Video · BIC

How to read a BIC, in 48 seconds

The four parts of a Business Identifier Code, worked through on Deutsche Bank’s head-office BIC, DEUTDEFFXXX. No sound: the text is on screen and in the transcript below. The facts are those of the BIC guide, reviewed 31 October 2026. Download the video (MP4, 3.4 MB).

In this video

Transcript

The video has no voice-over. This is the text it shows, chapter by chapter.

0:00 · What a BIC is: How to read a BIC: the code people call a “SWIFT code”, in eight or eleven characters. The example is DEUTDEFFXXX, the BIC of Deutsche Bank AG’s head office in Frankfurt am Main. A BIC has 8 or 11 characters, defined by ISO 9362. Swift issues and publishes them.
0:09 · Characters 1–4: the institution: DEUT, characters 1–4: the institution, usually an abbreviation of its name.
0:13 · Characters 5–6: the country: DE, characters 5–6: its country or territory, as an ISO 3166-1 code. DE is Germany.
0:17 · Characters 7–8: the location: FF, characters 7–8: a location within the country. The eighth character also gives the connection type.
0:21 · The eighth character: the connection type: Character 8 gives the connection type: 0 test and training, 1 passive participant, 2 reverse billing. Any other character means the institution is connected to Swift. Here the eighth character is F: connected to Swift.
0:28 · Characters 9–11: the branch: XXX, characters 9–11, optional: a branch or department. “XXX”, or no branch code at all, means the head office.
0:32 · Part by part: Read from left to right: DEUT institution, DE country, FF location, XXX branch.
0:36 · What a BIC does not tell you: What a BIC does not tell you. Which account: an IBAN or an account number identifies it. Whether the institution is licensed: the regulator’s register is the authority. Whether a counterparty is safe to deal with: a BIC identifies; it does not assess.
0:43 · Look up a BIC: Look up any BIC at elucidate.co/directory. The full guide is at elucidate.co/guides/swift-bic-code.

Look up a BIC. The directory shows the legal entity, LEI, branch codes and connection type for every BIC in Swift’s directory.

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Sources

How to read a Business Identifier Code (BIC). Elucidate guide, reviewed 31 October 2026: the text this video follows.
ISO 9362, Banking — Banking telecommunication messages — Business identifier code (BIC). International Organization for Standardization.
BIC (Business Identifier Code). Swift, registration authority for ISO 9362.

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