Instrument guide
Proof of Funds, RWA & Comfort Letters
Documentary evidence of financial capacity and transaction readiness, used when counterparties require assurance before proceeding with a commercial deal.
What is proof of funds?
A proof of funds (POF) message is a documentary communication, typically transmitted via SWIFT or bank letter, confirming that a party has access to sufficient financial resources to complete a specified transaction. It is commonly requested in commodity trades, real estate acquisitions, project finance and large commercial transactions where the counterparty needs evidence of financial capacity before committing.
What is a Ready, Willing and Able (RWA) message?
An RWA message confirms that a party is ready, willing and able to enter into and complete a specified transaction on the stated terms. It is often requested alongside or instead of a POF, particularly in trade finance and commodity transactions where the counterparty wants assurance of both financial capacity and commercial intent.
What is a comfort letter?
A comfort letter (or letter of comfort) is a written communication from a bank or financial institution expressing support for a client's financial position or transaction, without constituting a legally binding guarantee. Comfort letters sit between an informal reference and a formal bank guarantee, and are used when a counterparty seeks a degree of institutional reassurance without requiring a full guarantee structure.
What is a pre-advice message?
A pre-advice is a preliminary SWIFT message sent by an issuing bank to advise the receiving bank that a formal instrument (LC, SBLC or guarantee) will follow. It allows the beneficiary to prepare for receipt of the full instrument without yet having the operative document in place.
Typical use cases
- Commodity and bulk trade transactions requiring evidence of buyer capacity
- Real estate and asset acquisition due diligence
- Project finance preliminary assessments
- Intermediary trade transactions requiring counterparty verification
- Pre-transaction commercial discussions where formal instruments are not yet required
How Commercial Trade Group supports these requests
We review the commercial purpose, counterparty requirements and documentary pathway for each POF, RWA or comfort letter request. All requests are subject to strict due diligence, purpose verification and compliance screening. We do not support speculative, misleading or unsupported documentation requests.