MAD correspondent banking: who clears the MAD

Tracing a MAD chain

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

Who clears MAD payments?

MAD settles through the local clearing system. Banks without direct access hold a nostro account with a correspondent that has it, so a MAD payment reaches the beneficiary by settling at that correspondent first and moving inwards. In the current dataset 117 distinct institutions act as MAD correspondents.

How concentrated is MAD clearing?

The three largest MAD correspondents between them serve about 34% of the banks that publish a MAD 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 MAD correspondent?

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