SWIFT

SWIFT:

The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication "SWIFT" is a cooperative society owned by financial institutions. It is registered under Belgian laws. It has offices in almost all the major financial centres and developing markets across the world.
SWIFT operates a worldwide financial messaging network which exchanges secured messages between banks and other financial institutions with speed, certainty, confidentiality and integrity. The majority of international interbank messages use the SWIFT network. SWIFT neither holds accounts for its members nor performs any form of clearing or settlement.

Swift Code:

ISO/NP 9362 (also known as SWIFT-BIC, BIC code, SWIFT ID or SWIFT code) is a standard format of ‘Business Identifier Codes’ (BIC) approved by the ‘International Organization for Standardization’ (ISO). The BIC code is a special type of alphanumeric code. The BIC is a universal identifier code, for financial and non-financial institutions and related entities.
These codes are used while transferring money between banks, particularly for international wire transfers, and also for the exchange of other messages between banks. These codes make safe and fast transactions from one bank to the other bank. The code (an international identifier) is required for facilitating automated processing of telecommunication messages in banking and related financial transactions.
The code contains main bank code, country code, location code and branch code as well. SWIFT facilitate transfer of funds by sending payment orders, which is settled via correspondent accounts that the institutions have with each other.
It enables customers to automate and standardise financial transactions, thereby lowering costs, reducing operational risk and eliminating inefficiencies from their operations.