Statements, then more statements
A purchase file is otherwise moving. The buyer's deposit is made up of savings, the proceeds of a car sale and a gift from their parents. The firm asked for 'evidence of your source of funds'. The buyer sent one month of one bank statement. The case handler asked for more. The buyer sent screenshots from their banking app. The case handler asked for the parents' statements and a gift declaration. The parents asked why they needed to be involved.
Weeks later the file is ready to exchange apart from this, and everyone is frustrated with everyone else.
Why funds evidence arrives in pieces
The request is usually generic because it is written for every buyer. But what your firm needs depends on where the money is coming from: savings, a sale, a gift, an inheritance, a lump sum from a pension, a business. Buyers only learn what is needed one request at a time.
They also do not understand why. Without an explanation, statements feel intrusive, and people send the minimum. Gifted deposits add third parties who have never heard of the firm.
| Source of deposit | What usually goes missing |
|---|---|
| Savings | Enough history to show the build-up |
| Gift from family | Donor's evidence and gift declaration |
| Proceeds of a sale | Completion statement or sale evidence |
| Inheritance | Estate documents showing the payment |
| Several sources combined | Evidence for the smaller parts |
What the drip-feed costs
Files that are otherwise ready wait on funds evidence, and the chain waits with them. Case handlers spend hours writing follow-up emails, reading screenshots and working out which months are still missing. Evidence arriving by ordinary email is also a data security headache.
Worst of all, pressure to exchange can build just as the evidence is incomplete, which is not where your firm wants to be.
How we build a guided funds request
- Ask about sources first: at instruction, the buyer completes a short online form saying where their deposit and any other funds are coming from, and roughly how much from each.
- Tailored evidence list: for each source, the form shows exactly what your firm's policy asks for, in plain language with a short reason, so the buyer knows everything up front.
- Gift donors included: where there is a gift, the donor gets their own request with their own explanation and upload link, and the gift declaration from your template.
- Secure upload: documents are uploaded through the form rather than emailed. Bank statement PDFs are checked for the account holder's name, date range and continuity.
- Review layout: the case handler sees each source with its evidence, the totals against the purchase figures, and gaps highlighted (missing months, amounts that do not add up, large credits without a note).
- Chasing: outstanding items trigger reminders to the buyer or donor on the intervals you set.
The tool organises and checks completeness. Whether the evidence satisfies your policy, and anything to do with suspicion, stays with the case handler and your MLRO.
What the file looks like afterwards
Buyers see the full list on day one and can gather it in one go. Gift donors are asked directly. Case handlers review a laid-out picture instead of a string of emails, with the gaps already pointed out. Funds evidence stops being the last thing holding up exchange.
Documents are stored against the matter in one place, which makes file reviews quicker too.
Recognise this?
- Buyers are sent a generic 'source of funds' request.
- Evidence arrives by email in several instalments.
- Gifted deposit donors are only contacted late.
- Case handlers work out missing months by hand.
- Files wait on funds evidence when everything else is ready.