Intro  Credits often require that documents “indicate the L/C reference,” but do not always specify which reference is meant. Is it the issuing bank’s LC number? Or could a negotiating bank expect its own reference to appear on the documents? Mr. Old Man looks at this question through the lens of UCP 600 and ISBP 821. Question Dear Mr. Old …

Introduction The United Nations’ formal adoption of a new convention on negotiable cargo documents — the United Nations Convention on Negotiable Cargo Documents (New York, 2025), also known as the Accra Convention on Negotiable Cargo Documents — marks a notable development in international trade law. For the first time, the negotiability of transport documents — long primarily associated with ocean …

Intro One of the most common — and persistent — areas of confusion in document examination arises when a credit requires an ocean bill of lading, but the routing information in the L/C or the transport document refers to an inland final destination. Does this automatically turn the document into a multimodal transport document to be examined under UCP 600 …

Can Documents Still Be Presented — and Should the LC Be Amended? Intro  In international trade, accidents at sea are not uncommon. Fires, groundings, and collisions may lead to cargo damage and the declaration of General Average by the carrier or salvor. When such events occur before documents are presented under a letter of credit, issuing banks are often confronted …

When ISBP Default Rules Meet an Express LC Requirement One of the most common misunderstandings in document checking arises from relying on ISBP default provisions while overlooking what the credit itself expressly requires. A typical example is the commercial invoice: ISBP tells us when an invoice need not be signed — but what happens when the LC explicitly calls for …

INTRODUCTION Questions about whether a confirming bank is also a nominated bank may sound academic at first glance, but in practice they can become critically important — especially when a credit involves more than one confirming bank, a specific place of expiry, and documents moving across several borders. This Q&A examines a real-life scenario involving two confirming banks and explores …

Clarifying Quantity Requirements When an LC Covers Multiple Lots In practice, letters of credit covering multiple lots of goods often give rise to misunderstandings about whether each lot may be shipped separately — and how the limit on the number of shipments should be interpreted.  On this occasion, let’s take a look at an interesting scenario raised by our colleague …

INTRODUCTION With Technical Advisor Opinion TA.958 now on the table—specifically the question of whether a bill of lading showing both “freight prepaid” and “freight payable at D” should be considered conflicting under a credit that explicitly requires the document to be marked “freight prepaid”—the trade finance community is once again paying close attention. As we all know, the ICC Banking …

Intro In practice, banks and beneficiaries often face uncertainty when a credit requires a CIF or CIP term but does not state how freight or insurance should be shown. Must the invoice break them down? What if the actual freight or insurance charges are unknown at the time of issuing documents? Mr. Old Man shares some guidance based on ISBP …

Introduction In export financing, the terms with recourse and without recourse often cause confusion, especially when applied to negotiation under LCs or discounting of drafts under collections. Although both methods provide early funding to exporters, the underlying risk allocation—and therefore the pricing and discounting ratios—are very different.  Below is Mr. Old Man’s explanation to a reader who asked why banks …