BDT correspondent banking: who clears the BDT

Tracing a BDT chain

Each instruction names the institution holding that bank's BDT account. Following those links repeatedly ends at a bank that publishes no onward BDT instruction — the ultimate clearer, with direct access to clearing. That is where the money actually settles before moving inwards to the beneficiary.

Who clears BDT payments?

BDT settles through the local clearing system. Banks without direct access hold a nostro account with a correspondent that has it, so a BDT payment reaches the beneficiary by settling at that correspondent first and moving inwards. In the current dataset 47 distinct institutions act as BDT correspondents.

How concentrated is BDT clearing?

The three largest BDT correspondents between them serve about 51% of the banks that publish a BDT instruction. Concentration matters because the withdrawal of one correspondent can affect a large number of respondent banks at once.

How do I find a bank's BDT correspondent?

Search the bank's BIC, select BDT, and the chain resolves hop by hop to the institution that clears the currency, including the nostro account number on each relationship.