{
  "id": "term-akkreditiv",
  "type": "term",
  "languages": {
    "en": {
      "id": "term-akkreditiv",
      "lang": "en",
      "type": "term",
      "title": "Letter of Credit (Akkreditiv)",
      "shortDefinition": "A letter of credit is a bank's conditional payment undertaking in favor of a seller, honored against presentation of contractually specified documents.",
      "synonyms": [
        "Akkreditiv",
        "Documentary Credit"
      ],
      "linesOfBusiness": [
        "Credit"
      ],
      "jurisdictions": [],
      "tags": [
        "Foreign Trade",
        "Settlement"
      ],
      "relations": {
        "relatedTerms": [
          "term-ausfuhrkreditversicherung"
        ],
        "partOf": [],
        "appliesTo": [],
        "regulatedBy": [],
        "relevantFor": [],
        "insurableVia": [],
        "mitigatedBy": [],
        "comprises": [],
        "alternativeTo": [],
        "complementedBy": []
      },
      "attribute": null,
      "profile": null,
      "coverageProfile": null,
      "clause": null,
      "legalBasis": [],
      "standards": [],
      "reviewStatus": "expert-reviewed",
      "reviewedBy": "Guido Hesse, Hesse Group Holding AG",
      "lastReviewed": "2026-09-04",
      "version": "0.1.0",
      "updated": "2026-08-31",
      "generated": {
        "by": "process:reconstructed",
        "at": "2026-08-31T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      "verified": [
        {
          "by": "human:ghesse",
          "at": "2026-09-04T00:00:00.000Z",
          "method": null
        }
      ],
      "staleAfter": null,
      "url": "https://hgh.ch/lexikon/en/knowledge/term/letter-of-credit/",
      "alternateUrl": "https://hgh.ch/lexikon/de/wissen/begriff/akkreditiv/",
      "body": "## Concept\n\nA letter of credit (documentary credit) is a conditional and abstract payment undertaking issued by a bank on behalf of a buyer in favor of a seller, which the bank is obliged to honor against presentation of the documents specified in the credit — such as freight documents, certificates of origin, or insurance policies.\n\n## Relevance in Foreign Trade\n\nThe letter of credit is a central payment and security instrument in international trade, as it significantly reduces the seller's risk of non-payment and the buyer's risk of receiving non-conforming goods, by involving a neutral bank as paying agent.\n\n## Interaction with Credit Insurance\n\nLetters of credit are often used alongside export credit insurance: while the letter of credit secures payment upon compliant presentation of documents, credit insurance covers further risks, such as the issuing bank's failure to honor the credit as a result of political events."
    },
    "de": {
      "id": "term-akkreditiv",
      "lang": "de",
      "type": "term",
      "title": "Akkreditiv",
      "shortDefinition": "Ein Akkreditiv ist ein bedingtes Zahlungsversprechen einer Bank zugunsten eines Verkäufers, das gegen Vorlage vertraglich festgelegter Dokumente eingelöst wird.",
      "synonyms": [
        "Letter of Credit",
        "Documentary Credit"
      ],
      "linesOfBusiness": [
        "Kredit"
      ],
      "jurisdictions": [],
      "tags": [
        "Aussenhandel",
        "Zahlungsverkehr"
      ],
      "relations": {
        "relatedTerms": [
          "term-ausfuhrkreditversicherung"
        ],
        "partOf": [],
        "appliesTo": [],
        "regulatedBy": [],
        "relevantFor": [],
        "insurableVia": [],
        "mitigatedBy": [],
        "comprises": [],
        "alternativeTo": [],
        "complementedBy": []
      },
      "attribute": null,
      "profile": null,
      "coverageProfile": null,
      "clause": null,
      "legalBasis": [],
      "standards": [],
      "reviewStatus": "expert-reviewed",
      "reviewedBy": "Guido Hesse, Hesse Group Holding AG",
      "lastReviewed": "2026-09-04",
      "version": "0.1.0",
      "updated": "2026-08-31",
      "generated": {
        "by": "process:reconstructed",
        "at": "2026-08-31T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      "verified": [
        {
          "by": "human:ghesse",
          "at": "2026-09-04T00:00:00.000Z",
          "method": null
        }
      ],
      "staleAfter": null,
      "url": "https://hgh.ch/lexikon/de/wissen/begriff/akkreditiv/",
      "alternateUrl": "https://hgh.ch/lexikon/en/knowledge/term/letter-of-credit/",
      "body": "## Begriff\n\nEin Akkreditiv (Documentary Letter of Credit) ist ein von einer Bank im Auftrag eines Käufers abgegebenes, bedingtes und abstraktes Zahlungsversprechen zugunsten eines Verkäufers, das die Bank gegen Vorlage der im Akkreditiv festgelegten Dokumente – etwa Frachtpapiere, Ursprungszeugnisse oder Versicherungspolicen – einzulösen verpflichtet ist.\n\n## Bedeutung im Aussenhandel\n\nDas Akkreditiv ist ein zentrales Zahlungs- und Sicherungsinstrument im internationalen Handel, da es das Risiko des Verkäufers, keine Zahlung zu erhalten, und das Risiko des Käufers, vertragswidrige Ware zu erhalten, durch die Einbindung einer neutralen Bank als Zahlstelle deutlich reduziert.\n\n## Zusammenspiel mit der Kreditversicherung\n\nAkkreditive werden häufig ergänzend zur Ausfuhrkreditversicherung eingesetzt: Während das Akkreditiv die Zahlung bei vertragskonformer Dokumentenvorlage sichert, deckt die Kreditversicherung darüber hinausgehende Risiken ab, etwa die Nichteinlösung des Akkreditivs durch die eröffnende Bank infolge von politischen Ereignissen."
    }
  }
}