SWIFT/BIC codes in St. Helena

SWIFT/BIC codes in St. Helena

On this page you find codes for 1 institutions in St. Helena – 1 codes altogether. Each code points to an institution or one of its branches and tells other banks where an international payment should go.

Each bank is listed with its own page with its main code and if there are any, branch codes. The sections below covers the structure of the codes, what transfers cost and the checks worth doing before you send money.

Transfer times to St. Helena

There is no single answer for payments to St. Helena: many land within a day while others need several business days. Transfers sent late in the day or on a weekend or public holiday usually go out the next business day.

A growing number of banks are connected to SWIFT gpi. Every payment carries a unique transaction reference, the UETR, which the sending bank can use to trace it. Specialist transfer services usually provide tracking online.

Why a transfer to St. Helena needs a SWIFT code

Since St. Helena is outside SEPA, a transfer from abroad normally goes through SWIFT. That means the payment always needs the BIC of the recipient’s bank in addition to the account details.

In some countries, the account is identified by a local account number instead of an IBAN. The recipient’s bank often has a list of required details for payments from abroad – follow them exactly. On the way to St. Helena, a transfer may pass through correspondent banks that charge for their part.

Incoming international payments in St. Helena

When you expect money from abroad on an account in St. Helena, give the sender a complete set of details. That means: your full name as your bank knows it, your IBAN or account number, the SWIFT/BIC code of your bank and sometimes your postal address.

The code of your bank appears in the list on this page. You can include your bank’s name and city as well, since some payment forms ask for it.

What lands in your account can be less than the amount sent. Charges on incoming payments vary from bank to bank; check the price list of your bank. Make clear with the sender who covers the fees, especially for larger amounts.

What a transfer to St. Helena really costs

An international bank payment to St. Helena can cost more than the fee suggests. Besides a fixed fee, correspondent banks can deduct a charge, and when the money is converted the bank usually applies a rate below the real market rate.

That exchange rate margin is often the largest part of the cost, even though it is not listed as a fee. Compare the bank’s rate against the mid-market rate that you find on financial sites. The difference is your real cost.

Money transfer services often use a rate near the mid-market rate and lower fees. Before your next transfer to St. Helena, it is worth to compare what arrives on GoldexPay.

What the letters in a St. Helena BIC mean

SWIFT/BIC codes follow one international format: 8 characters plus an optional three-character extension. Characters one to four identify the bank, characters five and six form the country code and characters seven and eight give the location.

You can spot a code from St. Helena by the fifth and sixth characters – those always form the country code of St. Helena. When the country letters do not match St. Helena, the code belongs to a bank in another country.

The long version ends in three characters for a branch, where XXX means the head office. For most transfers the head office code is what you need unless the recipient asks for a specific branch.

Bank of St. Helena and its SWIFT codes

In our directory, Bank of St. Helena has the most SWIFT/BIC codes in St. Helena. Its main office has BHELSHJJXXX and that code covers most payments.

The number of codes tells you more about how it organises its payments than about how big it is. Paying someone at Bank of St. Helena? Use BHELSHJJXXX except when a specific branch code is requested.

How reliable is this list?

Have the recipient send you the account details straight from a recent statement. A wrong code can cause delays, a payment being sent back or extra fees, so compare it with the list on this page.

Our SWIFT/BIC directory draws on publicly available sources that we update periodically. Banks reorganise, close branches and change codes, and no directory catches every change immediately. Treat this list as a starting point: the bank details from the recipient come first. GoldexPay is a comparison site and not part of any bank listed here.

Fraudsters regularly send payment requests with changed bank details that look completely genuine. Before paying, verify a change of bank details by phone.