SWIFT/BIC codes in Belgium: banks starting with H

SWIFT/BIC codes in Belgium

This directory lists 333 banks and other institutions in Belgium, with 651 SWIFT/BIC codes in total. You need a SWIFT/BIC code mainly when making payments across borders.

Look for the recipient’s bank in the list and open its page to see all codes we have and what else a transfer requires. Further down we explain how codes from Belgium are built, how to send money there at a fair price and what to check before you pay.

What the letters in a Belgium BIC mean

SWIFT/BIC codes use one international format: eight characters. First comes four letters for the bank, then a two-letter country code and two characters for the location.

In every code from Belgium, letters five and six are the ISO country code of Belgium, which makes these codes easy to recognise. Codes with a different country code belong to a bank abroad.

The optional last three characters stand for a specific branch; XXX means the head office. Choose a branch code only if the recipient explicitly gives you one – otherwise stick with the head office.

How long does a transfer to Belgium take?

There is no fixed delivery time for transfers to Belgium: some arrive the same day or the next, others take several business days. Payments made after the cut-off time or on weekends and holidays usually start the next business day.

Many banks use SWIFT gpi. Each payment carries a unique transaction reference, the UETR, which the sending bank can use to trace it. Money transfer services usually show a status in their app so you can follow the payment.

Getting paid from abroad into an account in Belgium

When you expect money from abroad on an account in Belgium, give the sender a complete set of details. In practice that means: your full name as your bank knows it, your IBAN or account number, the BIC of your bank and, often, your postal address.

Find the bank in the list on this page to check its code. You can add the name and city of your bank.

Expect that the incoming amount is smaller than the amount on the sender’s receipt. Charges on incoming payments vary per bank; check the price list of your bank. For business payments, agree how the fees are split.

Sending money to Belgium for less

If you send money to Belgium via your bank, the stated fee is rarely all of what you pay. There is a transfer fee, possibly charges from intermediary banks along the way and, above all, the margin on the exchange rate.

That exchange rate margin tends to be the largest cost item, even though it is not listed as a fee. An easy check: put the rate you get next to the mid-market rate and work out the difference on your amount.

For many currency pairs, a transfer service turns out to be less expensive than a bank, mainly because of the rate. On GoldexPay we compare what recipients in Belgium receive with different providers.

Sending EUR to Belgium

The currency of Belgium is the Euro (EUR). If you send money in a different currency, the amount gets converted at some point – by your bank, a bank in between or the recipient’s bank.

Who does the conversion has an effect on how much arrives, since every bank sets its own rate. In many cases you pay less if you send EUR directly via a provider that converts near the mid-market rate so the receiving bank does not need to convert again. With bigger transfers, a seemingly small gap in the rate adds up quickly.

Belgium and the SEPA area

Since Belgium is part of SEPA, a euro transfer to an account in Belgium normally requires just an IBAN. Many banks do not require the BIC for these payments.

The BIC does come into play when the currency is not euros. Instant euro transfers have become widely available within SEPA – check whether your bank supports them. Fees are generally low provided everything stays in euros; the conversion is where it gets expensive.

The largest SWIFT network in Belgium: BNP Paribas Securities Services, Belgium

BNP Paribas Securities Services, Belgium tops the list of Belgium banks when it comes to the number of SWIFT/BIC codes. Its head office code is PARBBEBZXXX – the code most transfers need.

How many codes a bank has says more about how it registers branches and services than about its size. Unless the recipient asks for a branch, PARBBEBZXXX is fine for transfers to this bank.

How reliable is this list?

The most reliable source for a SWIFT code is the bank details provided by the recipient. An incorrect BIC can cause delays, a returned payment or additional charges.

We gather SWIFT/BIC codes from public sources and update our list from time to time. Institutions reorganise, change names and change codes. Before any payment of any size, check the BIC with the recipient’s bank. GoldexPay is not a bank and has no link to the banks in this list.

Fraudsters often use fake invoices with new bank details. A valid BIC says nothing about who owns the account.

Banks in Belgium beginning with the letter :letter

Here you see a filtered list: just banks in Belgium whose name begins with :letter. The totals mentioned above always cover the whole country, not just this letter.

Many institutions appear under their legal name rather than the name on their app or website. The complete list is one click away if you cannot find the bank here.