Swift today named host cities for its global flagship event, Sibos, up until the end of the decade, and announced an expansion of the premier financial conference to strengthen financial inclusivity for growing economies across Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America.

Following Frankfurt (2025), Miami (2026), and Singapore (2027), Paris will host Sibos for the first time in 2028 – a milestone year marking five decades since inception of the conference. The French capital employs around 340,000 people in the financial industry, according to Paris Europlace, among the highest of any financial hub in Europe.

Dubai will follow with hosting duties in 2029. The Middle East is a key strategic region in global finance, bridging Europe, Asia and Africa – facilitating trade and investment flows. Dubai – often referred to as the Gateway to Africa because of this strategic location – is home to the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), a global hub that has grown significantly since its foundation in 2004. The DIFC is now home to almost 7,000 businesses as well as the majority of the Gulf Co-operation Council’s fintech industry.   

The 2029 edition will also initiate a new rotation for Sibos. The global event has traditionally rotated among established financial centres in three regions: Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific. Beginning with Dubai, Swift will hold the event every 4th year in growing economies across Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America, to better reflect the diversity and inclusivity of its global infrastructure that serves more than 11,500 institutions in over 200 countries and territories.

“Swift is a convener of and for the global financial industry and as the breadth of our network continues to grow, we’re delighted to be able to expand Sibos to more locations around the world. No other event brings the industry together on the same scale as Sibos, and the addition of even more perspectives to the event’s debates and discussions will be increasingly valuable as the industry navigates rapid technological change and the growing risk of fragmentation.”

The Sibos expansion comes as Swift’s infrastructure is used more than ever. Swift recorded record traffic last year and the highest year-on-year growth in 15 years, underlining its growing utility to institutions around the world.

Sibos, which was first convened in 1978, creates an opportunity for the Swift community to come together to exchange ideas, debate and collaborate in the areas of payments, securities, cash management and trade. It regularly attracts more than 10,000 delegates from the financial services sector. Host cities are selected through a competitive bidding process several years ahead of the event. As well as being a financial centre, key considerations include both technological and logistical infrastructure, as well as having a conference venue that is large enough to host a large scale event.