What is an international bank account number?¶

An IBAN is a structured account identifier used to validate and route international payments. It identifies a financial destination, not automatically its owner, controller or user's location.

Structure supports routing¶

An IBAN contains country code, check digits and bank or account elements. It can refer to individual, business, pooled or virtual arrangements. The country component relates to account structure or jurisdiction, not where a person acted.

Preserve and enrich the identifier¶

Retain the full value exactly and combine it with holder name, BIC or SWIFT code, transaction reference, amount, currency and time. Ask the institution which account and service it represents and whether intermediaries or virtual accounts apply.

Where supplied in an invoice or message, preserve that source and metadata; reuse across victims may link cases. Trace onward movement rather than assuming funds remained there.