Glycinatocopper(II) complex 1, readily synthesized from copper chloride and glycine was characterized by various techniques including FTIR, XRD, TGA and SEM analysis. The as-synthesized copper complex was found to be a simple and efficient catalyst for the synthesis of aryl and heteroaryl chlorides via aromatic Finkelstein reaction of aryl and heteroaryl bromides in high to excellent yields. The developed glycinatocopper(II) catalyst could easily be recovered from the reaction mixture and reused successfully for several runs without any loss in catalytic efficiency. The developed methodology represents the first example of the use of heterogeneous catalyst for the synthesis of aryl and heteroaryl chlorides via aromatic Finkelstein reaction. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.