EU bank transfers are often slow do to the highly secure nature they assign to a bank transfer. Unlike the US, where anyone with a checking account number and a routing code can withdraw money from your account, transfers can ONLY be initiated by a SENDING bank, not the other way around. Many banks manually check bank transfer before releasing funds, this is a cultural thing, although the use of the IBAN platform makes recurring transfers inexpensive and fast once a process is validates (most banks charge 50 cents to one EURO for a transfer, unlike US banks with range from $25 to $50). All EU banks and some South American Banks are members of the IBAN group. The IBAN code includes country does,SWIFT codes and all branch and account information.
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