BIC stands for Bank Identifier Code and is also known as a SWIFT code - SWIFT stands for Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. SWIFT is the infrastructure behind international transfers, allowing financial institutions to send money across national borders.

BIC is a bank's identification number, and it is also used for international payments. Every bank has a BIC, which consists of 8 characters. This is typically used for international transfers to banks in countries that do not use IBAN. Therefore, when setting up a transfer to a country that does not utilize the IBAN system, one must know both the recipient's local account number and the bank's BIC.