EN
The most common way sourcing buyers lose money is not a bad factory. It is a real order, from a real supplier, paid to the wrong bank account — usually because a fraudster intercepted an email thread and inserted new banking details at exactly the right moment. Verifying the supplier does nothing to protect against this, because the supplier’s identity was never in question. This guide covers what to check about the payment channel itself, separate from anything you’ve already verified about who you’re buying from.
RedVance manufactures red light therapy panels in Shenzhen and receives international payments as a routine part of business, so this is written with an understanding of how these transactions actually get intercepted. The method here applies to any supplier, including us — verify our banking details the same way.
The mechanism: business email compromise
The dominant fraud pattern in international sourcing does not involve a fake supplier at all. It involves a fraudster gaining access to a real email account — either the buyer’s or the supplier’s — and quietly monitoring an active negotiation. At the moment a payment is expected, a message arrives with new banking details, an explanation (a bank audit, a new subsidiary account, a compliance requirement), and often a tone and format identical to every prior message in the thread.
The one rule that stops most of this
Any change to previously confirmed banking details is treated as a reason to stop and verify independently — every time, regardless of how plausible the explanation sounds.
- Verify through a channel you already had, not one provided in the same message as the new details. Call a phone number from an earlier, trusted communication — not one in the email announcing the change.
- A phone call, not a reply email. If the account is compromised, replying to the same thread reaches the fraudster, not the supplier.
- Confirm with a named individual you have dealt with before, not a generic company inbox.
- Treat urgency as a warning sign, not a reason to skip the check. Fraudulent requests are frequently timed with pressure — a shipping deadline, a limited-time discount for fast payment.
Matching the account to the entity
Before the first payment on any order, confirm the receiving bank account name matches the verified legal entity — not a similar-sounding name, not a personal account, not an unrelated company.
| Check | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Account name matches the registered company | A personal name or unrelated entity receiving a business payment is a fundamental mismatch, per our business registration guide |
| Account matches the entity on the contract | Payment to an entity different from the one you contracted with weakens your legal position if something goes wrong |
| Bank and branch details are consistent | Inconsistency between what was previously confirmed and what is now provided is the clearest fraud signal |
What different payment methods actually protect
- Wire transfer (T/T). Fast and standard, but offers essentially no built-in protection once sent — funds move directly and recovery after a fraudulent transfer is difficult and time-sensitive.
- Letter of credit. A bank verifies shipping documents against agreed conditions before releasing funds, creating a documented checkpoint. More overhead and cost, generally reserved for larger orders, but shifts some verification onto banking institutions.
- Trade platform escrow. Can offer real protection, but only for transactions actually conducted through the platform. Understand precisely what is covered, what is excluded, and what conditions trigger a valid claim — and be wary of any pressure to move payment off-platform for a discount, which surrenders the protection.
Before the first payment on a new order
- Confirm the receiving entity matches your verified business registration check.
- Confirm banking details through an independent channel the first time, and re-confirm any time they change.
- Structure payment in stages with a verification checkpoint before the balance is released.
- Save a record of confirmed banking details from an early, trusted point in the relationship, to compare against anything that arrives later.
- Brief anyone else with payment authority on your team about the mid-transaction change rule — fraud often succeeds by reaching a colleague who wasn’t part of the original verification.
This is one of four order-execution checks worth running before a shipment goes out — the full set is in our order execution hub.
What a manufacturer can do about it: keep banking details stable and communicate any genuine change proactively through multiple channels rather than a single email, confirm receipt of payment promptly so discrepancies surface immediately, and support staged payment structures with an inspection checkpoint rather than insisting on full payment upfront. A supplier with nothing to hide has no reason to resist a buyer verifying account details independently.
Frequently asked questions
How do I verify a payment to a supplier is going to the right place?
Confirm the receiving bank account name matches the verified legal entity from your business registration check, not just a similar-sounding name. Verify any bank details through a channel independent of email — a phone call to a number you already had, not one provided in the same message as the new details. Treat any change to previously confirmed account information as a reason to stop and verify before sending anything.
What is the most common way buyers lose money to payment fraud in sourcing?
Business email compromise: a fraudster gains access to either the buyer’s or the supplier’s email account, monitors an ongoing negotiation, and inserts a message at the right moment with new banking details. The message often looks identical to normal correspondence because it may come from a genuinely compromised account, not a spoofed one.
Why is a mid-transaction change of bank details a red flag?
Legitimate suppliers rarely change their banking details in the middle of an active deal, and when they do, it is unusual enough to warrant independent confirmation regardless of how official the explanation sounds. Fraudulent account changes are specifically timed to arrive when a payment is expected, using plausible reasons such as an audit, a new account, or a subsidiary restructuring.
What protection does a letter of credit offer that a wire transfer does not?
A letter of credit involves a bank verifying that shipping documents meet agreed conditions before releasing payment, which creates a documented checkpoint that a direct wire transfer does not have. It does not eliminate all risk, and it is typically only practical for larger orders given the cost and complexity, but it shifts some verification burden onto banking institutions rather than resting entirely on the buyer’s own checks.
Does using a trade platform’s escrow or payment protection eliminate payment risk?
It reduces certain risks but does not eliminate them, and the protection only applies to transactions actually conducted through the platform. Buyers are sometimes persuaded to move a relationship off-platform for a discount, which surrenders the protection entirely. Understand exactly what a platform’s payment protection covers, what it excludes, and the conditions under which a claim would actually be honoured.
Should I pay 100% upfront for a first order?
A staged payment structure, such as a deposit before production and a balance before shipment tied to an inspection result, reduces exposure compared to paying the full amount upfront with no verification checkpoint in between. The specific split is a negotiation, but the presence of a checkpoint — usually an inspection — before the balance is paid is the structural protection that matters most.
Verify our banking details independently
Before your first payment to us, confirm our account details through a channel you initiate — not just the one we provide. We’ll support that verification directly, and we’ll never change payment details without confirming it with you through more than one channel.
Ask about payment verification →