The number of SWIFT payments processed on a daily basis reached nearly 50 million messages by the end of 2022, although growth did slow down. Compared to December 2021, the average amount of messages processed on a daily basis in December was roughly two percent higher. No reason was provided for this slowdown, although some attribute it to the exclusion of Russia from the SWIFT system due to the war in Ukraine. This move - dubbed the "(political) weaponization of SWIFT" by some - is regarded as a motivator for de-dollarization, or the declining market share of the U.S. dollar as an international currency.