Category 7: Documentary credits, guarantees and standby letters of credit
MT768 Acknowledgement of a Guarantee / Standby Message
Written and maintained by ZagTrader. Last reviewed . How this page is sourced and checked
The MT768 acknowledges receipt of a message about a guarantee or standby letter of credit and, where applicable, confirms that the receiving bank acted on it. A bank that received a guarantee, or was asked to issue one, sends it back to the bank that sent the message, and it can claim that bank’s charges at the same time.
What MT768 is used for
Typical uses are acknowledging an MT760 issuance or an MT767 amendment after advising it to the beneficiary, or confirming that a local guarantee has been issued against a counter-guarantee. Field 21 quotes the reference of the acknowledged message, or NONREF when there is none, and field 30 the date that message was sent.
Charges are claimed in field 32a, with details in 71D; field 25 or 57a says where they should be settled. Since November 2021 the beneficiary’s acceptance or rejection of a guarantee amendment has its own message, the MT787. For documentary credits the equivalent acknowledgement is the MT730.
- Sent by
- The bank that received the guarantee message (advising or local issuing bank)
- Sent to
- The bank that sent it (issuing or instructing bank)
MT768 format: sequences and fields
Message text (block 4)Mandatory
No sequences. Network rules: 25 or 57a, not both; if 32D is used, 57a must not be present; if 71D is present, 32a must be present.
| Tag | Name | Status | Format | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | Transaction Reference Number | M | 16x | The sender’s reference for this acknowledgement. |
| 21 | Related Reference | M | 16x | The reference of the message being acknowledged, or NONREF if there is none. |
| 25 | Account Identification | C | 35x | The account used to settle the charges. Not allowed with 57a. |
| 30 | Date of Message Being Acknowledged | M | 6!n | The date the acknowledged message was sent (YYMMDD). |
| 32a | Amount of ChargesOptions B or D | C | B: 3!a15d D: 6!n3!a15d | The charges claimed. Option D when the receiver’s account has already been debited (with the value date), option B otherwise. Required when 71D is present. |
| 57a | Account With BankOptions A, B or D | C | A: [/1!a][/34x] 4!a2!a2!c[3!c] B: [/1!a][/34x] [35x] D: [/1!a][/34x] 4*35x | The bank where the sender wants the charges paid. Not allowed with 25 or with 32D. |
| 71D | Details of Charges | O | 6*35z | The breakdown of the charges claimed in 32a. |
| 72Z | Sender to Receiver Information | O | 6*35z | Further information for the receiver. |
| 23X | File Identification | O | /4!c/65x | How a related file is delivered (a channel code such as FACT for FileAct or EMAL for email) and its name or reference. |
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).
MT768 in ISO 20022
Swift’s MT and MX equivalence table (May 2024) gives tsrv.019 Undertaking Status Report as the ISO 20022 equivalent. Guarantee messages were not part of the November 2025 payments migration, and bank-to-bank guarantee traffic on Swift is still exchanged as MT.
All MT messages · Category 7 messages · ISO 20022 messages · Codes · Troubleshooting