What is ISO 20022 and how will it impact you?

The Fedwire Funds Service has served as the backbone of large-value payments in the United States since 1918, processing trillions of dollars in payments daily using a sophisticated electronic real-time gross settlement system (RTGS). Fedwire enables the immediate and final settlement of funds, making modern commerce possible. 

For decades, the system has relied on the proprietary Fedwire Application Interface Manual (FAIM) format - a messaging standard specific to the US market. The problem? FAIM has become increasingly antiquated and lacks the ability to send more sophisticated, data-rich messages. 

That’s where ISO 20022 comes in. It’s the new global standard for payment messaging. 

• It allows for global compatibility and consistency.
• Includes enhanced anti-money laundering (AML) requirements
• Meets the demands of banks and other financial institutions requesting additional details on reporting, reconciliation that FAIM could not deliver
• Moves the finance industry toward real-time processing with the updated data structures 

Terminology

The Fedwire transition to ISO 20022 introduces updated, globally consistent terminology to replace the older FAIM terms. 

What does this mean for you 

While the biggest list is on the banks and financial institutions, these changes affect everyone involved in sending or receiving wires. Starting July 14, 2025, you and your consumers will need to have more information up front before a wire can go out. The good news? You’ll have access to better data on incoming wires that can improve reconciliation processes. And this new structure sets the stage for faster, more modern payment options down the line. 

What you should do

• Reach out to your banking partner to understand any changes to wire transfer procedures, new form requirements, or any system modifications that may affect daily operations. 
• Learn what new data is required for sending a wire transfer. The address components must be included in the wire information.
• If you are currently using wire templates, plan to recreate those using ISO 20022 terminology and the new required fields. 
• Make sure your staff is up to speed on the new terminology and requirements. Here are some of the key updates to know:
  
  • “Beneficiary” is now “Creditor”
  • Address information must follow a more structured format
  • “Beneficiary Bank” is now “Creditor Agent”
  • Address fields must follow a more structured format
  • Federal Reference Number” is now “Unique End-to-End Reference (UETR)”
  • “Purpose of Payment” now requires a standardized Purpose Code
  • “Business Function Code” is being replaced by Local Instrument Code
  • “Type/Subtype Code” is eliminated

These are just a few highlights—there are other shifts that may impact how you build templates, collect wire info, and reconcile incoming funds.

What CertifID is doing to help

CertifID recognizes the impact of these standards changes, and we want to support as much as possible. Here is what we are doing to support you and your customers during this transition. 

• Send PDF updates. We’re updating the document your clients receive with your wire instructions to include your full address information, so they have what they need when they send the wire. We’ll also include the correct purpose code and update the “Wire Help Guide” to reflect these updates. 
• Lender and business verifications. We’ll include complete address details for any lender or business being verified. Since the address information will be required for each wire, we’ll make sure it’s part of the verification process to save you time. 
• Collect and confirm flows. We’re updating these workflows to collect and present full address information, aligned with the new ISO 20022 requirements and displayed clearly for your team.

Our approach 

We’re starting with the consumer's experience because they’re often new to the process, unfamiliar with wire requirements, and unfortunately, the most vulnerable to fraud. Once those consumer-facing updates are live, we’re turning our focus to you. We know your team is already tracking down addresses, account details, and verification info across multiple systems. But what if you didn’t have to? We’re building all of it —structured address fields, purpose codes, verified party info—into one place: the CertifID PDF. No more chasing details across platforms. Just a single source of truth you can rely on to send every wire confidently and compliantly.  It’s still your process—just smarter, faster, and built for what’s next.