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    Documentary trade

    Enabling simpler and more secure global trade

    Access a comprehensive suite of documentary solutions for importers, exporters and FIs

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Home > Corporate Investment Banking > Transaction Banking > Trade and Working Capital > Documentary Trade

All the documentary trade solutions you need

Much of global trade relies on document‑based solutions such as letters of credit, guarantees and documentary collections. Whether you are a corporate or financial institution, we offer a comprehensive suite of documentary trade solutions to help you manage risk, ensure secure payment across global supply chains, and unlock cross-border opportunities.

Trade globally with greater security and confidence

When you trade internationally, distance, unfamiliar counterparties, and complex regulations can increase risk. Whether you are trading with new partners, entering unfamiliar markets, or managing higher‑value transactions, our Letters of Credit (LC) solution helps you move goods and payments with greater control and confidence.

As a leading global bank for Letters of Credit, we support your cross‑border trade needs by combining deep documentary expertise with access to the most dynamic markets. Delivered through a global network, consistent documentary vetting standards, and digital initiation via Straight2Bank, our Letters of Credit solutions help you reduce risk, improve efficiency, and gain greater visibility throughout the transaction lifecycle.

How Letters of Credit can help you as a corporate
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If you are an importer (buyer)		Icon showing collaboration
If you are an exporter (seller)
Trade more confidently with new suppliers by offering a bank-backed payment structure.Increase certainty of payment, even when selling to new or overseas buyers.
Protect your cash flow by ensuring payment is only made when agreed documents are presented.Reduce buyer payment risk by relying on a bank’s undertaking rather than the buyer alone.
Set clear shipment and documentation requirements upfront, helping you avoid disputes later.Improve cash-flow predictability, as payment terms are clearly defined from the start.
Reduce operational and counterparty risk by using a structured, internationally recognised trade instrument.Access financing opportunities, where available, by using the LC structure to support your working capital needs.
How Letters of Credit can help you as a financial institution
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As a financial institution, letters of credit help:
Support client trade flows across borders by issuing, advising or confirming Letters of Credit through a trusted global network.
Extend service reach beyond their physical footprint without establishing local branches in every market.
Manage country, counterparty and settlement risk through consistent documentary standards and specialist trade handling.
Strengthen client relationships by offering reliable, bank‑backed trade solutions aligned to international rules and market practices.
Letters of Credit in action
Businessman after successful negotiations signing contract document

Use case 1

Securing trade with new or unfamiliar counterparties

Need: An importer is entering a new cross‑border trading relationship with limited transaction history, creating uncertainty around payment and performance for both buyer and seller.

Opportunity: Letters of Credit allow you to trade with confidence by linking payment to the presentation of compliant documents, rather than relying solely on counterparty trust.

Our solution: A documentary Letter of Credit structured to reflect the underlying trade terms, issued and advised through Standard Chartered’s global network with consistent documentary vetting standards. This provides payment certainty for the exporter, documentary control for the importer, and a secure foundation for establishing a long‑term trading relationship.

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Use case 2

Supporting trade with extended payment terms while managing risk

Need: An exporter wants to offer longer payment terms to remain competitive, but is concerned about increased buyer payment risk and cash-flow impact.

Opportunity: Usance Letters of Credit allow you to extend credit to buyers while relying on a bank’s payment undertaking, supporting sales growth without moving to open account risk.

Our solution: A usance Letter of Credit with bank‑backed payment undertaking, enabling you to ship goods confidently and improve cash‑flow predictability. Where appropriate, the LC structure also supported post‑shipment financing, helping you optimise working capital while meeting buyer expectations.

Blue shipping containers wait in a port

Use case 3

Supporting client trade flows through a trusted global network

Need: A financial institution supports its corporate clients’ import and export activities but faces limitations in network reach, confirmation appetite, or local market presence across certain trade corridors.

Opportunity: By leveraging a strong correspondent and network bank, the financial institution can continue to support client trade flows, manage country and counterparty risk, and enhance service levels — without expanding its own physical footprint.

