´It was narrated that 'Abdullah Ibn Abi Awfa about paying in advance. He said:` 'We used to pay in advance during the time of the Messenger of Allah and Abu Bakr and 'Umar, for wheat, barley and dates, paying people whom we did not know if they had those things or not.'''Ibn Abza said meaning, similarly.
Hadith Referenceسنن نسائي / كتاب البيوع / 4618
Hadith Gradingالألبانی:صحيح | زبیر علی زئی:صحيح بخاري
´Ibn Abi Al-Mujalid-on one occasion he (the narrator) said 'Abdullah, and on another occasion he said Muhammad - said:` "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.