Three places, in order of trust
| Where | Good for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| 1. The receiving bank's own instructions (its website, app, a wire sheet or your statement) | The exact code and the extra details the bank wants, such as an intermediary | Use the page for incoming international wires, not a general page |
| 2. Swift's BIC search | Confirming that a code exists and which institution and address it belongs to | Choosing among a bank's several codes for your payment is left to you |
| 3. The person who will be paid | Their own bank's code, copied from their bank | Details sent by email can be changed by a fraudster: confirm by phone |
The format checker on the home page comes before all three. It catches typos and impossible codes in a second, but it cannot say who a code belongs to.
What Swift's free BIC search is
Swift's terms say BIC Search gives access to data published in the BIC Directory, the list of codes registered under ISO 9362. Each entry has the institution's name and address (Swift). The same terms say:
- It targets occasional users and is currently free of charge. Swift reserves the right to add conditions such as registration or payment.
- Results reflect the last off-line BIC Directory publication, and the service is updated every quarter. A brand-new code may not show yet.
- It is provided "as is", without a warranty of accuracy.
- Systematic queries to copy all or large parts of the directory are not allowed. That is why sites like this one cannot simply republish it.
Why a bank can have several codes
One institution can hold more than one BIC (Swift FAQ). Bank of America is a live example: BOFAUS3N for wires in US dollars and BOFAUS6S for foreign currency, each with its own address (Bank of America). A directory search on one bank name can therefore return more than one code, and only the bank's instructions tell you which one to use. The same goes for 11-character codes: U.S. Bank gives USBKUS44IMT, branch IMT, for international wires (U.S. Bank).
And a bank can use someone else's code
USAA's instructions for incoming international wires give IRVTUS3NXXX, the code of The Bank of New York, as intermediary (USAA, PDF). A directory search for "USAA" would not lead you there. Only the bank's own sheet would. See USAA's SWIFT code.
A code from an email or invoice
A real code proves little. Swift's FAQ says a BIC gives no guarantee about the organization's activities (Swift FAQ). A payee's bank code can be genuine while the account number or name next to it is not, so check the whole set of details:
- Run the code through the format checker.
- Look it up in Swift's BIC search and compare the institution name with the bank the payee says they use.
- Call the payee on a number you already had, not one from the email, and read the details back.
- For a large or first payment, use the red-flag check.
Intermediary and correspondent banks
Sometimes the right instructions contain two banks. That happens when the sender's bank and the receiving bank have no direct account relationship. Chase explains that the Swift message can go directly while "the funds may be routed through correspondent banks" (Chase).
| Bank's instructions | What the sender does |
|---|---|
| No intermediary listed (Chase, Wells Fargo, Bank of America) | Nothing extra. Wells Fargo says SWIFT/BIC routing generally works "without the need for intermediary bank details", and that in some instances the sender may still need them (Wells Fargo) |
| An intermediary is part of the instructions (USAA) | Enter the intermediary's code (IRVTUS3NXXX, The Bank of New York), then the receiving bank and its account number at the intermediary, then the payee's account (USAA, PDF) |
| The bank says to use a correspondent but names none (Navy Federal) | The sender's bank chooses one; Navy Federal only receives US dollars (Navy Federal) |
Every bank in the chain can deduct a fee, so the amount that arrives can be lower than the amount sent. A lookup site that shows only one code per bank cannot tell you any of this; the bank's incoming-wire instructions can.
Big US banks, already looked up
For Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, PNC, USAA, BMO, U.S. Bank, Capital One and Navy Federal, the codes from each bank's own pages are on US bank SWIFT codes.