Every payment needs to know two things: which bank, and which account. In South Africa, the bank is identified by a six-digit branch code for payments made inside the country, and by a SWIFT code (also called a BIC) for payments from abroad. The account is identified by its account number. Mixing up the two codes is one of the most common reasons a payment bounces.
Universal branch codes
Branch codes date from the days when each branch kept its own accounts. Today the big banks each publish one universal branch code that works for electronic payments to any of their accounts, whichever branch the account was opened at. Absa's is 632005, Capitec's 470010, FNB's 250655, Nedbank's 198765 and Standard Bank's 051001; Discovery Bank uses 679000. Each of these comes from the bank's own website.
When you add a new beneficiary in your banking app, you'll usually pick the bank from a list and the app fills in the universal code for you. You only need to type it when a form asks for it, such as a debit order mandate or a supplier's payment details.
SWIFT codes
A SWIFT code identifies a bank on the international payment network. It's eight or eleven characters: four letters for the bank, two for the country (ZA), two for the location, and sometimes three more for a branch. FNB's is FIRNZAJJ, Absa's ABSAZAJJ, Standard Bank's SBZAZAJJ, Nedbank's NEDSZAJJ and Capitec's CABLZAJJ.
South Africa doesn't use IBANs. Someone overseas who wants to pay you needs:
- your bank's SWIFT code,
- your account number,
- your name exactly as the bank has it, and
- the reason for the payment, which your bank needs for the Reserve Bank's reporting.
Some banks receive foreign payments through a correspondent bank instead of their own SWIFT code. Discovery Bank is one: ask the bank for its details before you give them to anyone.
Fees on payments from abroad
A payment from abroad can pass through one or more correspondent banks on the way, and each can take a fee. The sender's bank, your bank and any banks in between may all charge, so the amount that arrives can be less than the amount sent. Ask both banks what they charge before a large payment.
What a branch code can't tell you
A correct branch code and a correctly shaped account number don't prove the account belongs to the person you think. Before you pay someone new, verify the account with your own bank: see our guide on checking bank details before you pay, or look up a bank's codes.
Sources
- Absa: SWIFT payments
- FNB: Global Receipts
- Standard Bank: making and receiving international payments
- Nedbank: incoming international payments
- Discovery Bank: how to pay money into your accounts
This is general information, not tax, legal or financial advice.