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Payment Data Mapping Guide

Structured Field Reference Across SWIFT & ISO 20022 Message Formats

This guide explains how key elements required under the FATF Travel Rule (Recommendation 16) are mapped across different payment message types (SWIFT MT103, MT202 COV, and ISO 20022 pacs.008). It includes:


  • Where required data elements appear in each message type

  • Whether the fields are mandatory or optional

  • Format differences across message types

  • Context relevant to regulatory compliance


Required WTR Data Elements

These are the core data points PSPs and VASPs must include to comply with the UK wire transfer regulations:

Element

Description

Payer Name

Name of sender

Payer Account

Unique account number or wallet address

Payer Address (or National ID, Customer ID, DOB/Place of Birth)

At least one is required

Payee Name

Name of receiver

Payee Account

Unique account number or wallet address

Payee PSP

Destination bank/crypto service provider

Transaction Reference

UETR, payment ID, or purpose of payment


SWIFT MT103 Single Customer Credit Transfer

The MT103 is a single customer credit transfer message used for cross-border payments.

WTR Data Element

MT103 Field

Format

Notes

Payer Name

:50K: (or :50F:)

Structured/unstructured

:50F: preferred for structured format

Payer Account

:50K:

Unstructured

IBAN if available

Payer Address / ID

:50K:

Unstructured

Full address or ID data in :50K: block

Payee Name

:59: (or :59F:)

Structured/unstructured

Use :59F: for structured payee information

Payee Account

:59:

Unstructured

IBAN/account number

Payee Financial Institution

:57A:

BIC

Can be intermediary or direct receiving bank

Transaction Reference

:20: / :21: / :23B:

Alphanumeric

:20: often holds UETR


SWIFT MT202COV

Used for institution-to-institution payments linked to MT103 messages.


  • MT202 COV itself does not carry payer or payee data.

  • This information is instead embedded in the accompanying MT103 message.


WTR Element

MT202 COV Field

Notes

Originator & Beneficiary

Not in MT202 COV

Must be retrieved from the related MT103


ISO 20022 pacs.008 Cross-Border or Domestic Credit Transfer

A modern XML-based message format that supports rich structured data equivalent to an MT103.

WTR Data Element

ISO 20022 Field

Notes

Payer Name

<Dbtr><Nm>

Full name of payer

Payer Account

<DbtrAcct><Id><IBAN>

IBAN or other account ID

Payer Address

<Dbtr><PstlAdr>

Postal address, can be structured

Payee Name

<Cdtr><Nm>

Full name pof payee

Payee Account

<CdtrAcct><Id><IBAN>

IBAN or other account ID

Payee Financial Institution

<CdtrAgt><FinInstnId><BICFI>

BIC of payee bank or VASP

Intermediary FI

<IntrmyAgt1><FinInstnId><BICFI>

Optional intermediary BIC

Transaction Reference

<TxId> or <InstrId> or <EndToEndId>

Use based on context and system implementation

Advantages of ISO 20022

ISO 20022 offers several key advantages that make it particularly well-suited to modern financial messaging and regulatory compliance, especially in the context of the WTR and the FATF Travel Rule:


  • Structured Data Fields

    ISO 20022 supports fully structured data formats for critical fields such as names, addresses, and account information. This enhances data consistency, reduces ambiguity, and enables automated processing by compliance and screening systems.

  • UTF-8 Encoding

    By supporting UTF-8 character encoding, ISO 20022 accommodates a wide range of international alphabets and special characters. This ensures that names and address information can be accurately represented across different jurisdictions and languages, which is crucial for global financial institutions.

  • Compliance-Oriented Design

    ISO 20022 was built with regulatory expectations in mind. Its structured format and rich data model make it ideal for transaction monitoring, sanctions screening, and compliance with requirements such as the FATF Recommendation 16 (Travel Rule). It enables better data quality and transparency, facilitating more effective supervision and enforcement.


Summary: Message Format Comparison


Feature

MT103

MT202 COV

ISO 20022 (pacs.008)

Payer/Payee Info

Directly present

Not in message body

Fully structured

Support for Structured Data

Limited

None

Full support

Travel Rule Compliance

Manual validation

Must rely on MT103

Natively compliant

Encoding

Latin-1

Latin-1

UTF-8


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