What is the difference between IFSC and MICR code? Understand the whole thing for secure online fund transfer

Secure Digital Banking Process: In today’s digital era, transacting with banks has become very easy and fast. However, for safe banking it is important for us to understand some technical terms. There are two main codes used to send money or make payment by cheque. One of these is IFSC and the other is MICR code which make banking reliable.

What is IFSC code?

IFSC i.e. Indian Financial System Code is a special alphanumeric code of eleven digits. This code gives a separate and unique identity to each bank branch in the country. This code printed on your bank check book is the main basis of digital transactions.

Structure of IFSC

The first four characters of this code clearly indicate the name of the concerned bank. The fifth character is always zero which acts as a separator between bank and branch. The last six characters directly identify the specific branch of the concerned bank.

Main uses of IFSC

It is mainly used in online systems like NEFT, RTGS and IMPS. This ensures that the money reaches the right bank branch without any mistakes. The codes of all the banks are easily available on the official website of the Reserve Bank of India.

What is MICR code?

MICR i.e. Magnetic Ink Character Recognition is a special nine-digit numeric code. It is mainly used to speed up the process of check clearing. This code is printed on the bottom of the check with magnetic ink which is read by the machine.

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Structure of MICR

The first three digits of this nine-digit code indicate the PIN code of the city. The middle three digits identify the bank and the last three digits are the branch code. With the help of this technology, check processing becomes very secure and error-free.

main difference between the two

IFSC is for online fund transfer while MICR is required for check clearing. IFSC is an eleven digit code but MICR is only a nine digit numeric code. IFSC plays a role in digital banking whereas MICR is important in traditional banking.