# Correspondent bank
> A correspondent bank is an intermediary a SWIFT payment passes through. Each hop deducts $15 to $30, why less arrives than was sent.
Canonical: https://fasset.com/business/glossary/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 exists:** Your bank and your client's bank don't hold accounts with each other, so a correspondent bank bridges the gap
- **Typical hops:** 1 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 wire:** Our 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

- **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.
- **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.
- **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
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Client funds are held separately from Fasset’s own.