Wire transfer
A wire transfer is a bank-to-bank payment executed individually rather than in a batch. Domestic US wires settle over Fedwire in central bank money — same-day and irrevocable. International wires travel as SWIFT messages settled through correspondent accounts. Wires are the default rail for high-value, time-critical payments.
By Raj Lad, Founder & CTOLast updated July 2026
The domestic and international cases behave very differently. A Fedwire payment settles immediately during operating hours and cannot be clawed back. An international wire is an instruction traversing a correspondent chain — one to five business days, lifting fees along the way, and each bank’s compliance checks in between.
Infinite exposes both from the same API as ACH, RTP, stablecoins, and FX: wire the high-value transfer when finality matters, and let Transfer Routes decide when a wire is actually the best path for the border.
Frequently asked questions
How long does a wire transfer take?
A domestic US wire settles the same day — often within minutes during Fedwire operating hours — if sent before the bank’s cutoff. International wires take one to five business days, because they traverse chains of correspondent accounts where every hop adds time, fees, and a fresh compliance review. Correspondent banking
Are wire transfers reversible?
A settled Fedwire payment is final and irrevocable — recovery depends on the beneficiary bank’s cooperation, not a return mechanism. Nothing like an ACH return exists for wires. Fedwire
What is the difference between a wire and an ACH transfer?
Wires settle individually, same-day, and finally, at a higher per-payment cost. ACH batches payments into settlement windows at low cost, with returns possible days later. ACH
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