Help with instructing us to make a payment
Instructing Currency UK to make a payment:
Once a contract has been agreed you will need to complete this with details of the account(s) that you would like us to transfer your funds to once the exchange is complete.
We will require the following information:
- Bank with which the account is held
- The address of the bank
- The SWIFT BIC of the beneficiary bank and their domestic bank code
- The account name
- The account number (This may be the IBAN)
SWIFT Bank Identification Codes (BIC)Learn more
SWIFT Bank Identification Codes (BIC)
Commonly known as the SWIFT Code. The Bank Identifier Code is an international method of identifying financial institutions and departments within these institutions. Currency UK will require a SWIFT BIC
The SWIFT BIC consists of 8 or 11 consecutive characters that include:
- Bank Code 4 alphabetic characters.
- Country Code 2 letter country code.
- Location Code 2 alphanumerical characters identifying the location of the institution within the specified country. Optional:
- Branch Code 3 alphanumeric characters.
Domestic account details:
Although we will request the SWIFT BIC for your beneficiary accounts we will also ask you to provide us with the domestic bank/branch code. Each country has a different format and name for this number, some common examples are:
USA: Routing number, 9 digits long
Canada: Transit number
Australia: BSB, 6 digits
South Africa: Bank code, 6 digits
WHAT is IBANLearn more
International Bank Account Number – IBAN
Transferring funds to Europe has been made simpler with the introduction of the International Bank Account Number (IBAN). The IBAN was developed in order to make cross-border transfers throughout Europe more efficient.
The purpose of the IBAN is to make it possible to identify an account held at a bank anywhere in the world. By having a standardised international account number, money transfers can be made both quickly and safely.
Some people mistake the IBAN for a new account number and are unsure which number to quote when asked. The IBAN does not replace your existing domestic account number, it actually incorporates it but if in doubt quote both!
All banks in Europe (except for those in the Commonwealth of Independent States) provide an IBAN identifier for their accounts as well as nationally recognised identifiers. In addition, Israel, Tunisia, Mauritius, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia also provide IBAN format account identifiers.
Below is a table listing the European countries that use IBAN, along with a typical example of the specific country IBAN and the correct length.
IBAN TableLearn more
| Country | IBAN Length | Country Code | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Andorra | 24 | AD | D1200012030200359100100 |
| Austria | 20 | AT | AT611904300234963104 |
| Belgium | 16 | BE | BE68539005786098 |
| Cyprus | 28 | CY | CY67002001280000001218194900 |
| Czech Rep | 24 | CZ | CZ65080000000192000145399 |
| Denmark | 18 | DK | DK5000400440116243 |
| Estonia | 20 | EE | EE382200221020145685 |
| Finland | 18 | FI | FI2112345600000785 |
| France | 27 | FR | FR1420041010050500013M02606 |
| Germany | 22 | DE | DE89370400440532013000 |
| Greece | 27 | GR | GR1601101250000000012300695 |
| Iceland | 26 | IS | IS140159260076545510730339 |
| Ireland | 22 | IE | IE29AIBK93115212345678 |
| Italy | 27 | IT | IT40X0542811101000000123458 |
| Luxembourg | 20 | LU | LU280018400244750001 |
| Netherlands | 18 | NL | NL91ABNA0417164302 |
| Norway | 15 | NO | NO9386011117946 |
| Poland | 28 | PL | PL27114020040000300201355387 |
| Portugal | 25 | PT | PT50000201231234567890154 |
| Spain | 24 | ES | ES9121000418450200051332 |
| Sweden | 24 | SE | SE3550000000054910000003 |
| Switzerland | 21 | CH | CH9300762011623852957 |
| UK | 22 | GB | GBNWBK60161331926819 |
Help with outbound paymentsLearn more
Outbound payments
Sending or receiving funds from other countries can sometimes seem confusing when you are confronted with the International Banking System. Fortunately, most countries use similar systems and the good news is that major work is being carried out to standardise the International Banking System to simplify the transfer process.
Charges
There is much confusion over charges when making international transfers. Typically there are two types of charge:
- Transfer fees – these are the charges levied by sending banks for actually making the payment, these fees can be charged to the sending account, the beneficiary account or shared between the two. Currency UK will always pay these charges when sending funds on your behalf.
- Receiving charges –These are charges made by the receiving bank for credit funds to your account. Thankfully these are becoming less common but never the less than can occur. Currency UK will do everything possible to avoid these charges.
References
In accordance with our various regulatory obligations Currency UK will append your outward payments with your Name or Business along with your client code with Currency UK.
In addition to this you may wish that the beneficiary receives more detailed information regarding what the payment is for, for example an Invoice number or property reference When instructing a payment through us, simply advise us of this extra information and we will add it to your payment(s).
For more information on this please call us on +44 20 7738 0777
