Anonymize bank statements for AI
To anonymize bank statements for AI, along with loan agreements and SEPA mandates, you have to handle files that identify a client on every line: account number, card number, transfer reference. Whether you work in a branch, in the back office, for a mortgage broker or in wealth management, banking secrecy requires these documents to stay inside the institution, including when you turn to an AI. Biffer processes these files on your computer, with no connection, and replaces each identifier with a stable alias.
This page describes the files concerned, the duty of secrecy, the AI uses and the fields of the banking profile.
Statements, loan agreements, mandates: typical banking files
The files an advisor, a credit analyst or a broker works with are almost always named: they line up amounts and numbers that point to a person.
- Account statements (PDF, sometimes CSV exported from online banking): account number, transaction labels with third-party names, transfer references.
- Loan agreements and offers (PDF, Word): loan number, identity of the borrowers and guarantors, address of the property, repayment schedule.
- SEPA direct debit mandates: unique mandate reference (UMR), the debtor's IBAN and BIC, creditor identifier.
- Credit files: payslips, tax notices, customer number, ID documents attached.
- Tracking spreadsheets (Excel): client portfolios, check lists, outstanding balances by account number.
Biffer processes PDF, Word, Excel, CSV and text while preserving the formatting: the repayment schedule stays a table, the statement stays readable. Statements scanned as images go through built-in optical character recognition, offline, then are redacted by blacking out the pixels, with no possible restoration. The PDF case is detailed on the page redact a PDF.
Banking secrecy and the GDPR: the rules around these files
In France, Article L511-33 of the Monetary and Financial Code places under professional secrecy anyone who takes part in the management of a credit institution or who is employed by one. Breach of this secrecy is punished under Article 226-13 of the French Criminal Code. It covers precise and confidential information about the client, which is exactly what a statement or an agreement contains.
The GDPR applies on top of this: an account number, a transfer reference or a card number are personal data, and financial data calls for stronger security measures under Article 32 of the GDPR. Three practical consequences.
- A card number should always be masked in a working file: Biffer replaces it automatically.
- The client can be identified by their account number as much as by their name: Biffer redacts both together, and protection is complete.
- Where processing happens matters. With offline software, the text stays inside the institution, from import to export.
Biffer prepares, you validate: you review the preview and the institution keeps control of the processing.
AI use cases and the Biffer workflow
Once the identifiers are replaced, the AI becomes a useful assistant for every task that concerns the substance of the file rather than the client's identity.
- Summarize a forty-page loan agreement to prepare a meeting.
- Analyze a six-month CSV statement to spot the recurring expenses in a credit file.
- Draft an outline for an analysis note from a pseudonymized file.
The workflow is the same every time.
- You drop the PDF, Word, Excel or CSV file into Biffer with the banking profile enabled.
- The local analysis highlights people, addresses, IBANs, account, loan, card and check numbers, and transfer references.
- You untick false positives (an internal transaction code, a product reference) and add what is missing, all occurrences at once.
- The document comes out with stable aliases (COMPTE_001 for an account, PRET_001 for a loan, CLIENT_002; the alias labels are in French). In Word and PDF, redacted data is also highlighted in black, an option enabled by default.
- The mapping table, encrypted or in plain text as you choose, restores the original values in the AI's answer.
The queue processes a series of statements in reviewed or automatic mode. Biffer is free for five files per month, after a one-time email confirmation in the software; beyond that, Biffer for Mac or Biffer for PC costs €10 excl. VAT (€12 incl. VAT) per computer, paid once, all redaction features included (see the pricing page). The steps are detailed on the features page.
The fields the banking profile recognizes
The banking profile adds identifiers specific to banking operations to the general detections. Here is the exact list, as it appears in the software.
| Field | Where you find it |
|---|---|
| Account number | Statements, bank details (RIB), agreements, letters |
| Loan number | Loan offers, repayment schedules, amendments |
| Customer number | Letter headers, online banking, credit files |
| Card number | Card agreements, card blocking, complaints |
| Check number | Statements, deposit slips, check letters |
| Transfer reference | Transaction labels, execution notices |
| Unique SEPA mandate reference | Direct debit mandates, debit notifications |
| BIC code | Bank details, SEPA mandates, international transfers |
On top of these come the four fields shared by all professions (file number, reference, contract number, employee ID) and the general detections: people, emails, phone numbers, postal addresses, French company numbers (SIREN and SIRET), French social security number, IBAN with mod 97 check, license plates, dates. For an identifier specific to your institution, the custom keyword field described on the professions page does the rest. Biffer is published by Romain Rissoan, trainer, consultant and founder of OPCADIA, in Lyon.
Frequently asked questions
Should the IBAN and account number be redacted if the client's name is already replaced?
Yes. An IBAN or an account number identifies the holder as surely as a name: a single lookup in the information system is enough to find the person. Banking secrecy covers the confidential information itself, well beyond civil status. Biffer therefore treats the IBAN (with a mod 97 key check, which limits false positives) and the account number as data in their own right, replaced by stable aliases (IBAN_001, COMPTE_001). If an analysis needs to keep the account number, for example to match two statements, the "keep" policy applies to that data type without touching the rest of the document.
Can a statement exported as CSV from online banking be processed?
Yes. CSV is one of the supported formats, along with PDF, Word, Excel and text. Biffer reads every cell, spots third-party names in transaction labels, transfer references and account numbers, then rewrites the file with the aliases, columns and separators unchanged. You can then ask an AI to categorize the transactions or calculate totals by category while the holders' identities stay protected. A statement received as a scanned PDF, that is, as an image, is read by the built-in character recognition and then redacted by blacking out the pixels, permanently; when a digital export from online banking exists, prefer it, as it keeps the process reversible.
How much does Biffer cost for use in a branch?
Biffer is free for five files per month, all redaction features included, with no time limit: the first time you open it, you enter your email address in the software and click the confirmation link, once per computer, with no password or credit card. That is enough to check on your own statements and agreements that account and loan numbers are recognized. For higher volumes, Biffer for Mac or Biffer for PC costs €10 excl. VAT (€12 incl. VAT), paid once by card (Stripe): the license is lifetime for the version purchased, tied to the computer, and the number of files becomes unlimited. Every feature is included, the banking profile, the queue and the mapping table among them. Each new major version is sold separately; the installed version remains usable with no limit.
Your business documents anonymized, ready to be published or handed to an AI tool.
Biffer runs on your computer without sending a single file. Free for five files a month, unlimited for €10 excl. VAT per computer.
100% offline · Free: 5 files a month · No file sent