Banking Awareness: Do You Know 3 Types of Codes Used in Banking

Dear Reader, In this article you will learn about different types of codes used in Banking. These codes are used to identify a particular bank. With the help of these codes, you can perform various functions related to e-banking like online transaction, cheque presentation, etc. Using these codes, one can identify the address of a particular branch and other related information.

IFSC Code:

1. IFSC Code stands for Indian Financial System Code.
2. This code is an alpha-numeric code that is used to uniquely identify a bank branch participating in the electronic payment systems in India like Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) and the National Electronic Fund Transfer (NEFT).
3. It is an 11 digit code.

The components of IFSC code are:

• First 4 letters represent bank code.
• The 5th letter is a ‘0’(Zero).
• last six letters represent bank branch.

For example: IFSC code of a particular branch of ICICI bank may look like ICIC0001207.

MICR:

1. MICR stands for Magnetic Ink Character Recognition.
2. The magnetic ink character recognition line is printed using special ink, which is sensitive to magnetic fields that allow computers to read the printed information.
3. This code is present at the bottom of cheques and other vouchers.
4. MICR code is 9 digits numeric code used to identify a bank participating in electronic clearing scheme.

The components of MICR code are:

• First 3 digits represents city code
• The second 3 digits represents Bank code
• The last 3 digits denotes bank branch.

For example:MICR-no of one of the Indian Bank branches in Chennai is 600019004.

SWIFT/BIC Code:

1. SWIFT standS for Society for Worldwide Inter bank Financial Telecommunication.
2. It is a unique identification code for both financial and non-financial institutions approved by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
3. SWIFT codes are used mainly for international money transfer between banks.
4. It is a standard format of Bank identifier Codes (BIC)
5. It is an 8 or 11 digit code.

The components of SWIFT code are:

• First 4 characters represent bank code.
• Next 2 characters represent ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code.
• Next 2 characters represent location code.
• The last 3 characters represent branch code.

For example: The SWIFT code of one of the branches of Indian Bank in Chennai is IDIBINBBASA.

If you want clarification for any doubts, please use the comments section below. Also please let us know if you have suggestions or corrections.