Picturing a CASS acknowledgement letter

A woman is invited to a performance at the Royal Opera house, somewhere she’s never been before. A colleague lends her a smart coat so that she will look the part. On arrival she goes to the cloakroom and hands over the coat saying “Please look after this. I’ve borrowed it and need to give it back in perfect condition”. The attendant replies “I understand, we’ll make sure it doesn’t get mixed up with the other coats; and it will be ready waiting for you when the performance is over”.

In this allegory, the investment firm (represented by the woman) is informing their bank (the Opera House) that the property she is depositing with them is not only valuable, but actually does not belong to her. She is in a position of trust, and is asking them to take particular care of it for that reason. The bank in return is acknowledging that they understand her position of trust, and that they will treat the asset differently as a result. 

A skeptic might wonder who it is that she’s talking to? Is it somebody covering the desk on a temporary basis, is it the Front of House manager who can indeed commit the Opera House, or could it even be another guest who popped in to retrieve their own coat?  

I don’t want to stretch this allegory too far, so for a more in depth review of acknowledgement letters and the pitfalls, please see the latest blog by my colleagues Sonia Reuben and Vessy Mihovska here