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What Is a Card BIN / IIN?
BIN (Bank Identification Number, a.k.a. IIN) = the first 6β8 digits of a card number. It identifies the issuer, the card scheme and the card product. The whole network uses it to route a transaction to the right issuer.
What a BIN tells you
| Prefix | Scheme |
|---|
4 | Visa |
51β55 / 2221β2720 | Mastercard |
34 / 37 | American Express |
62 | UnionPay |
35 | JCB |
Beyond the scheme, a full BIN table reveals the issuing bank, country, debit/credit, and card tier (classic/platinum/business).
Remember: the BIN is the first few digits of the card number β the "address" telling the network which issuer to deliver to. It lives at the start of DE2 (PAN).
π Related: ISO 8583 field reference (see DE2 PAN).