Organization of the international banking system

The transactions described in the foregoing paragraphs imply the existence of a well developed communications network and an organized system of financial cooperation.This, in fact, is the case.Banks are linked by telephone and telex, and most use a special satellite communications network called SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications).SWIFT, based in Belgium, connects over 1800 banks, brokerage firms and non-banking financial institutions worldwide and makes it possible to transmit financial messages in a standardized format that reduces errors that might crop up due to different languages and banking customs.Financial cooperation is achieved through informal arrangements with correspondent banks or the more formal formats of representative offices, agencies, and foreign branches and subsidiaries.