Letter of credit management software that checks your documents before the bank does
Paid on the first presentation, and no guarantee left open or lapsed by surprise.
See one case, screen by screen ↓Software that runs a company's letters of credit and bank guarantees from advice to release: reading each credit, checking document sets before presentation, handling amendments and refusals, and tracking every guarantee's expiry, fees and release. Letter of Credit Management adds seven agents that read the credits, check every document set twice before the bank does, draft the fix and run every guarantee clock, while a person approves each step.
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You are paid under a letter of credit only when the documents comply with the credit, UCP 600 and ISBP 821. Today a trade finance officer checks the invoice, bill of lading, insurance certificate, packing list, certificate of origin and draft by eye against a credit that was re-keyed into a spreadsheet. When something is wrong, the bank finds it first: a discrepancy fee, a week waiting for the applicant's waiver and, under a confirmed credit, a set the confirmation no longer covers.
Beside the credits sits the guarantee book — bid bonds, performance, advance-payment, warranty, customs and lease guarantees and standbys, hundreds of them at a dozen banks. Each has an expiry, a commission, a release condition and sometimes an extend-or-pay demand with two days to answer. Guarantees stay open long after delivery is accepted, evergreen standbys renew because nobody sent the non-extension notice, and bank charges are paid without anyone holding them to the agreed tariff.
Estimated split in working days for one export credit and its share of the guarantee book, by hand and with the solution.
Seven agents read the credits, check every document set twice before the bank does, draft the fix and run every guarantee clock; a person approves.
Credit 7712-FH: USD 1,184,640.00 for 48 CNC spindle assemblies, issued by Gulf Meridian Bank for Tarsis Precision Manufacturing in Jebel Ali, confirmed by Harrowgate Commercial Bank in Frankfurt. Latest shipment 31 Oct, expiry 30 Nov. The export team uploaded the six documents on Monday night. Here is what happens next, screen by screen, in the working solution.
The treasury book is 260 live credits and guarantees, $494.9M at 11 banks. Today shows 4 document sets checked since Monday, 14 instruments expiring in 30 days, 12 guarantees open after their obligation ended and 6 items that need her. The first finding is from the document checker on 7712-FH, with each point numbered to its source and two buttons: Open the check, See the fix.
Document checker: “Two discrepancies a bank would refuse … The cross-checker agrees on all 50 checks. The fix drafter recommends an amendment before presenting.”
The check is one table: 16 terms, each with its MT700 field, against the invoice, bill of lading, insurance certificate, packing list, certificate of origin and draft at sight. 50 checks, 47 ticks, 2 discrepancies, 1 note — both agents agree. Sara opens the red cell on the invoice: field 45A says “CNC spindle assemblies”, the invoice says “48 CNC spindle parts”, and UCP 600 Article 18(c) is quoted beside them.
“Not clean: a bank would refuse this set for 2 discrepancies.”
The bill of lading's on-board notation dates shipment 02 Nov; field 44C allows 31 Oct, and UCP 600 Article 20(a)(ii) makes the on-board date the date of shipment. Sara asks the agents in the thread beside the table. Under it, every step of the check is listed with its timing: the terms reader read 16 terms in 1.2 s, the document checker read six documents and ran 50 checks, and the cross-checker re-examined from the raw documents in 4.4 s.
Fix drafter: “Yes, but Harrowgate would refuse for the late shipment and charge USD 95. The confirmation would not cover a discrepant set … The amendment costs about USD 270 and keeps the confirmation.”
A — amend the credit and correct the invoice: about USD 270, paid Tue 10 Nov, confirmation kept. B — present as is and ask Tarsis to waive: USD 95 plus interest, paid around 17 Nov, confirmation lost for this set. C — send the documents on collection: USD 180, paid after Tarsis pays, confirmation lost. The fix drafter recommends A and says why, citing Harrowgate's tariff and the 21-day window that still runs to 23 Nov.
What the agents may not do: send anything to a buyer or a bank, accept or reject an amendment, present documents.
The request is written for Priya Natarajan to send to Tarsis: amend field 44C, latest date of shipment, to 05 Nov 2026, all other terms unchanged. The invoice line is corrected to “48 CNC spindle assemblies, model KV-S40 as per proforma invoice PI-26-0917” and re-issued as CI-26-4471-A. The covering letter to Harrowgate is ready for after the amendment arrives. Every draft is editable.
