Written by: Max.S
For a long time, most cryptocurrency holders have had to face a P2P market filled with uncertainty when seeking to cash out into fiat currency. After years of regulatory crackdowns and the pain of losing payment partners, Binance— the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange— is returning to the traditional financial system in a more discreet and foundational way.
The most striking aspect of this is its normalized support for converting USDT to US dollars (USD) and directly withdrawing through the SWIFT network. This is not just an update of product functionality, but an "invisible war" regarding asset compliance and payment clearing rights.
In the P2P model, the opacity of counterparties poses a significant systemic risk. Whether it’s the so-called "shield merchants" or "bulk trading," fundamentally, they cannot avoid the issue of tainted sources of funds. A bank card frozen by law enforcement often means months or even years of asset lockup. This "startled bird" state has become an insurmountable chasm between crypto natives and the traditional financial world.
The current logic has become exceptionally simple and "boring": users convert USDT into USD balance on the spot market or through the flash exchange function, and then directly initiate a withdrawal to their linked international bank account.
There are no intermediaries, no unknown individual transfer parties. When you open online banking to check the transaction details, the remitter is clearly labeled as a compliant payment processing institution, and the funds are classified as standard bank wire transfers. For the increasingly stringent compliance requirements of traditional bank risk control systems, this is a "clean" cross-border remittance, rather than a suspicious transaction that triggers red flags.
To understand the underlying logic of this change, one must look to Bahrain. Between 2023 and 2024, Binance found itself in a predicament regarding fiat channels due to the exit of its original payment partners. After much reflection, Binance clearly realized: borrowed pipelines can be cut off at any time; only building its own infrastructure is the way out.
Thus, BPay Global was born.
According to the latest public information, BPay Global BSC © is a subsidiary of the Binance Group, holding a payment service provider license issued by the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB). This is not an ordinary license; it allows BPay to directly access the global interbank financial telecommunications association (SWIFT) network.
This means that when users click "Withdraw USD" on the Binance interface, a substantial financial asset exchange occurs in the background. First, the on-chain USDT is "atomically" converted to book-entry USD at an almost 1:1 exchange rate through Binance's internal matching engine. Next, BPay Global, as the clearing entity, initiates a standard SWIFT MT103 message to the user's receiving bank.
Throughout the process, the traces of cryptocurrency remain within the exchange, while pure fiat currency flows out. This "front store and back factory" model— trading Crypto in the front store and clearing Fiat in the back factory— significantly reduces traditional banks' aversion to crypto funds.
The SWIFT Paradox: Regression or Evolution?
This brings up a paradox that confuses and even unsettles many: the original intention of cryptocurrency was to disrupt the inefficient, centralized SWIFT system; why do the most mainstream exchanges now want to reconnect with SWIFT in the "last mile"?
On the surface, this seems like a compromise, even a regression in history. Transferring USDT on-chain takes only seconds and costs a few dollars; whereas SWIFT often requires T+2 timing and fees of dozens of dollars. Since we already have the "high-speed rail" (blockchain), why switch to the "horse-drawn carriage" (SWIFT) at the final stop?
However, if we elevate our perspective and analyze the evolution of financial infrastructure, we find that this is not a simple contradiction, but a "soft landing" from idealism to realism.
First, this is a complementary mismatch between "mainline transport" and "end settlement." The advantage of cryptocurrency lies in the global transmission of value (Transport). Transferring 100 million USDT from New York to Singapore is indeed far more efficient on-chain than traditional finance. However, the real-world economy— real estate transactions, tax declarations, corporate supply chains— still relies on fiat account systems.
As long as your landlord, tax office, or Starbucks only accepts dollars from bank accounts, cryptocurrency must complete a "perilous leap" in the final step, transforming into digits on a bank ledger. The current model has evolved into: "run on-chain for the entire journey, SWIFT for the last step." Binance's integration with SWIFT does not replace the global transmission function of blockchain; rather, it uses it in a lower-dimensional way as a "unloading port" connecting the virtual economy with the real economy.
Secondly, this is a liquidity "Trojan horse" strategy. If cryptocurrency insists on building a completely independent closed loop outside of banks (Crypto Native), it may forever remain a speculative island of capital turnover. Reconnecting with SWIFT actually grants crypto assets fiat pricing power and a true exit mechanism. Through a smooth SWIFT channel, USDT is no longer just code on a screen; it becomes a "quasi-dollar" that can be accessed at will.
This strategy leverages SWIFT's massive network effects, injecting the liquidity of cryptocurrency into the heart of traditional finance. This may seem like bowing to old powers, but in reality, it is a form of "parasitic evolution"— using the host (banking system) to nourish the new organism (crypto economy).
Decentralized transfers, while fast, lack the attributes that traditional finance values most: traceability of identity and responsibility. The barrier-free nature of the P2P market brings freedom but also endless money laundering risks and anxiety over frozen accounts. Although SWIFT is technically outdated, it represents a globally recognized compliance standard (AML/KYC).
Binance's integration with SWIFT sends a signal to regulators: "My fund flows are clean." For large sums of money, certainty of value far outweighs speed. Cryptocurrency sacrifices some degree of censorship resistance (requiring real-name registration) in exchange for a passport into mainstream society.
On January 15, 2026, Bahrain Kuwait Bank (BBK) announced its participation in the Binance Link program, marking a breakthrough in another dimension.
In the past, banks viewed cryptocurrency exchanges as a threat and avoided them. BBK's entry means that traditional banks are beginning to directly embed the liquidity of exchanges into their systems. This is not just about opening a deposit account; it involves technical API integration.
From a payment perspective, this cooperative model has maximized the efficiency of the "withdraw" action. For high-net-worth individuals, this means that moving in and out of funds of 5 million or even 50 million dollars is no longer a fantasy.
More importantly, there is the "audit trail." With the advancement of the global standard for automatic exchange of tax information (CRS) and the Crypto Asset Reporting Framework (CARF), proving asset compliance has become more important than the assets themselves. By withdrawing through official channels, users receive a complete, traceable bank statement. This is not only the cornerstone of tax compliance but also a "passport" for large funds when purchasing real estate, investing, or immigrating. In 2026, having funds with a "clear source" will carry a premium far exceeding a few extra points on the ledger.
Looking back from the beginning of 2026, we are at a turning point in crypto payments.
The maturity of the USDT to USD conversion and withdrawal function, along with its deep integration with the SWIFT system, signifies that the cryptocurrency industry is bidding farewell to the "underground money house" model of the wild era and stepping into the ranks of the "financial regular army."
Just as in the early days of the internet, when we had to connect to the network via telephone lines (dial-up), SWIFT is like that old telephone line. It is a relic of the old world, but before fiber optics (fully on-chain finance) become widespread, it is the only bridge connecting the new and old worlds.
In this new system, payment is no longer merely a transfer of funds; it is a confirmation of identity, a compliance endorsement, and a solid bridge connecting virtual wealth with real purchasing power. What Binance is doing now is making this "dial-up line" more stable and compliant, ensuring that users can at least guarantee the free and safe movement of their assets during the long night before the full arrival of Web 3.0.
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