MT545 Receive Against Payment Confirmation

When MT545 is used

A broker, investment manager or global custodian buys securities and sends its custodian an MT541 Receive Against Payment instruction. The custodian instructs the local market, reports progress with MT548 status advices (accepted, matched, pending), and when the CSD has moved the securities into the safekeeping account and taken the cash, it sends the MT545. For the account owner this is the event that turns a pending purchase into a position and a cash debit.

The confirmation is tied to the instruction by references, not by trade details. The account owner’s 20C::SEME from the MT541 comes back in 20C::RELA in a LINK block, often with :13A::LINK//541 beside it. More LINK blocks may add the market infrastructure reference (MITI, for example the CSD or T2S reference), the common reference (COMM) or the deal reference (TRRF). If the movement was not instructed by message, RELA is NONREF.

In markets that allow partial settlement, such as T2S markets, the custodian confirms each part with its own MT545. Each one carries 22F::PARS//PAIN while part of the instruction is still open, and the last one carries PARC. 36B::ESTT and 19A::ESTT give the quantity and the cash of the current part only; 36B::PSTT and RSTT may show what settled before and what is still open. Keep the instruction open until the PARC confirmation arrives, or until the remaining quantity is cancelled.

Some custodians offer contractual settlement: they credit the securities and debit the cash on the contractual settlement date even if the market has not settled yet, and send the MT545 on that date. If the market trade later fails for too long, they take the booking back with a reversal. The pre-confirmation indicator 22H::PREC (PRCA or PRSE) marks a confirmation sent before both legs have moved.

If a confirmation was wrong (wrong account, wrong quantity, sent twice), the account servicer sends a new MT545 with 23G CANC and the old SEME in 20C::PREV, usually followed by a corrected NEWM. If the settlement itself is undone after it was confirmed, for example a contractual settlement that the market never completed or a booking the CSD unwound, it sends 23G RVSL with the same PREV link. After a reversal the instruction is open again and its status comes back in MT548. Reverse your own booking on RVSL; on CANC, wait for the replacement.

The four settlement confirmations share one layout and differ only in direction and payment: MT544 receive free, MT545 receive against payment, MT546 deliver free and MT547 deliver against payment. The against payment pair must carry the settled cash amount (19A::ESTT); for the free pair the amount sequence is optional. Receipts name the delivering agent (DEAG) as counterparty, deliveries the receiving agent (REAG).

MT545 format: sequences and fields

Rules worth knowing

• Sequence A1 is mandatory, and 20C::RELA must be present in exactly one LINK block (error code C73). Use NONREF when the movement was not instructed by message.
• If 23G is CANC or RVSL, 20C::PREV must be present in exactly one LINK block, carrying the SEME of the confirmation being cancelled or reversed; with NEWM it is not used (error code E08).
• 36B::ESTT may appear at most twice in sequence C, and then one occurrence must use FAMT and the other AMOR (error code C71).
• Unless 22F::DBNM is present in sequence E, one E1 block must carry 95a::DEAG and another 95a::PSET (error code E91). A block with 95a::PSET must not carry 97a::SAFE (error code E52).
• A party qualifier may appear only once in the message (error code E84), and each side of the chain must be complete: DEI2 needs DEI1, DEI1 needs DECU, DECU needs SELL; REI2 needs REI1, REI1 needs RECU, RECU needs BUYR (error code E86).
• Exactly one E3 block must carry 19A::ESTT (error code E92), and no amount qualifier may appear in more than one E3 block (error code E87).
• 98a::VALU may only appear in the E3 block that carries 19A::ESTT (error code C28). If 92B::EXCH is present, 19A::RESU must be in the same block, and RESU is not allowed without EXCH (error code E62).
• Market practice for partial settlement (SMPG): 22F::PARS//PAIN on every partial confirmation except the last, PARC on the last one. 36B::ESTT always gives the quantity of the current part; PSTT and RSTT are optional.
• A cancellation (CANC) repeats at least the mandatory fields of the confirmation it cancels.

MT545 example

CUSTAEADXXX, the custodian, confirms to its client ZAGTAEADXXX that 10,000 shares of a test equity bought on 20 October 2026 were received on 22 October 2026 at the local CSD from the selling broker BRKRAEADXXX, against AED 254,500.00. The client’s MT541 had the reference ZT2610200118.

{1:F01CUSTAEADAXXX0000000000}{2:I545ZAGTAEADXXXXN}{4:
:16R:GENL
:20C::SEME//CA545-0002291
:23G:NEWM
:98C::PREP//20261022143005
:16R:LINK
:13A::LINK//541
:20C::RELA//ZT2610200118
:16S:LINK
:16R:LINK
:20C::MITI//CSDX261022000871
:16S:LINK
:16S:GENL
:16R:TRADDET
:98A::SETT//20261022
:98A::TRAD//20261020
:98A::ESET//20261022
:90B::DEAL//ACTU/AED25,45
:35B:ISIN AEZAGT000016
ZAGTRADER TEST HOLDING PJSC
:16S:TRADDET
:16R:FIAC
:36B::ESTT//UNIT/10000,
:97A::SAFE//ZAG-SAFE-0001
:16S:FIAC
:16R:SETDET
:22F::SETR//TRAD
:16R:SETPRTY
:95P::DEAG//BRKRAEADXXX
:16S:SETPRTY
:16R:SETPRTY
:95P::PSET//CSDXAEADXXX
:16S:SETPRTY
:16R:AMT
:19A::ESTT//AED254500,
:98A::VALU//20261022
:16S:AMT
:16S:SETDET
-}

Line by line

All BICs, references, accounts and the ISIN are made up; the ISIN has a valid check digit.

