SWIFT

SWIFT International Wire Transfer is a payment method to due to be added shortly after v1.7.3.

SWIFT is a network that allows financial institutions worldwide to send and receive payments internationally. This article discusses SWIFT transfers between Bisq users.

SWIFT is the industry standard for international payments and supports multiple currencies. Users with access to the SWIFT network through their bank or financial institutions can send and receive payments from any other Bisq user worldwide that also has access to the SWFIT network.

SWIFT transfers do usually incur bank fees for both the sender and receiver, payment times can also be slow (up to 7 days), but payments are secure and almost completely irreversible.

Setting up a SWIFT Account

Almost all banks will have access to the SWIFT network, and some payment account providers will also give their users access to the SWIFT Network. Before trading on Bisq using SWIFT ensure your bank or payment provider gives you access to the SWIFT network to both send and receive payments.

Accounts with access to the SWIFT network will be provided with both the following:

• BIC/SWIFT code
• IBAN code

Setting up a SWIFT Account in Bisq

Go to Account > National Currency Accounts in Bisq and select Add New Account and select SWIFT International Wire Transfer.

Complete the required fields. With SWIFT you have the potential for 3 banks (Owner (your account), Recipient (your banks account) and Intermediary (an linked account your bank uses to receive/send payments)).

Traders using SWIFT on Bisq could be from anywhere so, therefore, it is necessary to provide all the information fields. This will allow for smooth traders. If traders are not comfortable sharing their own address details it is recommended they provide the address of their bank instead.

If you have any special information you would like to share please do so in the 'special information field'

Please note: As a default Bisq sets up your SWIFT account to make and take offers from any country and any country. This means SWIFT accounts on Bisq are able to trade on ALL fiat currency markets. The currency used will always be specified by the maker of the offer depending on the currency market they list their offer on. Eg

• User (maker) wants to Sell BTC for USD on BTC/USD market
• User (maker) wants to Buy BTC for EUR on BTC/EUR market

The taker of the offer will always have to sent/receive fiat in the currency of the maker of the offer.

• User (taker) wants to Sell BTC for USD by taking an offer on the BTC/USD market
• User (taker) wants to Buy BTC for EUR by taking an offer the BTC/EUR market

As either the maker or taker if you transact in a currency that is not native to your bank account there may be fees associated with the currency exchange that is necessary to complete the transfer. The onus is on all users to ensure that they are transacting in a currency that their bank supports and that they understand any fees that may be associated with currency exchange.

Buying BTC with a SWIFT Account

You can buy BTC with SWIFT on Bisq in one of 2 ways.

1. You can make an offer to buy BTC with SWIFT on a currency market of your choosing.
2. You can take an offer to buy BTC with SWIFT on any currency market you like.

The sender of the SWIFT payment in fiat should SEND the payment in the currency of the market on which the offer was made or take. For example if you make an offer to buy BTC using SWIFT on the BTC/USD market you should send USD. Alternatively if you take an offer to buy BTC using SWIFT on the BTC/EUR market you should send EUR.

Sending fiat payment in a currency which is different from the currency of the market which the offer was on will result in a penalty the the BTC buyer of the greater of 5% of trade amount, or the difference between the two currencies exchange rate of the account owners bank. For this reason it is important to ensure as a buyer using SWIFT you are able to send payment in the currency you make/take offers in.

When sending payment some users have reported the intermediary bank may exchange the currency back into a 'local currency' for this reason when making payment you might want to consider instructing your bank not to convert the currency from the currency you send payment in.

Selling BTC with a SWIFT Account

You can sell BTC with SWIFT on Bisq in one of 2 ways.

1. You can make an offer to sell BTC for payment via SWIFT on a currency market of your choosing.
2. You can take an offer to sell BTC for payment via SWIFT on any currency market you like.

The BTC Seller should receive the funds in the currency of market the offer was accepted on. For example if you make an offer to sell BTC using SWIFT on the BTC/USD market you should receive USD. Alternatively if you take an offer to sell BTC using SWIFT on the BTC/EUR market you should receive EUR.

Understanding SWIFT fees when trading on Bisq

When sending a SWIFT transfer the sender has three fee options to choose from:

• BEN (BENeficiary) – The Payee (recipient of the payment) will incur all of the payment transaction fees. Typically, the recipient will receive the payment minus the transfer charges. The Payer (sender of the payment) will not pay any payment fees.
• OUR – The Payer (sender of the payment) will bear all of the payment transaction fees. Normally you will be billed separately for the payment transfer. The Payee (recipient of the payment) will not pay any payment fees. The beneficiary will receive the full amount of the payment.
• SHA (SHAred) – The Payer (sender of the payment) will pay all fees charged by the sending bank. You will be billed separately for the payment transfer. The Payee (recipient of the payment) will pay all fees charged by the receiving bank. The recipient will receive the payment minus any correspondent /intermediary fees

Bisq requires users sending a SWIFT transfer to use the SHA (SHAred) fee option. if a BTC Buyer sends a payment using the BEN (BENeficiary) fee option they will likely incur a penalty to compensate the BTC Seller.

All users should, therefore, make themselves aware of what their bank will charged based on the SHA (SHAred) fee option. Normally it will be $5-10 USD equivalent. Different banks charge different fees and some banks will change no fees at all, therefore, it is a good idea to consider what bank/s you would like to use to trade on Bisq using SWIFT.