Is this document real?

One certificate of origin covers far more than a truck

In the DRC a certificate of origin is issued for each truck load, about 32–36 MT. A single certificate covering a whole shipment is not how Congolese export paperwork works, and is a common sign of a made-up certificate.

Weight written in "MT" on a Congolese certificate

DRC customs and certificate offices record weight in kilograms (for example 34 250 kg). "MT" on a Congolese certificate suggests the document was typed up or edited outside the issuing office.

The producer named doesn't match the stated origin

Every cathode brand and concentrate comes from a known plant or mine. A document that names a producer in one country while claiming another country of origin has usually been assembled from someone else's paperwork.

A health certificate is attached to a copper shipment

Copper exports don't need a health or sanitary certificate. Forgers add official-looking certificates like this to make a pack of papers look heavier and more legitimate.

The licence has expired

An exporter without a valid mining or export licence can't legally export, and buyers' banks will reject the paperwork.

The licence can't be checked as written

A mining or export licence carries a number and the name of the authority that issued it, so anyone can look it up in the cadastre. Without them, it can't be verified.

The document is dated in the future

A certificate, receipt or report can only record something that has already happened. A future issue date means the date was typed in by hand or edited.

It records a shipment that hasn't happened yet

Bills of lading, inspection reports and packing lists describe goods that have already been loaded or checked. A loading date in the future can't be genuine.

Certificate dated well before the export it certifies

A certificate of origin confirms goods that are being exported. One dated weeks before the goods moved has often been prepared in advance from a template.

Dates are written month-first, American style

Congolese, Zambian, Tanzanian and most European and Asian documents write the day first (25/12/2026). A month-first date (12/25/2026) on such a document suggests it was produced somewhere other than the office it claims to come from.

Day-first and month-first dates in the same document

An office uses one date format. Mixed formats are a sign the document was edited, or put together from pieces of other documents.

This offer is old

Physical copper sells within weeks. An offer or buyer letter more than 90 days old has usually been forwarded from group to group long after the material (if it existed) was sold.

The validity date has passed

The document says it was only valid until a date that has already gone. Recycled offers often keep circulating long after they expire.

Members have reported concerns about this warehouse

Traders in our network have reported problems with stock offered at this warehouse. This isn't a legal finding, but every offer we have seen there should be treated with extra care.

A bank "safe keeping receipt" for copper

Banks issue safe keeping receipts for cash, gold or securities in their own vaults. They don't hold copper cathode, which sits in bonded warehouses. A bank SKR for copper is a long-standing scam document.

We don't recognise the warehouse

Copper on the African corridor is stored in a small number of known bonded warehouses (Impala, Steinweg, Access World, Connex, AGL, COSCO and a few others). An unfamiliar name isn't proof of fraud, but it needs checking.

Key details are held back "until after the NCNDA"

Genuine sellers name the warehouse, lot numbers and their company on the offer. Holding them back until you sign or send an LOI is how forwarded and invented offers avoid being checked.

The offer doesn't say who produced the copper

Every bundle of cathode carries its producer's brand, and concentrate comes from a named mine. A seller who controls the material can tell you the plant. An offer that never names one is usually being passed along by people who have never seen it.

The LME discount is too good to be true

Real Grade A cathode trades at roughly LME −8% to −12% FCA Africa, out of a bonded warehouse. Chinese smelters, the biggest buyers in the world, don't get better than that. Someone holding copper at LME −20% would sell it to them in a day. Deep discounts are bait to collect buyers' LOIs and fees.

The fixed price is far below the LME

A fixed dollar price that is a fifth below the LME price for Grade A cathode is not a real offer for real metal.

It doesn't say which LME price it means

"LME −10%" means nothing until you know which LME price and which dates: real contracts say something like "LME official cash settlement, average of the month after shipment".

The buyer is asked to pay a fee before inspection

Genuine sellers don't charge buyers "insurance bonds", release fees, export fees or documentation fees before the goods are inspected. This is how most copper scams take money: one buyer in our network lost $15,000 to a fake "insurance bond".

Full payment is asked for before inspection or loading

Paying 100% in advance, or by MT103 before you have inspected the goods, leaves you with no protection if nothing ships. Even genuine sellers on the corridor sell "TT after inspection in a bonded warehouse" or against a letter of credit.

Asks for a transferable letter of credit

A transferable LC lets the "seller" hand your credit on to someone else. It usually means they are a middleman who doesn't control the copper and needs your money to buy it. For a trial shipment there is no good reason for it.

Uses a free email address

A company selling thousands of tonnes, an inspection firm or a government office has its own email domain. Gmail, Yahoo or Hotmail addresses on business or official documents are a common sign of an impostor.

Different companies are named as the seller

The seller, exporter and the account that receives payment should be the same company (or clearly linked). When the names differ, money can end up with someone who never owned the goods.

The seller doesn't match your other documents for this deal

Across one deal, the seller on the offer, the certificate of origin and the invoice should be the same company. A different name means the papers were not issued for the same goods.

No named signatory and no company number

A genuine offer or contract says who signs for the company and gives its registration number, so you can check both in the registry.

Addressed to nobody in particular

"Dear Buyer" or "To whom it may concern" on an offer means it was written to be forwarded to anyone, often by someone who copied it.

A sea-freight Incoterm for an inland town

FOB, CFR and CIF only work at a sea port. "CIF Kolwezi" or "FOB Ndola" is impossible, and shows the writer doesn't trade physical copper.

99.99% copper claimed for concentrate or ore

99.99% is the purity of refined cathode. Concentrate is usually 20–40% Cu and ore a few percent. A document claiming 99.99% for concentrate was written by someone who doesn't know the product.

The copper content doesn't fit the product

Each copper product has a typical grade. A figure far outside it means the document is wrong about the product, or was edited.

The volume is beyond what most producers ship

Only the largest mines and smelters can supply tens of thousands of tonnes of cathode a month. A trader offering that much, especially on a first contract, rarely has it.

The weights in the document don't agree

The tonnage and the kilogram weight in one document should describe the same goods. A large gap means a number was changed.

No certificate or report number

Every certificate from SGS, Alfred H. Knight, Alex Stewart, CCIC or Bureau Veritas carries a unique number that the issuing office can confirm.

No recognised inspection company is named

Buyers accept results from independent inspection companies such as SGS, Alfred H. Knight, Alex Stewart, CCIC, Bureau Veritas, Intertek or Cotecna. A report from an unnamed or local lab carries much less weight.

This bill of lading is a draft

A draft bill of lading is prepared before loading and proves nothing about a shipment. Drafts with real carrier logos are widely reused as fake proof of past deliveries.

Quotes the LBMA for copper

The LBMA sets standards for gold and silver, not copper. Copper brands are registered with the LME. Quoting the LBMA for cathode shows the writer doesn't know the product.

Mentions leased or "monetised" bank instruments

Leased SBLCs, bank guarantees for rent and "monetisation" are well known frauds. Real copper is paid for with a letter of credit from the buyer's own bank, or by transfer after inspection.

This bank letter doesn't commit any money

"Ready, willing and able" letters, comfort letters, proof-of-funds statements and MT799 messages say nothing binding. Only a letter of credit (MT700) or standby letter of credit (MT760) from a known bank commits money to a deal.

Mentions a country or region under sanctions

Trade involving Iran, North Korea, Syria, Cuba or occupied regions of Ukraine is restricted by UK, EU and US sanctions. Banks will block payments, and you may be breaking the law.

Russian metal and the LME

Russian copper produced on or after 13 April 2024 can't be delivered against LME contracts, and UK and US sanctions restrict dealing in it.