SWIFT/BIC codes in Germany: banks starting with C

Bank SWIFT codes for Germany

On this page you find the SWIFT/BIC codes of 2804 institutions in Germany – 8518 codes altogether. Every code points to an institution or a specific branch or department and tells other banks where an international payment should go.

Choose a bank from the list to see its head office code and its other codes. The rest of this page covers the structure of the codes, the cost of transfers and the checks worth doing before a payment.

Getting paid from abroad into an account in Germany

If you expect money from abroad in Germany, send the payer a complete set of details. In practice that means: your name as your bank knows it, your IBAN or account number, the SWIFT/BIC code of your bank and usually your address.

The code of your bank is in the list on this page but always compare it with your own bank details. You can include your bank’s name and city.

Do not be surprised if the incoming amount is smaller than what the sender paid. Fees for incoming transfers differ from bank to bank. Agree with the sender who pays which costs, especially for larger amounts.

The structure of a Germany SWIFT/BIC code

Each SWIFT/BIC code has eight or eleven characters. Characters one to four identify the bank, characters five and six form the country code and the next two mark the location.

You can recognise a code from Germany by the fifth and sixth characters. A code with a different country code belong to another country.

When a code ends in XXX, it refers to the main office. Choose a branch code only when the recipient explicitly gives you one; otherwise the head office code is the safe choice.

Tracking a payment to Germany

How quickly a payment reaches Germany is determined by a few things: which currency you send, the number of banks in between, daily processing deadlines and differences in time zone. Payments made late in the day or just before a weekend or public holiday usually start the next business day.

A growing number of banks use SWIFT gpi. Every payment carries a unique transaction reference, the UETR that banks can use to see where the money is. Money transfer services usually show tracking in their app.

About our data and how to check a code

The best place to find the correct BIC remains a document from the bank itself. A wrong code can cause delays, a payment being sent back or extra fees – compare it with the code in our list.

This list is based on publicly available sources that we update periodically. Still, banks merge, rename themselves or change codes. Before a payment of any size, check the code with the recipient’s bank. GoldexPay is an independent comparison site.

Be wary of payment requests with a new account. A valid BIC says nothing about whether a request is genuine: criminals use real codes too.

Sending money to Germany for less

When you transfer money to Germany via a regular bank, the fee you see is only part of the cost. There is the transfer fee, sometimes charges from intermediary banks along the way and, most importantly, the margin on the exchange rate.

The markup on the rate is often the largest cost item, even though it is not listed as a fee. A simple test: set the offered rate against the mid-market rate and work out the difference on your amount.

Specialist money transfer services often use rates closer to the mid-market rate. GoldexPay compares these providers side by side so you can see the amount that reaches the recipient before you commit.

SWIFT codes in Germany: banks under :letter

This filter limits the list to banks from Germany that begin with :letter, so you can find a bank faster. The counts in the introduction always refer to all banks in Germany, not just this letter.

Cannot find the bank? The registered name may start with a different letter, for example the full legal name rather than a brand name. The full overview for Germany remains available when the letter filter does not help.

Sending EUR to Germany

Bank accounts in Germany are typically held in EUR – the Euro. When you pay another currency, it has to be converted somewhere along the way.

Which bank converts the money makes a difference, because each party uses its own rate. Often you pay less to send EUR straight away via a transfer service with a good rate so the receiving bank does not need to convert again. With bigger transfers, even a small gap in the rate adds up quickly.

Euro payments to Germany: is a BIC needed?

Since Germany is part of SEPA, a euro payment to a bank in Germany normally only needs the IBAN. Many banks no longer ask for the BIC for these payments.

A SWIFT code does matter when the currency is not euros. Instant payments in euros have become increasingly supported across SEPA – check whether your bank supports them. Provided no conversion is involved, the transfer tends to be cheap.

The largest SWIFT network in Germany: Deutsche Bank AG

Deutsche Bank AG leads the list of Germany banks when it comes to SWIFT/BIC codes. Its head office code is DEUTDE2HXXX.

How many codes a bank has tells you more about how it organises its payments than about how big it is. If not a branch code is given, the head office code DEUTDE2HXXX works for transfers to this bank.