In 2014, the Bank of Russia launched the development of the System for Transfer of Financial Messages (SPFS) as an alternative to the SWIFT financial transfer system. The initiative was introduced in response to US sanctions against Moscow and its threat to disconnect Russia from the SWIFT system. The SPFS is expected to limit the influence of international payment systems and enable Russian companies on the sanctions list to carry out transactions with foreign firms. Recently, First Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Russia Olga Skorobogatova reported that 10 foreign banks had joined the SPFS system. However, no official information is available on which exactly banks have connected to the SPFS. Meanwhile, SWIFT remains the most popular payment system in the world. As of 2015, SWIFT messaging service linked more than 11,000 financial organizations in more than 200 countries worldwide, including about 1,000 corporations.
