MT537 Statement of Pending Transactions

When MT537 is used

The account servicer sends the MT537 to the account owner or its agent for one safekeeping account. It reports, as at the time in :98a::STAT, every instruction that is still open: received and accepted but not matched, matched but waiting for securities or cash, failing past its settlement date, or waiting for a cancellation or modification. It can also include future-dated and forward transactions that are already binding. It answers an MT549 request for a statement, and :17B::ACTI//N reports that nothing is pending.

The statement comes in two layouts, chosen with the mandatory :22H::STST. With STAT (per status), sequence B is used: each occurrence of B is one status, for example :25D::SETT//PENF, with the reasons in B1 and then every transaction that has that status in B2. With TRAN (per transaction), sequence C is used: each occurrence of C is one transaction, with its details in C2 and all its statuses and reasons in C3. Network validation enforces this: with STAT, sequence C is not allowed, and with TRAN, sequence B is not allowed. Most operations teams find the transaction-based layout easier to load, because one block equals one instruction.

Statuses come in field 25D with a qualifier that says which process the status belongs to: IPRC instruction processing (for example PACK accepted, REPR in repair, PPRC pending processing, CAND cancelled, CANP cancellation pending, CGEN generated by the servicer, CPRC or MPRC when the counterparty asked for a cancellation or modification), MTCH matching (MACH matched or NMAT unmatched), INMH inferred matching, and SETT settlement (PEND still able to settle on the intended date, PENF failing, the intended date has passed).

Reasons come in field 24B, whose qualifier must repeat the status it explains: :24B::PEND//LACK under :25D::SETT//PEND, :24B::NMAT//CMIS under :25D::MTCH//NMAT. The reason codes are the ones used in the MT548: for pending and failing settlement LACK (lack of securities), MONY (insufficient money), CLAC and CMON (the counterparty lacks securities or money), FUTU (awaiting settlement date), CYCL (awaiting the next settlement cycle), PREA and PRCY (your or the counterparty’s instruction on hold), LINK (waiting for a linked instruction), PART (settling in partials), SBLO (securities blocked); for unmatched items CMIS (no matching instruction found), DDAT, DQUA, DMON, NCRR, DSEC, DTRD and DEPT (a disagreement on date, quantity, amount, currency, security, trade date or place of settlement).

In markets under the EU settlement discipline regime (CSDR), the MT537 is also the message for cash penalty reports: daily and monthly penalty reports are sent as MT537 with a dedicated penalties sequence (block PENA), separate from the ordinary pending statement. Those reports follow SMPG market practice and are described in each CSD’s documentation.

Use the MT537 to clear exceptions in bulk at the start of the day: sort by settlement status (PENF first), then by reason, and compare with your own open-trade list. For one instruction in real time, the MT548 status advice is faster. See the settlement lifecycle guide.

MT537 format: sequences and fields

Rules worth knowing

• With 17B::ACTI N, neither sequence B nor C may be present. With ACTI Y and 22H::STST//STAT, sequence B is mandatory and C is not allowed; with ACTI Y and STST//TRAN, sequence C is mandatory and B is not allowed (E66).
• The qualifier of 24B must be the status code of its 25D: PEND under SETT//PEND, PENF under SETT//PENF, NMAT under MTCH//NMAT or INMH//NMAT, and CAND, CANP, CGEN, PACK, REPR or PPRC under the same IPRC code (E37). The rule does not apply when 25D uses a data source scheme.
• With 22H::PAYM//APMT, 19A::PSTA is mandatory in B2b and C2 (E83).
• Each party qualifier may appear only once per transaction (E84). A delivery that reports settlement parties must include REAG, a receipt must include DEAG (E85), and the chain must be complete (DEI2 needs DEI1, DEI1 needs DECU, DECU needs SELL, and the same on the receiving side) (E86).
• A cancellation (23G CANC) needs A1 with exactly one 20C::PREV (E08). PSET and 97a::SAFE cannot be in the same party block (E52).
• Each transaction must carry 20C::RELA in exactly one linkage block (C73 in B2, C74 in C). 36B::PSTA may appear twice only as FAMT plus AMOR (C71, C72).

MT537 example

At 18:00 on 22 October 2026 ZagTrader Test Bank (ZAGTAEADXXX) sends the asset manager FUNDGB2LXXX a transaction-based statement of the open items on account ZAG-SAFE-0001. Two sales are open. The first delivers 10,000 AEZAGT000016 on 23 October: matched, simply waiting for its settlement date. The second should have delivered 60,000 AEZAGT000024 today, but the account holds only 50,000 (see the MT535 example), so it is failing for lack of securities.

