Wire transfers are when people usually send money to people either locally, domestically, or internationally. This can be done by a simple bank account transfer, or by a transfer of cash at a cash office. Wire transfers have been available since the advent of the telegraph, when the sender, at one bank, would communicate by telegraph (wire) the amount of money to be given to another person. One of the largest companies that offers wire transfer is Western Union.

In modern times, the word wire transfer or bank transfer (sometimes combined as bank wire transfer) is used for domestic or international transactions where no cash or cheque exchange is involved, but the account balance is directly (electronically) transferred from one bank account to the other. Bank transfer is the most common payment method in Europe, with several million transactions done each day. While in 2002 the European Commission has regulated the fees banks may charge in Euro countries down to the domestic level, international wire transfers can be quite expensive. However, wire transfer, if done bank-to-bank, is considered the safest international payment method, as both account holders must have a proven identitity, and there is no possibility of a chargeback .

Wire transfers done through cash offices, however, are usually unsafe and are not recommended for international trade.