The IFSC has been designed as an 11-digit alpha-numeric routing number. This is in consonance with the number of digits in the SWIFT coding system which follows the ISO standard (9362) for identifying banks/branches. The composition of bank code and branch code is as follows:
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Character Position Information Remarks
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First Four Characters Bank Code Same as Swift (ISO 9362)
Fifth Character Zero Reserved for future UseLast six characters Branch Code Banks can use their existing codes with no blank spaces
(zeroes prefixed)
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The four-digit alphanumeric codes for banks are the same as registered with SWIFT. In the last six spaces, most banks use the Basic Statistical Returns (BSR) codes allotted by the Reserve Bank for reporting statistics while some use their own existing internal branch codes. As a member of the INFINET, the Reserve Bank would use SFMS for financial and non-financial communication between its own offices and the banking and financial sector. For this purpose, the Reserve Bank has assigned IFSC codes for its own departments in the Central Office and Regional Offices.
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The INFINET, VSAT-based satellite and leased line network, is for the exclusive use of the banking and financial sector. Standardisation of message formats is a concurrent objective along with optimising the use of the INFINET. Consequently, the Structured Financial Messaging Solution (SFMS) has emerged as the Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) system for banks, allowing exchange of secure and structured messaging within the banks and between banks using the INFINET.
After a detailed study of message formats available in other systems such as the Society for Worldwide Inter-bank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), UN/EDIFACT and COMET standards, the choice has devolved on SWIFT message formats for intra- and inter-bank communication message transmission with suitable modifications. Alongside, the Indian Financial Systems Code (IFSC), a uniform coding structure, was developed to uniquely identify every bank branch in the country in routing of payment messages and Straight Through Processing (STP). The pattern adopted has also been drawn from that used by the SWIFT. The IFSC system can also be effectively used for national routing of SWIFT international messages with the help of a suitable interface at INFINET.
