Bank code

A bank code is a code assigned by a central bank, a bank supervisory body or a Bankers Association in a country to all its licensed member banks or financial institutions. The rules vary to a great extent between the countries. Also the name of bank codes varies. In some countries the bank codes can be viewed over the internet, but mostly in the local language. The (national) bank codes differ from the international Bank Identifier Code (BIC/ISO 9362, a normalized code - also known as Business Identifier Code, Bank International Code and SWIFT code). Those countries which use International Bank Account Numbers (IBAN) have mostly integrated the bank code into the prefix of specifying IBAN account numbers. The bank codes also differ from the Bank card code (CSC). The term "bank code" is sometimes (inappropriately) used by merchants to refer to the Card Security Code printed on the back of a credit card.

A bank code is a code assigned by a central bank, a bank supervisory body or a Bankers Association in a country to all its licensed member banks or financial institutions. The rules vary to a great extent between the countries. Also the name of bank codes varies. In some countries the bank codes can be viewed over the internet, but mostly in the local language. The (national) bank codes differ from the international Bank Identifier Code (BIC/ISO 9362, a normalized code - also known as Business Identifier Code, Bank International Code and SWIFT code). Those countries which use International Bank Account Numbers (IBAN) have mostly integrated the bank code into the prefix of specifying IBAN account numbers. The bank codes also differ from the Bank card code (CSC). The term "bank code" is sometimes (inappropriately) used by merchants to refer to the Card Security Code printed on the back of a credit card. The first two digits of the sort code identify the bank (90-xx-xx = [Bank of Ireland], 98-xx-xx = [Ulster Bank], for example) and the last 4 identify the branch. There is an exception with 99-xx-xx - these codes are used for international banks Irish Clearing ACs, and some Post Office accounts. Italy has a similar clearing system is used with 5 digits identifying the banking company (Codice ABI), followed by a 5-digit CAB (Codice di Avviamento Bancario) identifying the branch, followed by the account number. The Netherlands has a national system with account numbers of 9 or 10 digits. There are no separate bank codes. The first 5 digits of the account number can be used to identify the bank (originally also the branch, but clients can now often keep their account number when they move to another branch). Spain also has a similar format, with the first 4 digits identifying the banking company, the next 4 identifying the branch, the next 2 being the checksum, followed by the 10-digit account number. Sweden has 4 digit bank codes (clearingnummer), with an extra check digit for Swedbank. The first one or two digits are the bank group, and the rest the branch. For a list of Swedish bank codes, see lista över clearingnummer till svenska banker (in Swedish). Switzerland has a 3 to 5 digit bank code (Bankenclearing-Nummer); the first digit indicates the bank's classification group. Following after the bank code, a 4-digit number branch code identifier. For a list of Swiss bank codes, see Bank clearing number. Ukraine has 6 digit bank codes. Account number does not include bank code. List of bank codes is available at the site of the National Bank of Ukraine. The UK has a 6-digit sort code. For prefixes identifying UK banking companies, see the list of sort codes of the United Kingdom. Russia has 9 digit bank code (БИК код). As of February 2014 all countries in the Single Euro Payments Area have switched to an IBAN-based system for clearing (including TARGET2 for cross-border transfers). The national bank codes have been integrated into the IBAN definition, in most cases at the start of the new account number (starting at position 5 after the common prefix of two-letter country identifier and two check digits). This is valid for transfers in the euro currency. Countries which retain their own currency use their own system for transfers in their currency. ==See also== Sort code ISO 9362 (Bank Identifier Code) ==References==

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