Conclusion

The UCP regime has clearly been successful, but its time may be over. Whilst there can 1.36 be no doubt that there are significant defects in the UCP 600, it is difficult to justify a full­blown revision either in terms of the time and costs that would be involved or in terms of the benefits that would accrue: the documentary letter of credit is being eclipsed by more nimble competitors, is difficult to justify in an electronic world, and is nowadays operating in a more hostile legal, regulatory and commercial environment.