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Bank Routing Number
by John Burnett, BOL Guru
Guru BIOS
Question: Can you explain the significance of the bank routing number? What does the number tell us about the bank and/or its location?
Answer: The first two digits of the number indicate the bank's Federal Reserve District. Numbers in the range 21-32 indicate the number was originally issued to a thrift; subtract 20 from the number to learn the FR district.
The third digit relates to the FR check processing center originally assigned to the bank. The fourth digit signifies whether the bank is located in a FR city (0 means yes) or, if not, which state it's in within the district).
The fifth through eighth digits are unique to the bank within the FR district. They equate to the second piece of the numerator of the fractional routing number (53-574 was the numerator of my former employer; its routing and transit number was 011305749).
Finally, there is a check digit, the ninth digit. It's calculated based on the first eight digits. The first, fourth and seventh of the eight are each multiplied by 3; the second, fifth and eighth each by 7; and the third and sixth by 1. The eight products are added. For example, the products of 01130574 (my former employer's number again) are 0, 7, 1, 9, 0, 5, 21 and 28, which add to 71.
To determine the check digit, subtract the sum of the products from the next multiple of 10. In the example, the sum of the products is 71 and the next multiple of 10 is 80; therefore, the check digit is 9.
The scheme that assigned numbers in the past is no guarantee you can tie each part of the number back to its origins, however. Numbers formerly assigned to thrifts are being retained by commercial banks with multiple processing centers. Banknorth, N.A., for example (which absorbed my former employer), uses an old thrift routing number for its Massachusetts division.
The former practice of assigning a unique series of numbers to thrifts is also now abandoned, although the old numbers continue in use, and the Fed's consolidation of check processing operations has rendered obsolete the link between certain digits in the routing number and the check processing center assigned to their banks.
First published on BankersOnline.com 3/21/05
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