谈无纸化支付的问题
谈无纸化支付的问题
杨继永
【摘要】the continuing relevance of documentary credits
【关键词】paperless documen,documentary credits,fraud
【全文】
1.Introduction
As international trade increases, the method of payment becomes the most important aspect in the whole transaction. In short, “there are four methods of payment in international sales: (1) cash in advance or prepayment; (2) payment on account or open account; (3) documentary collection; and (4) documentary credits.” Among them, the documentary credit (Letter of Credit) is the most frequently used method. This achievement depends on the factor that credits satisfy three crucial interests of trade parties that the other methods of payment do not—security, liquidity, and proximity. Although documentary credits have served international trade well, there are still some problems with this type of payment. For example it is more expensive than any other method of payment and, more seriously, it is a time consuming job in modern society. In the following, we will discuss the usage of paperless documents to avoid these problems.
This article will take a closer look at the overall aspects of paperless documents used in documentary credits. In the first part of this article, a discussion will be given on one method of payment, the Escrow Account. Part two will give an overview about the merits of documentary credits. In the final part, the “Fraud Exception” in documentary credits will be analysed.
2.Documentary credits remain important compared with the Escrow Account
Because of the disadvantages mentioned in my introduction, some professors of international trade assert that new method should be used in trade. They then explore some different methods of payment and in particular the Escrow Account is usually recommended by Maggs G. and Buckley . By this method trade parties open an Escrow Account in a bank, then the importer puts the money required in the contract into the account. After that, the exporter ships goods to the importer and gets the suitable documents such as Bill of Lading, Inspection Certificate. The importer checks those documents transferred from the exporter. If the importer is satisfied with them he orders the bank to pay the price of goods. It seems better than documentary credits but, actually, if research is made more deeply serious faults may be found.
