What does the first 4 characters of a SWIFT code represent?

The first four characters identify the particular institution or bank to which the transfer will be made. The next two characters specify the country. The following two identify the location – usually the city. The final three characters are usually numerical and indicate a particular branch or office.

Is SWIFT code numbers or letters?

SWIFT codes (sometimes known as a SWIFT Number) are 8 to 11 characters long and made of both letters and numbers. You can typically find them on a bank statement or on your bank’s website. The SWIFT code is a format of your BIC (Bank Identification Code), and the two terms are used interchangeably.

What are the last 3 letters in a SWIFT code?

In an 11-character SWIFT code the last 3 letters or numbers are the branch code; these characters are optional….The SWIFT Code consists of 8 or 11 characters broken down as follows:

  • 4 letters which indicate the bank or institution code.
  • 2 letters which indicate the country.

What should a SWIFT code look like?

Format of a SWIFT/BIC number. A SWIFT/BIC is an 8-11 character code that identifies your country, city, bank, and branch. Bank code A-Z 4 letters representing the bank. It usually looks like a shortened version of that bank’s name. Country code A-Z 2 letters representing the country the bank is in.

How do you read a SWIFT code?

How is a SWIFT/BIC code formatted?

  1. 1 – Bank code (4 letters) The first four letters represent the bank and usually look like an abbreviated version of the bank name.
  2. 2 – Country code (2 letters)
  3. 3 – Location code (2 letters or numbers)
  4. 4 – Branch code (3 digits)

How many characters are in a BIC code?

The BIC is an 8 character code, defined as ‘business party identifier’, consisting of the business party prefix (4 alphanumeric), the country code as defined in ISO 3166-1 (2 alphabetic), and the business party suffix (2 alphanumeric).

How many letters are in SWIFT code?

8-11 character
A SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications) code is an 8-11 character long, standard format code that identifies banks and financial institutions worldwide.

How do you write a SWIFT code?

Format of a SWIFT/BIC number.

  1. Bank code A-Z 4 letters representing the bank.
  2. Country code A-Z 2 letters representing the country the bank is in.
  3. Location code 0-9 A-Z 2 characters made up of letters or numbers.
  4. Branch Code 0-9 A-Z 3 digits specifying a particular branch.

How many characters is a SWIFT code?