"Abu Burdah and 'Abdullah bin Shaddad argued about payment in advance. They sent me to Ibn Abi Awfa and I asked him (about that). He said: 'We used to pay in advance during the time of the Messenger of Allah and Abu Bakr and 'Umar, for wheat, barley, raisins and dates, paying people whom we did not see it with them." And I asked Ibn Abza and he said something similar to that.  

كُنَّا نُسْلِمُ عَلَى عَهْدِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَعَلَى عَهْدِ أَبِي بَكْرٍ وَعَلَى عَهْدِ عُمَرَ فِي الْبُرِّ وَالشَّعِيرِ وَالزَّبِيبِ وَالتَّمْرِ إِلَى قَوْمٍ مَا نُرَى عِنْدَهُمْ وَسَأَلْتُ ابْنَ أَبْزَى فَقَالَ مِثْلَ ذَلِكَ