Commercial Invoice Showing Notify Parties and Consignee: Discrepancy or Not? Introduction In practice, disputes often arise when applicants request additional details to be inserted in the commercial invoice — even though the credit itself does not expressly require such information. The following question concerns whether the inclusion of notify parties and consignee details in a commercial invoice may create a discrepancy, and whether a special clause relating to the beneficiary … Read More
Restricted UPAS LC: Can the Issuing Bank Refuse If Documents Bypass the Discounting Bank? Introduction UPAS LCs (Usance Payable at Sight) are widely used to combine supplier liquidity with buyer credit terms. However, operational questions often arise when the credit is restricted to a nominated (discounting) bank, but the beneficiary presents documents directly to the issuing bank instead. Does bypassing the restricted bank create a discrepancy? Can the issuing bank refuse the documents on … Read More
Confirmation Added via MT710 – Is a Separate Confirmation Letter Required? Intro In practice, a confirming bank may receive a request to add its confirmation under an MT700, but subsequently advise the credit to the beneficiary through another bank using an MT710. This may raise questions regarding: the treatment of Field 49 in MT710, whether the confirming bank must issue a separate confirmation letter, and how the beneficiary understands the scope … Read More
CAN THE ISSUING BANK REFUSE TO HONOUR THE CONFIRMING BANK IF IT FINDS DISCREPANCIES? Executive Abstract This article examines whether an issuing bank may refuse to reimburse a confirming bank after the confirming bank has declared a presentation compliant. Where the issuing bank determines that the documents contain discrepancies and issues a refusal before reimbursement becomes due, Article 16(a) of UCP 600 permits refusal. The confirming bank’s declaration of compliance does not eliminate the … Read More
CAN A CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN SHOW “FORM M NUMBER” WITHOUT THE ACTUAL NUMBER IF THE APPLICANT AGREES TO ACCEPT THE DISCREPANCY? Understanding required data, Form M, and the limits of applicant–beneficiary agreements In documentary credit practice, credits sometimes require documents to indicate specific reference numbers issued by government authorities or other institutions. One example is Form M, a document used in Nigeria. Questions may arise when the importer does not want the number shown or indicates that discrepancies will be accepted. … Read More
Five Practical Questions on ISBP 821 – A Few Points Worth Clarifying INTRO Every time a new version of ISBP is published, people read it carefully… and then real-life cases start raising new questions. That is how learning in trade finance usually works—not only from rules, but from practice. A reader recently sent me several thoughtful questions on ISBP 821. Since they touch on points many practitioners quietly wonder about, I thought … Read More
TỪ MỘT THÔNG BÁO TỪ CHỐI… ĐẾN MÓN QUÀ ĐẦU NĂM (câu chuyện nhỏ trong nghề LC) Những ngày giáp Tết, dân làm LC thường chỉ mong mọi việc êm ả để còn yên tâm nghỉ lễ. Nhưng cách đây 4 năm, Mr. Old Man nhận được một tin nhắn Messenger khá “căng” từ bạn LN, đang làm tại Trung tâm Tài trợ Thương mại của một ngân hàng ở Việt … Read More
FROM A NOTICE OF REFUSAL… TO A NEW YEAR’S GIFT (a small story from the LC trade) Real-life cases sometimes reveal gaps in existing guidance. Situations like the one described in this story were among the factors that eventually led to the inclusion of paragraph (ix) in the Preliminary considerations of ISBP 821. In the days leading up to Tet, the Vietnamese Lunar New Year, people working in letters of … Read More
Copies, Coverage Dates, and Telex Release B/Ls: Three Practical LC Questions In day-to-day documentary credit work, seemingly small details—dates on insurance documents or wording in transport clauses—can lead to real examination dilemmas. A reader recently sent three practical questions that many trade finance practitioners have probably encountered at least once. Question Dear Mr. Old Man, Greetings of the day. I hope you are doing well. May I ask for your views … Read More
Carbon Taxes – a Strange New Concept That Sends a Retired Old Man to… Google Nearly five years into retirement, I thought I had finally hung up my sword. Turns out, life wasn’t quite ready to let me go. These days, I still find myself poking around my inbox every morning, replying to the usual questions about LC, SBLC, UCP, ISBP… Old habits die hard. This morning, a friend working at the trade finance center … Read More