International Wire Transfers

International wire transfers can be conducted in US dollars or a foreign currency using Commercial Advantage, First Citizens FXEnvoy or with a banker at a First Citizens branch location. To complete an international wire transfer, you must provide:

• The beneficiary's full name and address
• The bank's name, city and country
• The 11-character SWIFT or BIC Code
• The beneficiary's account number or International Bank Account Number, or IBAN. An IBAN may also be required based on the transfer country of the beneficiary bank.
• The currency and amount of the payment
• The reason for the payment

International wire transfers are more efficient than foreign drafts, and funds are usually available immediately upon receipt by the beneficiary.

Foreign Currency Banknotes is a service that facilitates the purchase and sale of foreign currency, or paper money. We offer this service at every branch. Clients and nonclients can ease travel delays and stress by obtaining foreign currency before traveling overseas and exchanging foreign currency for US dollars after they return.

We buy and sell foreign currency from more than 80 countries. We also offer international wire transfers in USD and offer exchange services for more than 80 currencies.

A foreign currency exchange rate is the rate at which one type of currency will be traded for a different currency in the foreign exchange market. Rates are affected by economic activity, market interest rates, gross domestic product and unemployment rates in the countries around the world.

FXEnvoy is our online international payments client portal that empowers businesses with a fast, efficient and secure method for facilitating international business from the convenience of their computers.

Sending an international payment online with FXEnvoy is a simple process that can take less than a minute. Just book your FX transaction online and apply your beneficiary's payment instructions. Once you book your exchange rate, it's locked in and won't fluctuate prior to delivery.

An international bank account number, or IBAN, is a domestic account number standard for all retail and commercial payments in the European Union. Several other countries have also adopted this format for routing domestic payments, which are assigned by foreign banks to their customers and can include up to 34 alphanumeric characters.

Our payment platform has a built-in IBAN wire transfer validation that lets you know if the IBAN isn't valid.

We utilize multiple layers of security to help safeguard your confidential information, including two-factor authorization and maker-checker functionality for templates and payments.

Unless the beneficiary has specifically requested US dollars, it may be beneficial to send your payment in the local currency of the beneficiary. US dollars sent to an account that is denominated in a foreign currency may take longer to be received and may incur higher bank charges than if you send the local currency.

Yes. Global wire transfer is a broad term that can be synonymous with international wire transfers. The term global money transfer can be synonymous with other payment types across borders.