Bank Identifier
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Read moreA bank identifier is a code used used by financial institutions to identify the banking network, bank, and in some cases, branch where a specific account is held. Bank identifiers are referred to in different ways in different countries, including:
- USA — routing number
- UK — sort code
- Canada — transit number
- Mexico — CLABE (also includes an account number)
Bank identifiers are used for domestic money transfers including via ACH, wires, bank transfer or direct debit.
Bank identifiers can also be used to identify banks and financial organizations for international currency exchange, although these numbers are integrated into international bank identifiers like SWIFT, IBAN and other international codes. If you are providing one of those numbers, you do not normally need to provide a banking identifier as well.
If you are sending money internationally and want to pay via wire or bank transfer from a bank, you will typically need to provide a bank identifier and account number.
Bank Identifier (country specific) — Related terms
Bank identifiers are related to SWIFT, BIC, IBAN, ACH, SWIFT-BIC, SWIFT ID, CLABE, Canadian transit numbers, routing numbers, account numbers and sort codes.
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