Our solution: Letters of Credit issued, advised, or confirmed through Standard Chartered’s global network, supported by consistent documentary vetting standards and specialist trade expertise. This enables the financial institution to support clients’ cross‑border trade more effectively and participate confidently in international trade flows across markets.

Build trust and efficiency across your commercial and project obligations

When you enter into commercial contracts or large-scale projects, your counterparties need confidence that you will meet your obligations. Our Bonds and Guarantees solutions enable you to provide this assurance, without tying up your cash. They provide you with a bank-backed undertaking that protects your counterparties against non-performance, non-payment or contractual default, enabling you to participate confidently in tenders, projects and cross-border transactions.

By replacing cash collateral with bank guarantees, you can preserve liquidity while meeting contractual, regulatory and beneficiary requirements across markets. Delivered through a global network, consistent text vetting standards and digital initiation via Straight2Bank, our Bonds and Guarantees solutions help you to issue guarantees efficiently, mitigate risk and maintain visibility throughout the transaction lifecycle.

How Bonds and Guarantees can help you as a corporate
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For you		Icon showing collaboration
For your counterparties
Preserve liquidity and optimise working capital by replacing cash deposits with bank-backed guarantees.Receive payment and performance assurance through a trusted bank undertaking.
Bid for and execute contracts with confidence across bid, performance, advance payment, and retention stages.Protect transactions by transferring counterparty risk to a bank-backed structure,
Simplify cross-border issuance through a single point of contact and access to global booking locations.Accelerate contracting timelines through pre-vetted and standardised guarantee wording.
Reduce operational and execution risk through standardised text vetting and specialist advisory support.Gain greater visibility and certainty with guarantees aligned to agreed project milestones and obligations.
How Bonds and Guarantees can help you as a financial institution
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As a financial institution, bond and guarantees can help you:
Support client guarantee requirements across multiple markets without establishing a local branch presence in each location.
Issue guarantees efficiently through a trusted global network, while meeting local regulatory and beneficiary requirements.
Reduce operational complexity through standardised text vetting, centralised issuance and consistent processes.
Strengthen client relationships by offering reliable, bank‑backed guarantee solutions for large, syndicated and cross‑border projects
Bonds and Guarantees in action
Balancing election risks with soft-landing prospects

Use case 1

Supporting large, time‑critical financial obligations

Need: A large corporate needs to provide a high‑value financial guarantee within tight timelines, while managing reputational pressure and balance‑sheet impact.

Opportunity: Bank‑backed financial guarantees allow you to meet major contractual or regulatory obligations without tying up cash, while sharing risk across multiple counterparties.

Our solution: A structured financial guarantee delivered through Standard Chartered’s global network, combining bank and insurance participation. This enables you to issue the guarantee quickly, meet time‑critical obligations, and manage risk efficiently — without constraining liquidity

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Use case 2

Enabling large, cross-border projects through syndicated guarantees

Need: A multinational corporate is undertaking a large cross‑border infrastructure or energy project that requires high‑value guarantees exceeding the capacity or risk appetite of a single bank.

Opportunity: A syndicated guarantee structure allows risk to be shared across multiple banks, enabling the corporate to secure the required guarantee capacity while supporting long‑tenor and complex project requirements.

Our solution: A syndicated bond and guarantee facility structured and coordinated by Standard Chartered, bringing together multiple participating banks under a single framework. This enables the corporate to meet beneficiary requirements, access sufficient guarantee capacity, and execute the project across jurisdictions with confidence, while efficiently distributing risk among participating institutions.

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Use case 3

Supporting client guarantee issuance beyond a bank’s physical footprint

Need: A financial institution needs to support its corporate clients’ guarantee requirements in overseas project locations where it does not have local branches, making direct issuance complex and operationally challenging.

Opportunity: A centralised issuance model, supported by a trusted global banking network, allows financial institutions to continue supporting client projects while meeting local beneficiary and regulatory requirements.

Our solution: A One Stop Guarantee Programme (OSGP) enabling guarantees to be issued from a single location while leveraging Standard Chartered’s global network and local market expertise. This reduces reliance on fragmented correspondent arrangements and allowed the financial institution to support its clients’ international projects with confidence.

