leiCode

leiCode · Recommended

Appears in

Organization

What is it?

An LEI (Legal Entity Identifier) is a 20-character alphanumeric code that uniquely identifies a legal entity participating in financial markets. It is defined in ISO 17442 and governed by the Global LEI Foundation (GLEIF). Originally created after the 2008 financial crisis to improve transparency in financial markets, the LEI system now covers over 2.5 million entities worldwide. Every LEI maps to a public record containing the entity's legal name, registered address, and organizational hierarchy data. Schema.org's leiCode property exposes this identifier in structured data.

Why this matters for AEO

LEI codes are among the most authoritative business identifiers available. GLEIF's LEI registry is a public, machine-readable database that AI systems can query directly to verify an entity's legal name, registration country, and parent organization structure. When a company's LEI appears in structured data, an AI answer engine has a direct path to GLEIF's golden record for that entity, resolving name variations and corporate hierarchy questions that text alone cannot answer. Google explicitly recommends leiCode in its Organization structured data guidelines, though it also notes that iso6523Code is the preferred format for expressing this and other identifiers in a structured way.

What the specs say

Schema.org:leiCode expects a Text value. An organization identifier that uniquely identifies a legal entity as defined in ISO 17442. [Source: https://schema.org/leiCode]

Google: Recommended. "The identifier for your Organization as defined in ISO 17442." Google's documentation also encourages using iso6523Code as the preferred format for expressing this identifier. [Source: https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/organization]

How to find your value

LEI codes are publicly searchable and assigned by accredited Local Operating Units (LOUs). To find or obtain your LEI:

1. Search the GLEIF LEI search tool at https://www.gleif.org/en/lei-data/global-lei-index/lei-search to check if your organization already has an LEI assigned.
2. If your organization participates in financial markets, reports to regulators, or engages in cross-border transactions, it likely already holds an LEI.
3. To register a new LEI, contact any GLEIF-accredited LOU such as Bloomberg, Ubisecure, or the London Stock Exchange Group.
4. LEIs must be renewed annually with a small fee. An expired LEI is technically still valid as an identifier but is marked as lapsed in the GLEIF registry.

An LEI is always exactly 20 characters: alphanumeric, case-insensitive, and structured as 18 alphanumeric characters followed by 2 check digits.

Format and code

The LEI is a plain 20-character string. No spaces, no separators:

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "Apple Inc.",
  "leiCode": "HWUPKR0MPOU8FGXBT394"
}

Apple Inc.'s LEI is HWUPKR0MPOU8FGXBT394, publicly available in the GLEIF registry.

For Deutsche Bank:

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "Deutsche Bank AG",
  "leiCode": "7LTWFZYICNSX8D621K86"
}

Invalid formats:

{
  "leiCode": "HWUP-KR0M-POU8-FGXB-T394"
}

No hyphens or spaces should appear in the value.

Webflow implementation

Static pages

Add to your homepage or About page via Page Settings > Custom Code > Head Code:

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "Your Company",
  "leiCode": "YOUR20CHARLEICODE00"
}
</script>

CMS template pages

leiCode is an organization-level identifier. It belongs in a site-wide organization schema block, not in per-page or per-item CMS templates.

In Schema HQ

leiCode is output in the Organization schema editor under the Disambiguation section. Enter the full 20-character LEI string. Schema HQ publishes it within the organization JSON-LD block across all enabled pages.

Real examples

Apple Inc. holds LEI HWUPKR0MPOU8FGXBT394. Deutsche Bank AG holds 7LTWFZYICNSX8D621K86. Both are verifiable in real time at https://www.gleif.org/. Financial institutions and publicly traded companies are the most common holders:

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "Deutsche Bank AG",
  "url": "https://www.db.com",
  "leiCode": "7LTWFZYICNSX8D621K86"
}

Related fields

• iso6523Code
• duns
• taxID
• vatID
• globalLocationNumber
• tickerSymbol — stock market ticker symbol for the organization

FAQ

Who is required to have an LEI?

LEIs are required by financial regulators in many jurisdictions for entities that trade in securities, derivatives, or other financial instruments. Under MiFID II in the EU and similar regulations globally, counterparties to certain financial transactions must have a valid, active LEI. Non-financial businesses are not required to have one but may obtain one voluntarily.

What is the difference between leiCode and iso6523Code?

leiCode stores the raw LEI string. iso6523Code stores the same identifier in a structured ISO 6523 format with an ICD (International Code Designator) prefix. For LEIs, the ICD prefix is 0199. Google recommends using iso6523Code as the preferred way to express an LEI in a schema that uses ISO 6523 formatting. Both fields are valid options; iso6523Code is more extensible if you have multiple identifier types.

How often does an LEI need to be renewed?

LEI registrations expire annually and must be renewed with the issuing LOU. An expired LEI remains searchable in the GLEIF registry but is marked with a "LAPSED" status, which signals to automated systems that the record has not been verified recently.