XOF correspondent banking: who clears the XOF

Tracing a XOF chain

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

Who clears XOF payments?

XOF settles through the local clearing system. Banks without direct access hold a nostro account with a correspondent that has it, so a XOF payment reaches the beneficiary by settling at that correspondent first and moving inwards. In the current dataset 94 distinct institutions act as XOF correspondents.

How concentrated is XOF clearing?

The three largest XOF correspondents between them serve about 29% of the banks that publish a XOF 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 XOF correspondent?

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