Bankers' Bank of The West SWIFT/BIC code

SWIFT/BIC code of Bankers' Bank of The West

If an invoice shows INSTUS51 or INSTUS51XXX, it is the identical identifier for Bankers' Bank of The West in United States. Banks worldwide use these codes to route international transfers to the correct bank. It comes up mainly for payments that cross a border or a currency.

On this page you can read how the code is put together, when you need it and what else you need for a transfer to or from Bankers' Bank of The West. The SWIFT code alone does not identify a personal account; that is what the account number or IBAN is for.

Watch out for payment fraud

Scammers regularly send payment requests with changed bank details, sometimes in an email that looks completely genuine. A valid SWIFT code says nothing about who owns the account.

Verify new payment details via a separate channel, such as a phone number you already know. Pressure or secrecy are red flags. Already paid? Contact your bank without delay and ask them to try to recall the payment and report the fraud.

Fraud can also work the other way: someone sends too much and wants you to return the difference via a different route. Wait until the money is actually in your account – ask Bankers' Bank of The West if something looks wrong.

How to check INSTUS51 before you pay

The most reliable source for the BIC is the bank details provided by the recipient. When the code you were given does not match INSTUS51 or INSTUS51XXX, stop and ask – contact the recipient or Bankers' Bank of The West.

Mistakes in the SWIFT code are costly rather than fatal. An error in the IBAN or account number can be more serious because it can reach the wrong person, so check that just as carefully.

An automatic check by your bank only tells you that the IBAN is valid – not that it belongs to the person you mean to pay. More and more banks check the payee name with the account; take any warning seriously. For a first payment, some people start with a small test amount.

Bankers' Bank of The West: head office code versus branch codes

With 2 codes in 1 cities, Bankers' Bank of The West is one of the banks that register individual codes for branches. The head office code remains INSTUS51XXX.

Usually there is no need to pick a branch: payments addressed to INSTUS51XXX reach Bankers' Bank of The West correctly. When you receive a branch code, stick to it rather than swapping it for the head office code.

Not sure which code to use? Check with the recipient. Codes for branches are more likely to change than the head office code when a bank merges or closes offices.

US Dollar (USD) and conversion costs

Most accounts at Bankers' Bank of The West are typically held in USD, the local currency. If you send money in a different currency it has to be converted at some point. Every conversion eats into the amount, even when no fee is shown.

Who does the conversion affects the final amount. Sending the money directly in USD usually prevents a second conversion by Bankers' Bank of The West.

Rates for USD move during the day – some services let you fix a rate in advance. On larger amounts, even small gap in the rate can be worth more than the fee.

How up to date is this code?

We collect bank codes from public sources and update our list from time to time. It is possible that information here is out of date after a merger or reorganisation. The number of codes on this page reflect what is in our directory.

See the information on this page as a handy check and rely on the recipient or Bankers' Bank of The West for the final confirmation. GoldexPay is not affiliated with Bankers' Bank of The West, we only compare transfer services. Spotted an error? Tell us via our contact form so we can correct it.

Receiving money from abroad at Bankers' Bank of The West

To receive a transfer from abroad at Bankers' Bank of The West, the sender has to have not just the BIC. Give them the account holder’s name, your account number or IBAN, the BIC INSTUS51XXX and your address.

Their bank may request the address of your bank, in which case the Denver,co head office is the usual answer. A mistake in the IBAN can be harder to fix than it looks.

Expect that the incoming amount is smaller than what the sender paid. Fees for incoming transfers vary from bank to bank. Make clear with the sender who pays which costs.

Sending money abroad from Bankers' Bank of The West

What you pay for an international transfer is made up of more than one component, and the transfer fee is only the most visible one. Besides the transfer fee, correspondent or intermediary banks can take a cut, and if currencies are converted the bank usually applies a rate that is less favourable than the real market rate.

Most of the cost usually sits in the exchange rate: the bank converts at a rate that includes a margin. A simple test: put the bank’s rate against the mid-market rate for the same moment and look at the difference.

For a lot of currency pairs, a specialist provider turns out to be cheaper than a traditional bank transfer. GoldexPay compares transfer providers side by side so you can see what actually arrives. You can still use your account at Bankers' Bank of The West to fund the transfer.

INSTUS51 or INSTUS51XXX – which one to use?

A SWIFT code is built from fixed blocks: characters one to four stand for the bank, characters five and six give the country and the two after that indicate the location. The result is INSTUS51, the short form of the code.

Many payment forms accept either length. If a form asks for eleven characters, use INSTUS51XXX; if it wants eight, use INSTUS51.

In practice the code is written in capitals, without spaces or dashes. Look out for the letter O and the digit 0 and the letter I and the digit 1.

Transfer times and tracking a payment to Bankers' Bank of The West

How quickly a payment arrives at Bankers' Bank of The West depends on several factors: the currency, the number of banks in between, daily processing deadlines and differences in time zone. Transfers sent after the cut-off time or on weekends and holidays usually start a business day later. Sometimes a bank wants to know what the payment is for before releasing it.

If a transfer seems delayed, ask the sending bank about the status; with that reference banks can see where the payment is. Specialist transfer services often show a status online so you can see where the payment is.

Only the sending bank is able to request a trace or a recall; the receiving side usually has nothing to trace yet. As a recipient, it helps to look at your statements to see a slightly lower amount.