What is ISO 20022?
ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 20022 is a global standard that allows financial institutions to communicate using a common set of messages and language to include payment messages like wire transfers.
What is FedWire?
FedWire is a secure, real-time electronic funds transfer system that allows financial institutions to send and receive money. Whether you enter your wire through Digital Banking, or complete a wire transfer form, it is ultimately sent through the FedWire system for processing.
Why is this conversion taking place?
The ISO 20022 FedWire conversion is taking place to standardize the format of payment messages across the global financial system, enabling richer data exchange, improved efficiency in processing cross-border payments, and reducing errors due to data inconsistencies.
When is this happening?
The ISO 20022 FedWire conversion is happening July 14, 2025. All wires sent on or after this date must be in the new ISO format.
What does this mean for me?
Starting on July 14th, any wires you send will have to follow the new format. Any saved templates you have will need to be reentered to fit the new format.
Is there anything I need to do to prepare for the conversion?
Any time before the end of the day on July 11th, you should save screen shots of or print out copies of any wire templates that you want to use again. They will not be available afterward. You will need to recreate these wire templates in the new format through Cash Management. You may also delete any wire templates that you no longer need.
Northeast Bank will do an extract of all Cash Management customer wire template data in our system on July 11th. We can share a spreadsheet with customers with their wire template data upon request.
How do I delete templates I no longer need?
Simply login to Digital Banking and access Cash Management; click on Wires and then Edit/Add; select the template you no longer need by checking the box next to the name and on the right of the wire list, click Delete.
What are the differences between the current format and the new ISO format?
The field names will be noticeably different. For example: what you may know as a recipient or beneficiary will now be known as a creditor; and the receiving or beneficiary bank will now be known as creditor agent. By standardizing the format, there will also be additional fields that you haven’t seen before. For example: the address fields will be broken out from single address lines to specific fields for building number, street name, department, building name, floor, room, etc).