{1:F01ZAGTAEADAXXX0000000000}{2:I537FUNDGB2LXXXXN}{4:
:16R:GENL
:28E:1/ONLY
:13A::STAT//087
:20C::SEME//ZT537S2610220001
:23G:NEWM
:98C::STAT//20261022180000
:22F::SFRE//DAIL
:22F::CODE//COMP
:22H::STST//TRAN
:97A::SAFE//ZAG-SAFE-0001
:17B::ACTI//Y
:16S:GENL
:16R:TRANS
:16R:LINK
:13A::LINK//543
:20C::RELA//ZTSEL20261021A01
:16S:LINK
:16R:LINK
:20C::ASRF//CUST7781301
:16S:LINK
:16R:TRANSDET
:35B:ISIN AEZAGT000016
:36B::PSTA//UNIT/10000,
:19A::PSTA//AED126000,
:22F::TRAN//SETT
:22H::REDE//DELI
:22H::PAYM//APMT
:22F::SETR//TRAD
:98A::SETT//20261023
:98A::TRAD//20261021
:16R:SETPRTY
:95P::REAG//BRKRAEADXXX
:16S:SETPRTY
:16S:TRANSDET
:16R:STAT
:25D::MTCH//MACH
:16S:STAT
:16R:STAT
:25D::SETT//PEND
:16R:REAS
:24B::PEND//FUTU
:16S:REAS
:16S:STAT
:16S:TRANS
:16R:TRANS
:16R:LINK
:13A::LINK//543
:20C::RELA//ZTSEL20261020B02
:16S:LINK
:16R:TRANSDET
:35B:ISIN AEZAGT000024
:36B::PSTA//UNIT/60000,
:19A::PSTA//AED504000,
:22F::TRAN//SETT
:22H::REDE//DELI
:22H::PAYM//APMT
:22F::SETR//TRAD
:98A::SETT//20261022
:98A::TRAD//20261020
:16R:SETPRTY
:95P::REAG//BRKRAEADXXX
:16S:SETPRTY
:16S:TRANSDET
:16R:STAT
:25D::MTCH//MACH
:16S:STAT
:16R:STAT
:25D::SETT//PENF
:16R:REAS
:24B::PENF//LACK
:16S:REAS
:16S:STAT
:16S:TRANS
-}

Line by line

All BICs, ISINs, names and references are made up. The ISINs carry valid check digits.

In a status-based statement (STST//STAT) the same content would be grouped as one sequence B for MTCH//MACH listing both trades, one for SETT//PEND with reason FUTU, and one for SETT//PENF with reason LACK.

Common errors and rejects

1. Item failing for lack of securities (PENF/LACK)

   Your account does not hold enough of the security to deliver. Check incoming receipts and pending corporate actions, recall lent securities, borrow, or agree a partial delivery with the counterparty. Fails in CSDR markets also accrue cash penalties.

   How to fix it

2. Pending for lack of securities on settlement date (PEND/LACK)

   Settlement is still possible today if the securities arrive before the market cut-off. Chase the linked receipt or the counterparty that owes you the stock.

   How to fix it

3. Unmatched items (NMAT)

   The reason code tells you which field disagrees: CMIS (no counter-instruction), DDAT, DQUA, DMON, DSEC, DEPT. Compare the matching fields with your counterparty and amend or cancel and resend.

   How to fix it

4. An open trade missing from the statement

   If your instruction is not listed and not settled, the custodian may have rejected it (look for an MT548 with REJT) or it may sit on another account. A delta statement (CODE//DELT) also leaves out items whose status did not change.

   How to fix it

5. Wrong layout for the structure type (E66)

   A statement with STST//TRAN must use sequence C and a statement with STST//STAT must use sequence B. Mixing them, or sending either with ACTI//N, is rejected.

6. Reason qualifier does not match the status (E37)

   A :24B::PEND//... under :25D::SETT//PENF is rejected. The 24B qualifier must repeat the status code of its 25D.

MT537 in ISO 20022

The direct ISO 20022 equivalent of the MT537 is semt.018 (Securities Transaction Pending Report), which carries the same per-status or per-transaction lists. For a single instruction, the real-time status advice is sese.024, the counterpart of the MT548. CSDR penalty reports have their own ISO 20022 message, semt.044.

Securities messages were not part of the November 2025 payments deadline, so the MT537 stays in use on FIN. T2S and its directly connected participants use the ISO 20022 messages. See ISO 20022 migration in securities versus payments.

Related messages

• MT548Settlement Status and Processing Advice
• MT535Statement of Holdings
• MT536Statement of Transactions
• MT540Receive Free
• MT541Receive Against Payment
• MT542Deliver Free
• MT543Deliver Against Payment
• MT544Receive Free Confirmation
• MT545Receive Against Payment Confirmation
• MT546Deliver Free Confirmation
• MT547Deliver Against Payment Confirmation
• sese.024Securities Settlement Transaction Status Advice
• sese.025Securities Settlement Transaction Confirmation
• semt.017Securities Transaction Posting Report

• Unmatched instruction (NMAT)
• Failing settlement (PENF)
• From instruction to settled position: MT540-548, sese.023/024/025 and the statements that follow.

Codes used in MT537

• PEND
• PENF
• MACH
• NMAT
• PACK
• REPR
• LACK
• MONY
• CLAC
• CMON
• FUTU
• CYCL
• PREA
• PRCY
• CMIS
• DDAT
• DQUA
• DMON

MT537 questions

What is an MT537 used for?

It lists all settlement instructions on an account that have not settled yet, with their matching and settlement status and the reason they are pending, so operations can work through exceptions in one go.

What is the difference between MT537 and MT548?

The MT548 reports the status of one instruction, usually as soon as it changes. The MT537 lists every open instruction on the account at a point in time, with the same status and reason codes.

What does 22H::STST mean?

It chooses the layout. STAT groups transactions under each status (sequence B). TRAN lists each transaction with its statuses (sequence C).

What is the difference between PEND and PENF in an MT537?

PEND means the instruction can still settle on its intended date. PENF means that date has passed or settlement on it is no longer possible: the trade is failing.

Is the MT537 used for CSDR penalties?

Yes. In EU markets under the settlement discipline regime, CSDs and custodians send daily and monthly cash penalty reports as MT537 with a penalties sequence, or as the ISO 20022 semt.044.

What is the ISO 20022 equivalent of MT537?

semt.018, the Securities Transaction Pending Report. Per-instruction statuses are in sese.024.