API, Blog, Finance, News, PHP

BSB Number API

On the 23rd of November 2007 I built a quick website at BSBnumbers.com to return bank information and BSB numbers. The site predated the popularity of the iPhone and, like many sites of that era, didn't take mobile design into consideration. It's only now - nearly 10 years later - that we've completely revised the back-end of the site and built a temporary front-end. The website was the first of its kind at the time and, despite the numerous copycats, it hasn't lost relevance and has always maintained a consistent growth.

While the site always had an API, no part of it was ever public. The new API provides unrestricted access (to multiple endpoints) for registered users, and limited access for unregistered use. A large portion of our clientele are from the Aussie finance community and, as such, validating BSB numbers is an integral part of their service (normally just used to validate form input). Clients also have access to a plugin that'll essentially provide an AJAX-based full-featured search feature on their own site.

BSB API

A request to the API should follow the following structure: http://api.beliefmedia.com/bsb/{BSBnumber}.json. The BSB number should be 6 digits long (a hyphen is permitted). A valid request will return JSON data that unfolds as follows:

Array

(

[status] => 200

[message] => OK

[code] => 200

[data] => Array

(

[bsbnumber] => 062-146

[instcode] => CBA

[branchname] => North Strathfield

[streetaddress] => 191 Concord Road

[suburb] => North Strathfield

[state] => NSW

[postcode] => 2137

[peh] => PEH

)

Note that the status code (and message) just means that we processed your request. The code (key) determines if the number exists or not (200 meaning that the BSB exists). The four primary error codes you're likely to encounter are as follows:

200 - BSB number exists. BSB Data will be returned in this case.
404 - BSB number not found.
400 - Invalid request. Note that any query with forbidden characters will usually simply be ignored. Validation of 6 numbers should usually be performed client-side.
429 - Slow down. Unregistered users may see this message if they exceed guest limits.

PHP Function

A simple example to return whether a BSB number exists or not is as follows. Note that the function obviously doesn't determine if it is the correct number or not... so it's expected that you'll return the data to your page after input for verification.

<?php

BSB Number API : http://www.beliefmedia.com/bsb-number-api

Simple function checks if BSB number is valid

function beliefmedia_bsb($bsb) {

$data = @file_get_contents('http://api.beliefmedia.com/bsb/' . $bsb . '.json');

if ($data === false) return '429';

$data = json_decode($data, true);

return ($data['code'] == '200') ? true : false;

}

$bsb = '062146';

echo (beliefmedia_bsb($bsb) !== false) ? 'Exists' : 'Does not exist';

Considerations

If you're a mortgage broker, or somebody that works in the finance field, please make touch with us. We tend to double finance leads in as little as a few days.
Registered users should add their API key to the request: http://api.beliefmedia.com/bsb/{BSBnumber}.json?apikey=12345.
The data is checked daily for updates.

■ ■ ■

Download our complimentary 650-page guide on marketing for mortgage brokers. We'll show you exactly how we generate billions in volume for our clients.