BIC and IBAN format registration
SWIFT as the ISO registration authority
BIC details
The Business Identifier Code (BIC) was adopted by the International Organisation for Standardization (ISO). ISO has appointed SWIFT as the registration authority for the assignment of BICs (ISO 9362) and for the publication of BICs in the BIC Directory.
There are two types of BIC: 8 character BIC (also called "BIC8") and 11 character BIC ("BIC11"). A BIC8 identifies a financial or non-financial institution in a country or a location. A BIC11 identifies the institution's branch.
The structure of an 8 character BIC
| BNPAFRPP | BNPAFRPP | BNPAFRPP |
| Institution code | Country code | Location code |
| The institution code identifies the institution, for example BNPA for BNP-Paribas. The code consists of four alphabetic characters. | The ISO country code identifies the country in which the institution is located, for example FR for France. The ISO country code consists of two alphabetic characters. | The location code, provides geographical distinction within a country, such as a city, state, province or time zone, for example PP for Paris. The location code consists of two characters that can be alphabetic or numeric. |
The BIC is written and printed as a string without spaces.
Connected and unconnected BICs
BICs identify both financial and non-financial institutions connected and not connected to the SWIFT network. However, a BIC of an institution not connected to the SWIFT network has the location code ending with the digit "1", for example KESADEF1. Such BIC is also called a non-SWIFT BIC or a BIC1.
A BIC for an institution connected to the SWIFT network has a location code ending with a character other than "1", for example BNPAFRPP. Such BIC is also called a connected BIC or a SWIFT BIC. Consequently, only a SWIFT BIC can appear in the header of a SWIFT message.
Test and Training BICs
In SWIFT’s FIN messaging system, a BIC with a “0” (zero) in the 8th position is a Test & Training BIC. Such a BIC cannot be used in live FIN messages.
The structure of an 11 character BIC
Optionally, an 8 character BIC can be extended to an 11 character BIC by adding a branch code.
The branch code identifies the physical branch of an institution, for example MAR for Marseille, or its department or type of business. The branch code consists of three alphanumeric characters.
Whenever an 8 character BIC code needs to be interpreted in the 11 character format, the branch code "XXX" is added. For a message procesing application, the BICs BNPAFRPP and BNPAFRPPXXX are equivalent.