It can be concerning if a beneficiary reports that they have not received their funds. At Ebury, we always aim to route transactions through the most efficient paths possible. However, minor delays can occasionally happen across the global banking network.
Before taking further action, it helps to understand standard processing timelines:
Standard Currencies: Most transactions are credited within the first 3 business days from the execution date.
Emerging Market Currencies: Clearing can take up to 3-5 business days.
Potential Delays: Internal compliance checks by intermediary banks, the involvement of multiple financial institutions, or local bank holidays can sometimes cause a payment to arrive slightly after its specified value date.
Here is a step-by-step guide on how to track your payment and resolve the issue.
Step 1: Verify the banking details
A great first step is to double-check the bank details used for the transaction.
If this is the first time you are paying this beneficiary, verify that no typos were made during setup.
If this is a regular payee, reach out to them to confirm that their account details have not recently changed.
Step 2: Track the payment using UETR and SWIFT GPI
For payments sent via the SWIFT network, you have access to powerful tracking tools directly on your payment receipt:
What is a UETR? A Unique End-to-end Transaction Reference (UETR) is a 36-character string that acts exactly like a parcel tracking number. It allows financial institutions to locate your payment at any point in its cycle. You can provide this code to your beneficiary so their bank can quickly find the transaction.
What is SWIFT GPI? This tool allows us to track payments end-to-end through the SWIFT network. It provides visibility into the exact dates and times a payment passes through specific intermediary banks, when it reaches the beneficiary's bank, and whether any processing fees were deducted along the way.
Step 3: Identify the payment status
If a payment has not appeared after 24/48 hours, and the payment has been sent via SWIFT / is traceable via the online platform, we can look up the GPI status to identify the scenario:
Scenario A: The payment is marked as credited
This means the payment instruction is successfully complete on our side.
Next Steps: We recommend downloading your payment receipt, sharing the GPI details and UETR with your beneficiary, and asking them to present these specific tracking references to their bank's inquiry team.
Scenario B: The payment is on hold
Intermediary or receiving banks frequently screen transaction elements as a standard security practice and may pause a payment to review it.
If Ebury has not requested information from you: Share the GPI tracking details with your beneficiary so they can check if their bank requires any documentation on their end.
If Ebury has already requested information from you: Once you provide the requested details, we forward them to the reviewing bank. Please note that banks can take up to 72 hours just to acknowledge our message, and an additional 48 hours to process it. This resolution path typically takes around 5 to 7 working days.
Scenario C: The payment is rejected by an intermediary or beneficiary bank
If a bank rejects the transaction, the funds will be routed back to us.
Next Steps: Due to varying banking processes, a return can take up to 5 weeks to clear. While banks do not provide regular mid-route updates during a rejection cycle, we will notify you via email the moment the returned funds arrive back in your account.
Still need assistance?
If 72 working hours have passed since execution and your beneficiary still cannot locate the funds using the UETR, please feel free to contact Ebury support directly via live chat or at the below email addresses:
EMEA (operationsteam@ebury.com)
Asia Pacific (operationsteam.apac@ebury.com)
America (operationsteam.ca@ebury.com)