the leading cryptocurrencies implementing the ISO 20022 standard. It describes what makes them extraordinary, and explains how they might influence the future of all financial transactions. These examples include XRP, Stellar, Algorand, Quant, and IOTA, all of which clearly show that they are invested in secure, compliant messaging. ISO 20022 compliance is a huge move in the right direction. Outside of the theoretical world, adoption by the public, regulation and utility is key to any success.
Understanding ISO 20022 and Its Impact
ISO 20022 is a monumental change in how we will have to communicate as financial institutions. It introduces a more structured and data-rich standard in place of older messaging formats like SWIFT MT. This improvement makes it possible to add customizable regulatory and compliance data to the transactions. In turn, this boosts transparency and simplifies reconciliation efforts.
ISO 20022’s flexible, hierarchical structure adds detail to transaction metadata. This makes the audit trail clearer and regulatory reporting more streamlined. This is especially important for financial institutions facing an ever-evolving and complicated regulatory environment. Moving to ISO 20022 isn’t simply a technical migration. Beyond that, it is the strategic move that improves operational efficiency and is critical for regulatory compliance.
That said, the transition to ISO 20022 is very much a work in progress. Though there is acceptance of the standard across banks and payment systems, a wide-scale or universal implementation is not there yet. With this continuous rollout, a new opportunity is unveiled for digital assets that support ISO 20022. As a result, they have begun to connect directly with legacy and new financial ecosystems.
Top Cryptocurrencies Aligned with ISO 20022
Many existing cryptocurrencies have maneuvered themselves to take advantage of the ISO 20022 benefits. Among these, XRP, Stellar, Algorand, Quant, and IOTA stand out among the pack due to their consensus design features and joint visionary strategic initiatives. Together, each of these projects delivers innovative solutions that further the goals of supporting ISO 20022. Through their initiatives, they want to increase interoperability and efficiency of financial transactions.
XRP is one of the only digital assets with the technical capabilities and proven use case to work alongside the ISO 20022 standard. In May 2020, Ripple, the company behind XRP, became a member of the ISO 20022 standards body. This addition signals Ripple’s desire to adhere to international financial messaging standards. RippleNet was the first to provide end-to-end support for the ISO 20022 format. This action opened the door for easy interoperability with legacy financial infrastructure.
XRP's focus on cross-border payments and its early adoption of ISO 20022 make it a key player in the evolving landscape of financial messaging. In a world where efficiency and compliance increasingly collide, its unique dual-sided marketplace set it apart and positioned it well for future of global financial infrastructure.
"What did $XRP prioritize before any other crypto and processes over $434,000,000,000 each day? ISO 20022 —few people understand how important this is.” - Austin King, Omni Network co-founder
Stellar, another cryptocurrency with a focus on cross-border payments, closely mirrors ISO 20022 messaging standards. Its architecture allows easy integration with banks and other legacy systems. This practicality is what makes it the best option for institutions looking to get a head start on blockchain technology. Stellar is a strong performer in the interoperability space and on running extremely high transaction volumes. This decentralization makes it a great fit for a wide variety of other financial applications.
Stellar’s open network is built to support any kind of money movement and any financial asset. This architectural approach allows it to be extremely flexible and meet the needs of ISO 20022. This flexibility enables financial institutions to utilize Stellar’s blockchain to increase their efficiencies and save costs.
While algorand is not officially endorsed or certified, it is aligned with ISO 20022 standard. Further, its technology empowers the programmatic use of the structured data and enhanced security features required by the standard. Algorand has focused on speed and scalability. This focus on performance and speed in particular makes it an appealing option for financial institutions seeking to modernize their payment capabilities.
Perhaps less obvious than XRP or Stellar, Algorand has a strong ISO 20022 play. Its underlying technology is supremely well-suited to fulfill the standard’s requirements. Its ability to handle complex financial transactions with speed and efficiency positions it as a potential player in the future of financial messaging.
Thanks to their innovative solutions, Quant has taken a huge leap to ensure its compliance with ISO 20022. In April 2025, Quant launched Quant Flow, a new platform for institutions to automate complex payments and create workflows that are easier to maintain in compliance with requirements. This platform is purpose-built to address the emerging needs of ISO 20022 to help make adoption easy while integrating directly with current financial back-end.
Quant's Overledger technology facilitates interoperability between different blockchains and traditional financial networks, making it a valuable tool for institutions seeking to adopt ISO 20022. Its emphasis on regulatory compliance and automation makes it one of the prime drivers of the new financial messaging standard.
IOTA is a feeless cryptocurrency that offers an interesting alternative to ISO 20022 compliance. Its design works in concert with banks and central banks. Design of this kind provides a powerful and economical way to process transactions quickly and efficiently. Given how IOTA’s feeless structure works, it can greatly lower the costs that come with traditional payment systems.
IOTA’s technology is particularly suited for microtransactions and IoT applications. As a protocol, it could allow for secure and governance-compliant messaging between IoT ecosystems and legacy finance networks. Its emphasis on scalability alongside cost-effectiveness makes it a hugely attractive resource in the rapidly transforming world of financial messaging.
For cryptocurrency projects, aligning with ISO 20022 is a great first step. Don’t get me wrong—compliance is necessary but not sufficient to guarantee success. Real-world adoption, regulatory approval, and genuine utility are the other three equally important factors. The onus now rests on the shoulders of cryptocurrency projects to build meaningful solutions that solve specific real world challenges and prove value to the financial institutions.
The crypto world is littered with projects that are all hat and no cattle. Investors and financial institutions should be wary of any cryptocurrency or project. They should take deep due diligence, regardless of how the promise of a project may fit within ISO 20022.
The ultimate success of ISO 20022-aligned cryptocurrencies will depend on their being able to prove value. Their effectiveness will ultimately be judged by financial institutions and end-users. From their perspective, that means delivering safe, smooth, and affordable options while adapting to the changing demands of an increasingly interconnected global financial network.
IOTA is a feeless cryptocurrency that presents a unique approach to aligning with ISO 20022. Its architecture is designed to work alongside financial institutions and central banks, offering a cost-effective and efficient solution for processing transactions. IOTA's feeless structure can significantly reduce the costs associated with traditional payment systems.
IOTA's technology is particularly well-suited for microtransactions and IoT applications, making it a potential enabler of secure, compliant messaging between IoT networks and traditional finance infrastructures. Its focus on scalability and cost-effectiveness positions it as a valuable asset in the evolving landscape of financial messaging.
The Importance of Real-World Adoption
While aligning with ISO 20022 is a positive step for cryptocurrency projects, it is essential to recognize that compliance alone does not guarantee success. Real-world adoption, regulatory approval, and genuine utility are equally important factors. Cryptocurrency projects must focus on building practical solutions that address real-world problems and demonstrate tangible benefits to financial institutions.
"Choose projects that build real bridges, not just throw buzzwords around, trying to attract investors who don’t know any better." - No specific author mentioned, but from the article
The cryptocurrency landscape is filled with projects that make bold claims but fail to deliver on their promises. Investors and financial institutions should exercise caution and conduct thorough due diligence before investing in any cryptocurrency project, regardless of its alignment with ISO 20022.
Ultimately, the success of ISO 20022-aligned cryptocurrencies will depend on their ability to demonstrate clear value to financial institutions and end-users. This includes providing secure, efficient, and cost-effective solutions that meet the evolving needs of the global financial system.