Simplify and gain control of your international trade payments

When you trade internationally, you may not always need the of a Letter of Credit — but you still want structure, discipline, and control over payment and documents. Our Documentary Collections solution helpsyou achieve that balance, where we handle and present trade documents in accordance with your instructions, ensuring that documents are released to the buyer only against payment or acceptance of a payment obligation. This helps you maintain control over goods and documents, while keeping processes simpler and more cost‑efficient.

By combining bank‑managed document flows with clear instructions, you can collect payment more efficiently while maintaining visibility and control across your trade lifecycle.

How Documentary Collections can help you
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For you		Icon showing collaboration
For your counterparties
Maintain control over trade documents by releasing them only against payment or acceptance.Receive trade documents through a recognised banking channel, supporting smoother clearance and settlement.
Reduce complexity and costs compared to more structured trade instruments.Benefit from simpler, more cost‑efficient trade structures compared to Letters of Credit.
Support predictable cash flow by clearly defining payment terms and document release conditions.Access goods against clear payment or acceptance terms, aligned to commercial agreements.
Improve operational efficiency through bank-handled document presentation and collection.Build trust through structured yet flexible trade processes, especially in repeat transactions.
Trade with confidence in established relationships, while retaining safeguards over goods and payments.
Documentary collections in action
Bridge in Hong Kong and Container Cargo freight ship

Use case 1

Structuring trade with established counterparties

Need: A business trades regularly with a trusted buyer but wants more structure and control than open account trading provides.

Opportunity: Documentary Collections offer a cost‑effective way to use banks to control documents and manage payment or acceptance, without the full requirements of a Letter of Credit.

Our solution: A Documentary Collection structured on Documents against Payment (DP) terms, enabling you to retain control over goods until payment was made, while keeping the trade process simple and efficient for both parties.

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Use case 2

Supporting cash-flow planning with predictable payment structures

Need: An exporter (seller) wants clearer visibility over expected payment timelines while trading on Document against Payment (DP) or Document against Acceptance (DA) terms.

Opportunity: Documentary Collections help formalise payment expectations and document flows, supporting more predictable cash‑flow management.

Our solution: A Documentary Collection aligned to your commercial terms, enabling systematic document presentation and payment processing through banking channels. This improves visibility over receivables and supports more effective cash‑flow planning.

Business materials showing graphs and charts on device

Use case 3

Providing a practical alternative to open account trading

Need: An importer (buyer) wants to move away from open account trading as transaction values increase, but does not require the structure or cost of a Letter of Credit.

Opportunity: Documentary Collections provide a structured and widely recognised alternative that introduces banking discipline and document control, without unnecessary complexity.

Our solution: A Documentary Collection aligned to the importer’s trade flow, enabling documents to be released only against payment or acceptance. This provides greater control over settlement, supports smoother clearance of goods, and maintains flexibility and cost efficiency for both parties.

Simplifying your access to trade solutions

We are committed to helping you be more efficient, and making it simpler and safer for you to access trade financing solutions.

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First ICC-Swift API Standards digital bank guarantee

Fully compliant with ICC-Swift API standards for bank guarantees, the transaction marks a significant step towards creating a fully interoperable and integrated digital bank guarantee ecosystem, reducing friction and supporting the digital transformation in global trade.

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Trade Track-it

Making vessel tracking simple

A one-stop digital trade transaction portal that offers you end-to-end visibility of your trade transaction status globally.

Not only can you track your trade transactions, document delivery and vessel status, but Trade Track-It also features vessel tracking functionality enabling you to track the geo-location and movements of your trade-linked ocean shipments, and providing you near real-time visibility and better planning.

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Straight2Bank Autoquote

Making Request for Quote (RFQ) simple

Easily access pricing for your Letters of Credit by submitting digitally a request form and receiving a quote. In addition to improved efficiency, you also benefit from the added transparency of staying informed of the status of your quotations through platform alerts and notifications, as well as the ease of managing and retrieving your quotation history.

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