What are Wire Transfers?

Sending money from one person to another these days is easier than ever due to the availability of apps like CashApp and Venmo. In the past, however, transferring money from one bank account to another meant you either needed to write and mail a physical check or use a wire transfer. Although not used as often as in the past, wire transfers are still an important part of the global financial system.

A wire transfer is a direct transfer of funds electronically between financial institutions. They were more popular in the past because the Internet and debit cards didn’t exist at the time, so if you wanted to get money to someone’s bank account across the country, you had to send a wire transfer or write and mail a check from your bank account.

Sending Money Internationally

International wire transfers make up a big portion of today’s wire transfer activity. An international wire transfer needs to go through the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT) system. When you send an international wire transfer, a record of the activity is recorded to ensure legal compliance, and this system uses special SWIFT codes.

Domestic transfers are usually completed within 24 hours, but international payments can take a few days to complete. Additionally, the cost to send international transfers by wire can be quite a bit higher compared to domestic transfers.

How to Send a Wire Transfer

To send a wire transfer, you will need to contact your financial institution. Although the process is fairly straightforward, each bank may have its own forms to fill out. You will need to have the bank details of the party to whom you’re sending a transfer to as well. The financial institution you send to must also be able to accept wire transfers.

As a side note, the SWIFT system may not allow all wire transfers to all places. If a country has been given restricted access to the SWIFT system due to international issues, you may be prohibited from transferring funds or may be limited in the amounts you can send to individuals and companies in certain countries.

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