Sequences B1, C1, D, E2 and F are optional and not needed here.

Common errors and rejects

1. The confirmation does not match any open instruction

   The 20C::RELA is NONREF, was changed by the custodian, or quotes a reference your system never sent (for example after an instruction was re-keyed manually). Match on MITI, ISIN, quantity, settlement date and counterparty instead, then ask the custodian to resend with the right RELA so your audit trail stays clean.

2. Settled quantity is lower than instructed

   This is a partial settlement: look for 22F::PARS//PAIN and 36B::RSTT. Book only the settled part and keep the rest open. If no PARS indicator is present, the custodian may have split the instruction; ask before closing the trade.

3. Settled amount differs from the instructed amount

   Many CSDs settle within a small matching tolerance, so 19A::ESTT can differ slightly from the 19A::SETT you instructed. Larger differences point to accrued interest, charges or a price error; compare the E3 amount blocks with your trade.

4. A confirmation you already booked is reversed (23G RVSL)

   The settlement was taken back, often after contractual settlement for a trade that later failed in the market. Reverse your position and cash booking, treat the instruction as open again and follow the MT548 statuses that follow.

   How to fix it

5. No MT545 on the settlement date

   Nothing settled. Check the latest MT548: an unmatched status (NMAT) means the counterparty’s instruction is missing or different; pending or failing (PEND, PENF) with CLAC means the seller lacks securities, with MONY that your cash was short.

   How to fix it

6. Network rejects when generating an MT545 (E92, E08, C73)

   For account servicers: an MT545 without any 19A::ESTT is rejected (E92), a CANC or RVSL without exactly one 20C::PREV is rejected (E08), and a message without exactly one 20C::RELA is rejected (C73).

MT545 in ISO 20022

The ISO 20022 equivalent is sese.025 Securities Settlement Transaction Confirmation. One message covers all four MT confirmations: TxIdDtls/SctiesMvmntTp says RECE or DELI and TxIdDtls/Pmt says APMT or FREE, so an MT545 becomes a sese.025 with RECE and APMT. The account owner’s instruction reference (the MT 20C::RELA) is TxIdDtls/AcctOwnrTxId, the effective settlement date is TradDtls/FctvSttlmDt, and the partial settlement indicator is AddtlParams/PrtlSttlm with the same PAIN and PARC codes.

A reversal is not a function code in ISO 20022: it is a separate message, sese.026 Securities Settlement Transaction Reversal Advice. Statuses before settlement travel in sese.024.

Securities messages were not part of the November 2025 payments deadline. The MT545 remains in use on FIN, while T2S and the parties directly connected to it exchange sese.025. Custodians that serve both often translate between the two, so check that partial settlement indicators and references survive the translation.

Related messages

• MT541Receive Against Payment
• MT540Receive Free
• MT544Receive Free Confirmation
• MT546Deliver Free Confirmation
• MT547Deliver Against Payment Confirmation
• MT548Settlement Status and Processing Advice
• MT537Statement of Pending Transactions
• sese.025Securities Settlement Transaction Confirmation
• sese.024Securities Settlement Transaction Status Advice
• sese.023Securities Settlement Transaction Instruction

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

Codes used in MT545

• TRAD
• PEND
• PENF
• CLAC
• MONY

MT545 questions

What is the difference between MT545 and MT547?

Both confirm against payment settlement. The MT545 confirms a receipt of securities (you bought, cash was debited); the MT547 confirms a delivery (you sold, cash was credited). They answer an MT541 and an MT543 respectively.

How is an MT545 linked to the MT541 instruction?

Through the linkage sequence: 20C::RELA carries the 20C::SEME of your MT541, usually with :13A::LINK//541. Match on RELA first and use MITI or the trade details only as a fallback.

What is the difference between 98A::SETT and 98A::ESET?

SETT is the settlement date you instructed (the contractual date). ESET is the date the movement actually settled and is mandatory in every confirmation. If ESET is later than SETT, the trade settled late.

How is a partial settlement confirmed?

With one MT545 per part. Every part except the last carries 22F::PARS//PAIN, the last carries PARC. 36B::ESTT and 19A::ESTT always describe the current part.

What does 23G RVSL mean in an MT545?

The account servicer reverses a confirmation it sent earlier because the settlement was taken back. 20C::PREV names the confirmation being reversed. Undo your booking and treat the instruction as open again.

What is the ISO 20022 equivalent of MT545?

sese.025 with securities movement type RECE and payment type APMT. Reversals use sese.026.