Melli Bank PLC SWIFT/BIC code

MELIGB2L – the SWIFT/BIC code of Melli Bank PLC

MELIGB2L and MELIGB2LXXX are the short and the long form of the same bank identifier, and both lead to Melli Bank PLC in London. A BIC has a single purpose: it makes sure that an international payment ends up at the right bank. In practice you usually see the code on invoices from abroad, in your banking app and on the account details of Melli Bank PLC customers.

On this page you will find how the code means, when it matters and what else you need for a transfer to or from Melli Bank PLC. The SWIFT code on its own does not identify a personal account; that is what the IBAN or account number is for.

SEPA payments and the Melli Bank PLC BIC

United Kingdom belongs to the SEPA area. For a regular euro transfer from another SEPA country, the IBAN is usually enough.

Outside the euro and from non-SEPA countries, MELIGB2LXXX or MELIGB2L remains required. If a payment form has a field for the BIC anyway, adding MELIGB2L does no harm.

Euro payments within SEPA normally land by the next business day; instant payments are faster if both banks offer them. Provided no currency is converted, the transfer is cheap.

When will the money arrive at Melli Bank PLC?

A SWIFT payment usually needs anywhere from one to several business days. Weekends and public holidays in either country add a day or more, since banks do not process on those days. Occasionally a bank wants to know what the payment is for before releasing it.

When a payment takes longer than expected, contact the sending bank about the tracking status or the UETR. Specialist transfer services usually show a status in their app showing how far the payment has got.

The bank that sent the money is able to start an official trace or a recall; the receiving side usually has nothing to trace yet. As a recipient, you can look at your account to see a partial amount because fees can reduce the amount.

Incoming international payments to Melli Bank PLC

When you are waiting for a payment from another country, give the sender a complete set of details. That means: your full name exactly as it appears on the account, your account number or IBAN, the BIC MELIGB2LXXX (or MELIGB2L) and usually your address.

You can add Melli Bank PLC and London too. Double-check each detail before you share them.

The amount you receive can be lower than what was sent. Intermediary banks may deduct a fee, Melli Bank PLC may charge for incoming payments, and when currencies differ, an exchange rate margin applies. Make clear with the sender who pays which costs before the money is sent.

Changed bank details? Be careful

Be wary when a contact unexpectedly asks you to pay into a different account abroad. The fact that MELIGB2L exists does not mean that the account is genuine.

Do not trust a phone number from the same email that contains the change. Watch out for time pressure, odd spelling or an email address that differs by one letter. When a payment has already gone to the wrong account, contact your bank immediately – speed improves the chance of getting it back.

Recipients are targeted too: one known trick is an overpayment followed by a request to send back the difference. Wait until the money is actually in your account – ask Melli Bank PLC if something looks wrong.

Where our SWIFT data comes from

The codes on this page are taken from public sources which we refresh regularly. It can happen that information on this page is out of date. Counts and locations are from our directory and may differ from what Melli Bank PLC publishes.

Treat the information here as a handy check, and let the details from the recipient or Melli Bank PLC have the final say. GoldexPay is not affiliated with Melli Bank PLC; we are a comparison site for money transfers. Found an error? Tell us through the contact page and we will look into it.

MELIGB2L or MELIGB2LXXX – which one to use?

The structure of every SWIFT code is always the same: four characters for the institution, a two-letter country code and two for the location. That gives you MELIGB2L, the short form of the code.

XXX at the end of MELIGB2LXXX does not stand for a missing value or an error: it stands for the main office of Melli Bank PLC. Some forms ask for 11 characters, in which case you simply add XXX after MELIGB2L.

Enter the code in one piece, in upper case and without separators. Copying the code is safer than typing it by hand: a typo can point to another bank.

Choosing between the 2 SWIFT codes of Melli Bank PLC

With 2 codes, Melli Bank PLC is one of the banks that register separate codes for branches and departments. The main code remains MELIGB2LXXX.

Unless the recipient tells you otherwise, go with MELIGB2LXXX or its short form MELIGB2L. When you receive a specific code, use it as it is rather than replacing it for the head office code.

The safest approach is to take the code straight from the account holder’s bank details. Codes are sometimes changed or retired when banks reorganise, so a code from an old document is not always valid.

How to check MELIGB2L before you pay

The most reliable source for the BIC is the recipient’s own bank details. If the code you have does not match MELIGB2L or MELIGB2LXXX, do not guess – contact the recipient or Melli Bank PLC.

Errors in the BIC are costly more than fatal – usually the money comes back, minus fees and time lost. Do not forget the account number: a mistake there can be harder to correct than a wrong BIC.

An automatic check by your bank only tells you that the code is valid, not that it is the right account. If your bank offers it, a payee name check on the recipient gives extra certainty. A small test payment is worth it for large sums.

Sending GBP to Melli Bank PLC

United Kingdom uses the British Pound (GBP). If you send money in a different currency gets converted somewhere along the way – by your bank, by Melli Bank PLC or by a bank in between. Every conversion eats into the amount – usually through the rate rather than a fee.

Where the conversion happens affects how much arrives, since every bank sets its own rate. Check what GBP the recipient gets with different services.

Exchange rates move during the day – some services let you fix a rate in advance. On larger amounts, even seemingly small difference in the rate adds up quickly.

Paying someone abroad from your Melli Bank PLC account

A bank transfer abroad costs rather more than the fee suggests. On top of the transfer fee, banks in between may take a cut, and if currencies are converted the bank usually applies a rate that is less favourable than the actual market rate.

The real cost is often in the rate: the bank converts using an exchange rate with a margin built in. A simple test: put the rate you get against the mid-market rate and work out the difference on your amount.

For a lot of currency pairs, a specialist provider turns out to be less expensive than a bank – mostly thanks to the rate. On GoldexPay you can compare the amount that arrives with different services, so you can pick the cheapest route. You can still keep your account at Melli Bank PLC as the source of the money; only the conversion and sending happen elsewhere.