I think it was One Down asking about this earlier.

SWIFT Code is a unique identification code for a particular bank and it is a standard format of Bank Identifier Codes (BIC). SWIFT Codes are used for transferring money and messages between banks.

SWIFT Code is 8 or 11 characters for a bank. If SWIFT Code is 8 character code then it points to the primary branch/office •First 4 characters represents bank code. •Next 2 characters represents ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code. •Next 2 characters represents location code. (letters and digits) (passive participant will have "1" in the second character) •Last 3 characters represents branch code. These characters are optional. ('XXX' for primary office)

There are a great many SWIFT codes which correspond to various types of message. A SWIFT code is normally made up of the letters 'MT', and then a three digit number. The 'MT' simply stands for 'message type', and the numbers correspond to a certain type of SWIFT message. For obvious reasons these numbers are standardized globally and do not change between countries.

7:07 PM [DOUBLE B] Wells Fargo Bank New Mexico NA Swift Code (BIC) UNMCUS51 Use this code for an International Bank Wire Transfer to Wells Fargo Bank New Mexico NA, Albuquerque, United States