“Nothing is sent until you approve, and the amendment request goes to Priya to send to the buyer.”
Sara picks AMEND-BEFORE-PRESENT — “Ask the buyer to amend before presenting” — and can add a note for the record. The amendment request goes to Priya to send to Tarsis today; the corrected invoice is re-issued. Nothing goes to a bank yet. She could also edit the drafts or reject the plan, and a rejection needs a note.
“Signed as Sara Ahmed, Trade finance officer · Tue 3 Nov 2026, 09:10 · logged and chained.”
Harrowgate advises amendment 01 (MT707): latest shipment 05 Nov 2026, all else unchanged. Silence is not acceptance, so Sara accepts it on purpose. The terms reader updates the term, the document checker re-checks the bill of lading and the corrected invoice, the cross-checker agrees, and the set is presented: 50 of 50 clean, confirmation kept. Harrowgate decides by Wed 11 Nov.
“As confirming bank it pays at sight on a complying set. The expiry watcher runs the clock and tells you the moment the bank decides.”
On Rosvik Steel's set under 7698-RS, the document checker reads 18,240 kg on the bill of lading and calls a conflict with the packing list's 18,420 kg, at 81% confidence. The cross-checker reads the gross weight in the cargo box — 18,420 kg — and says the other figure is the container's verified gross mass, a different field. Both views sit side by side, with UCP 600 Article 14(d). Sara chooses.
“One cell needs a person: the two agents read it differently.”
Kaskara Trade Bank received Tamsin Agro's documents on Thu 22 Oct and sent its refusal on Fri 30 Oct, the sixth banking day. Point by point: “commercial invoice not signed” is not valid, since the credit does not ask for a signed invoice; the bill of lading signed by an agent without naming the carrier is a valid point; the notice itself is too late. A cited reply is drafted, due Fri 6 Nov.
“Sent on the sixth banking day, the bank is precluded from refusing.”
Calder Bay Port Authority demands payment of EUR 2,400,000.00 under performance guarantee PG-4418, or an extension to 15 May 2027. Nordhavn Bank has suspended payment and needs an instruction by Thursday 17:00. Commissioning was moved to 26 Feb 2027 by both parties, so the watcher recommends extending — about EUR 7,700 more commission. A treasury analyst or trade finance officer prepares and signs; Helena Brandt co-signs every extension or payment of a guarantee.
“The demand is about time, not a failure.”
The same credits and guarantees, seen by five of the people who carry them — what their week looked like, and what it looks like now.
Seven agents read the credits, check every document set twice before the bank does, draft the fix and run every guarantee clock; a person approves.
Reads every credit, amendment and guarantee wording — MT700, MT707, MT760, MT798 or PDF — into terms, each cited to its field or clause.
Reads a new credit against the sales order, the production and shipping plan and the house rules, and flags clauses the business cannot meet while the buyer can still amend.
Examines every document against the credit, UCP 600 and ISBP 821 — and URDG 758 and ISP98 where they apply — before it goes to the bank, and builds the table of terms against documents.
Re-examines every set on its own from the raw documents and must agree cell by cell. When it disagrees, a person sees both views.
Plans the fix — amend, correct, or present and seek a waiver — costs each option in money, days and confirmation, and drafts amendment requests, corrected documents, refusal replies, release requests and bank instructions.
Runs every expiry, presentation, non-extension notice, release and demand clock, and drafts the action before the date — including release requests once the evidence shows an obligation has ended.
Matches every bank charge and commission to the tariff each bank signed, and drafts the claim for what is above it.
Approves every fix and presentation; the assistant treasurer co-signs above USD 1M and every guarantee extension or payment. The agents propose; a named person decides.
Every working screen has a line to ask the agents. The agent who owns the work answers, cites its sources and offers the next step.
Why is 7712-FH discrepant?
Credit 7712-FH has 2 discrepancies: the bill of lading shows shipment on 02 Nov, after the latest date of 31 Oct, and the invoice says “parts” where the credit says “assemblies”. The fix is drafted: an amendment to 05 Nov and a corrected invoice line.
Can we present without the amendment?
Yes, but Harrowgate would refuse for the late shipment and charge USD 95. The confirmation would not cover a discrepant set, so payment would wait on Tarsis's waiver, typically 7–10 days. The amendment costs about USD 270 and keeps the confirmation.
Which guarantees can we release, and what do we save?
