A multi-sender/switching apparatus provides a means applicable to performing either broadsender and multi-sender transfers over switching networks besides the standard network interconnections, such as point-to-point, broadcast, and multi-cast transfers. The new broadsender and multi-sender operations allow communicating over multi-stage networks, and are defined as the ability of all or multiple elements attached to the network to participate simultaneously in the same network operation on a joint basis. The system provides a capability unavailable over synchronous buffered and other types of networks. The combination of the broad-send and broadcast functions enable every element attached to an unbuffered multi-stage network to not only participate in a common network function, but to monitor the result at the same time. Likewise, through combining multi-send and multi-cast functions, multiple elements attached to the said multi-stage network can participate in a common network function and monitor the result at the same time. A multi-stage network can now perform a distributed arbitration function heretofore known only to multi-drop bus communication systems. The multi-sender/switch also incorporates a new asynchronous hand-shaking protocol that enables a positive feedback indication to be returned to the multiple senders of multi-cast or broadcast operations to inform them that the multi-sender operation is progressing correctly to all elements involved in the operation.