Business
Open an account

Correspondent bank

A correspondent bank is an intermediary bank that processes a payment on behalf of two banks that have no direct relationship with each other. A SWIFT wire can pass through one or more of them, and each hop typically deducts $15 to $30 before passing the balance along.

Why it existsYour bank and your client's bank don't hold accounts with each other, so a correspondent bank bridges the gap
Typical hops1 to 3 correspondent banks on a cross-border wire, depending on the currencies and countries
Fee per hop$15 to $30, deducted from the amount in transit
On a $10,000 wireOur wire model counts one hop at $30, of about $340 in total charges. Two or three hops cost more

Why did less money arrive than my client sent?

Somewhere between your client's bank and yours, one or more correspondent banks handled the payment, and each one took a fee, typically $15 to $30, straight out of the amount in transit. Neither bank will necessarily tell you how many hops the payment took, so the shortfall shows up as an unexplained gap between what was sent and what you received. Fasset routes payments over local rails or USDT where it can, which avoids the correspondent chain, more on the payments page.

Related terms

Glossary SWIFT The messaging network banks use to talk to each other. It does not move money, which is why wires take 1 to 3 days. Glossary IBAN The up-to-34-character account number used across Europe, the UK and the Gulf, and why your US client has never seen one. Glossary Routing number The 9-digit code that identifies a US bank account, and the only number a US client needs to pay you by ACH.

Open an account

Fasset Business gives businesses local currency accounts and modern rails. The application runs entirely online.

Open an account See the demo

Client funds are held separately from Fasset’s own.