Five have the evidence today, $9.9M in all: APG-2207 (delivery accepted 14 Sep), PG-4290, BB-3288, WG-2876 and BB-3291. Releasing them stops about $59,160 a year in commission. The other seven wait for the beneficiary's letter.
Where can we place the next bid bond?
Nordhavn Bank AG is at 91% of its line, with no room for a new bid bond. Place the next bid bond with Arkwright Bank (36%) or Calder & Wyck (64%), or release PG-4302, open after its obligation ended.
13 screens from the working solution, on its sample data. Pick one to see it large.
The limits and house rules every credit and guarantee is checked against are settings — versioned, simulated on the last 90 days before they are saved, and signed.
| Setting | Default | Choose from |
|---|---|---|
| Second approver above | USD 1,000,000 | Equivalent in any currency; every guarantee extension or payment always needs two signatures |
| Agents ask a person below | 85% confidence | Applies to every term and every check |
| Expiry warnings | 60 · 30 · 10 days | Before every expiry and notice date |
| Release reminder | 5 days | After the evidence that an obligation ended |
| SLA for a set waiting for a person | 4 business hours | Then the assistant treasurer is told |
| Present no later than | 5 days before the 21-day limit | Leaves time for a courier |
| Flag a latest shipment date less than | 10 days after the planned ship date | 7 · 10 · 14 days |
| Guarantee wording | Fixed expiry, at most 36 months, URDG 758 | House rule R6, one of seven versioned house rules |
Every figure is labelled: a target the solution is built to, an estimate, a typical published result, or a proven one.
“demo” = seen in the working solution, on its sample data · “target” = the design goal, measured in the live solution · “estimated” = our estimate · “typical” = published figures (ICC Banking Commission TAB-3, 2022, via Trade Finance Global — 65–80% of first presentations refused for discrepancies). UCP 600, ISBP 821, URDG 758 and ISP98 are ICC rules, named as context. People, companies, banks and instruments named on this page are fictional — characters and sample data in the working solution.
Software that runs a company's letters of credit and bank guarantees from advice to release: reading each credit, checking document sets before presentation, handling amendments and refusals, and tracking every guarantee's expiry, fees and release. Letter of Credit Management adds seven agents that read the credits, check every document set twice before the bank does, draft the fix and run every guarantee clock, while a person approves each step.
The document checker examines each document against the credit, UCP 600 and ISBP 821, and the cross-checker re-examines the same set on its own from the raw documents. The result is one table — the credit's terms down the side, the documents across the top — and every discrepancy shows the credit's words, the document's words and the article it turns on. When the agents disagree, a person decides.
The fix drafter costs the options — amend the credit, correct the document, present and seek a waiver, or send on collection — in money, days and what happens to the confirmation, and recommends one. It drafts the amendment request, the corrected document and the covering letter. The trade finance officer approves, edits or rejects with a reason code, and an incoming amendment is accepted on purpose and re-checked before the set is presented.
Yes. Each refused point is tested against the credit and the rules and marked valid or not, and the notice is tested on timing: in the working solution, a refusal sent on the sixth banking day after the documents were received is flagged as too late. A cited reply is drafted for the trade finance officer to approve.
The expiry watcher runs every expiry, non-extension notice, renewal, release and demand date and drafts the action ahead of it. Guarantees still open after their obligation ended are listed with the evidence that ends them, such as an acceptance certificate, and the commission they cost; release requests are drafted for the treasury analyst. An extend-or-pay demand becomes a set of options with a deadline, signed by two people.
Yes. The fee auditor matches every bank charge and commission to the tariff each bank signed and drafts a claim for what is above it — in the working solution, 7 charges, USD 4,886.81, in one quarter. A charge with no tariff line is asked about, not assumed wrong.
Yes. The agents read, check and draft; they never send a message, present documents, accept an amendment, or extend, pay or cancel a guarantee. A person approves every step with a reason code, the preparer is never the approver, and the assistant treasurer co-signs above USD 1,000,000 and every guarantee extension or payment.
The Agentic Solution Engine builds and deploys it from your requirements and documents — your house rules, approval limits, bank tariffs and the spreadsheet of instruments you keep today — and it goes live once every quality gate has passed. Setup connects your banks, imports the existing book, sets house rules and approvers, then goes live. We will walk you through it on your own credits first.
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1-min demoWe'll run Letter of Credit Management on a sample of your own credits, document sets and guarantee book.