The mandate holder checklist: seven questions before you send anything

Use this list every time someone says "I represent the buyer" or "I am the seller's mandate". It takes a few minutes and saves weeks.

The seven questions

1. Who is your principal? Company name, country and registration number. Not "a large trading company in China".
2. Can you show your mandate? A signed letter on the principal's letterhead, naming you, the product and the validity. Check that the signer is a director or an officer of the principal.
3. Is it exclusive or open? Many principals give several people the same open mandate. That's normal, but you need to know.
4. Who else is in the chain? Every person between you and the principal, by name, and what each one earns.
5. Can we meet the principal on video? Not at the end, but before documents are exchanged.
6. What exactly is the procedure? Who signs what, in which order, where the goods are, how payment works. Vague procedures hide missing pieces.
7. What have you closed before? Not documents of other people's deals, but something you were part of and can explain.

How to read the answers

• All seven answered clearly within a few days: proceed, and sign an NCNDA and IMFPA that names every party. See NCNDA and IMFPA.
• Some answers "after NCNDA": acceptable only for the principal's identity, and only if the NCNDA is signed by people who are named and checked.
• No mandate letter, no video, no names: you are talking to a forwarder, not a mandate. Stop.

What you owe in return

The same rules apply to you. If you are an intermediary, get your own mandate in writing, declare your commission, and be ready to introduce your principal. On Copper Supply, your role and your verification level are shown on your profile, so honest intermediaries stand out.