Category 7: Documentary credits, guarantees and standby letters of credit
MT761 Issue of a Demand Guarantee / Standby Letter of Credit
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The MT761 carries the part of a demand guarantee or standby letter of credit that does not fit in the MT760. The issuer sends it with the MT760, under the same undertaking number, with the remaining terms and conditions of the undertaking and, for a counter-guarantee, of the requested local undertaking. It was introduced with the guarantee redesign of November 2021.
- Message type
- MT761
- Category
- 7
- Status
- In the current standard
- ISO 20022
- No direct equivalent
What MT761 is used for
Before November 2021 the guarantee message had no continuation message. The redesigned MT760 has structured sequences for the undertaking and for an optional local undertaking, and the MT761 continues its two long narrative fields: 77U for the terms of the undertaking and 77L for the terms the issuer asks the local bank to use in its own guarantee.
Field 27 numbers the series, with the MT760 as message 1. Field 20 and field 52a must be the same as in the MT760. Amendments have their own continuation, the MT775.
- Sent by
- The issuer of the guarantee or standby (or of the counter-guarantee)
- Sent to
- The bank that received the MT760
MT761 format: sequences and fields
Message text (block 4)Mandatory
No sequences. Network rule: at least one of 77U and 77L must be present.
| Tag | Name | Status | Format | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 | Sequence of Total | M | 1!n/1!n | This message’s number in the series and the total, counting the MT760 as number 1. |
| 20 | Undertaking Number | M | 16x | The issuer’s number for the undertaking, the same as field 20 of the MT760. |
| 52a | IssuerOptions A or D | M | A: [/1!a][/34x] 4!a2!a2!c[3!c] D: [/1!a][/34x] 4*35x | The party issuing the undertaking or counter-undertaking, the same as in the MT760. |
| 77U | Undertaking Terms and Conditions | C | 150*65z | Further terms and conditions of the guarantee or standby. |
| 77L | Requested Local Undertaking Terms and Conditions | C | 150*65z | Further terms the issuer asks the local bank to use in its own guarantee. Only when the MT760 is a counter-undertaking. |
Format notation: n digits, a upper-case letters, c upper-case letters and digits, x any character of the Swift character set, d a decimal number with a comma, ! fixed length, [ ] optional, 4*35x up to 4 lines of 35 characters. M mandatory, O optional, C conditional (a rule decides).
ISO 20022
No ISO 20022 equivalent in general use on Swift. ISO 20022 defines trade services messages for undertakings, starting with tsrv.001 Undertaking Issuance, but guarantee traffic on Swift is still MT and was not part of the November 2025 payments migration.
All MT messages · Category 7 messages · ISO 20022 messages · Codes · Troubleshooting