«The interest is understandable…[SWIFT] is logical and absolutely familiar for Americans,» Nikita Maslennikov, an economist and expert at the Center for Political Technologies, tells Sputnik.

As of today, 159 US companies are operating in Russia at full capacity, 178 are in a semi-suspended mode but have not officially left the country, while over 300 have left permanently, as per Maslennikov.

Russia is in no rush to rejoin SWIFT as it has its own National Payment System, which has proved to be a viable alternative within the country, the pundit says. The use and testing of cross-border payment mechanisms is also already underway, per Maslennikov.

«Currently, the issues of international digital settlements are being tested. There is already an active use of digital financial assets in international payments for a number of countries and transactions,» the pundit says.

SWIFT is a system of the past, Maslennikov adds, saying that by the end of the decade alternative systems will emerge. Over 90 countries are presently testing their own central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).