What is the difference between a bank guarantee and a usual guarantee?

Following are some points of difference between a bank guarantee and a usual guarantee:A usual guarantee is governed by Sec. 126 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872. A bank guarantee is not directly governed by Sec. 126. An ordinary guarantee is a tri-partite (3 parties) agreement involving the surety, the debtor and the creditor.

But a bank guarantee is a contract involving two parties i.e. the bank and the beneficiary. In an ordinary guarantee, the contract between the surety and the creditor arises as a subsidiary to the contract between the creditor and the principal debtor. The bank guarantee is independent of the main contract. In an ordinary guarantee, the inter se disputes between the debtor and the creditor have a material effect upon the surety's liability. However, the bank guarantee is independent of the disputes, arising ex contractu (arising out of the contract). An ordinary guarantee does not have any time limit before which the debt has to be claimed. Bank guarantees generally have a specific time within which they are functional.