Licensing of financial institutions
Financial services licensing follows the same logic across institution types. The regulator examines the same things in each case: what the product is, who owns the applicant, where the capital comes from, who will run the institution, and whether the file is complete. We run that procedure from qualifying the business model to the regulator's decision.
Financial services
- Insurance - Lending - Taking repayable funds - Financial leasing - Factoring - Issuing guarantees - Currency trading - Payment services
Payment services
- Cash deposits to user accounts, and the opening, servicing and closing of accounts - Cash withdrawals from user accounts, and the opening, servicing and closing of accounts - Execution of payment transactions from and to a user account with the user's own funds - Execution of payment transactions from and to a user account with funds provided on credit - Issuing of payment instruments and acquiring of payment instruments - Money remittance without an account - Issuing of electronic money and payment transactions with it, including e-wallets - Payment initiation services - Account information services
Institution types
Licence: finance company · pawnbroker · credit union · insurer · payment institution · electronic money institution Registration: small payment institution · insurance intermediary · lessor that is not a financial institution · debt collection company · payment infrastructure service operator · technological operator We also extend an existing licence to further financial services. Acquiring an already licensed entity is covered separately:
Acquisition of a licensed financial institution →How the work is structured
- 01
Product analysis
- Qualifying the business model: whether it constitutes a regulated financial service, and which one - Determining the licence type and the list of services the application must cover - Restrictions on combining activities and on the use of intermediaries - Disclosure and consumer-facing requirements the product must meet from day one
- 02
Ownership structure
- Building or restructuring the ownership chain into a transparent form - Identifying direct and indirect qualifying holders and ultimate beneficial owners - Ownership chart and supporting documents for every link in the chain - Resolving opacity before filing rather than after the first round of queries
- 03
Shareholder checks
- Assessing the reputation of qualifying holders and the risk of refusal on that ground - Evidencing financial standing and the source of funds contributed to capital - Preparing documents for foreign shareholders, including legalisation and translation - Handling a separate qualifying holding approval where one is required
- 04
Management and key function holders
- Testing candidates against fitness, propriety and qualification requirements - Composing the governing bodies and allocating functions and responsibilities - Preparing questionnaires, supporting documents and explanations for each individual - Preparing candidates for a regulator interview where the role calls for one
- 05
Business plans, strategies and information statements
- Business plan for the period required by the regulator: business model, distribution channels, organisational structure, agents and outsourcing - Development strategy aligned with capital requirements and with the scope of the licence - Information statements on ownership structure, reputation, source of funds and operational readiness - Updating the business plan when the licence scope or the shareholder base changes
- 06
Application file
- Application forms, questionnaires, statements and charts in the prescribed form - Internal policies that must be in force at the date of filing: governance, internal control, risk management, AML - Evidence of paid-in capital and operational readiness - Completeness review before filing: an incomplete file is returned without consideration
- 07
Handling the review
- Responses to the regulator's comments and information requests - Explanations on ownership structure, source of funds and business model - Remedying deficiencies within deadlines that keep the review running
- 08
After the licence is granted
- Extending the licence to additional financial services - Changes of management, key function holders and ownership structure - Keeping internal documents current as requirements change
Where we work: Ukraine, the EU, the United Kingdom, Asia.