Safeguarding, operating and settlement accounts, card acquiring and payment processing, arranged through direct relationships with the banks, e-money institutions and processors that serve this market worldwide.
Selected engagements from more than 250 licences obtained since 2013, for payment, e-money, cryptoasset and consumer credit firms.
Volkswagen
Payment InstitutionObtained Nexpay’s FCA Authorised Payment Institution licence.
Electronic Money InstitutionObtained Dzing Finance’s FCA Authorised Electronic Money Institution licence.
Obtained Orbital’s FCA Authorised Payment Institution licence.
A regulated firm needs several accounts before it can trade: a safeguarding account for customer funds, an operating account for its own money, settlement accounts in the currencies it pays out, and often card acquiring or a processing relationship for its clients. We arrange each of them through relationships built over thirteen years with institutions that understand regulated and higher-risk business.
The service covers the firm and the firm’s clients. Payment providers, programme managers and marketplaces serving higher-risk verticals, including gaming, forex, cryptoassets, travel, adult and nutraceuticals, obtain processing and settlement capacity through the same relationships.
Designated accounts for customer funds with institutions that provide the acknowledgement letters regulators require.
Multi-currency operating and settlement accounts with the correct account structure for the licence and the flows.
Acquiring and gateway relationships for the firm and its merchants, including higher-risk categories, with pricing and reserves negotiated.
Local and cross-border payment rails, virtual IBANs, collections and payouts through licensed partners in each region.
Programme access for firms that issue cards, hold balances or embed payments under a partner’s licence while their own is in progress.
The pack every institution asks for: business plan, financial crime framework, flow of funds, ownership and projections, prepared to the standard the bank’s onboarding team expects.
| Deliverable | What it contains | Who relies on it |
|---|---|---|
| Account structure | The accounts required by licence, currency and flow, with the institutions that provide each | Board, regulator |
| Bank-readiness pack | Business plan, financial crime framework, flow of funds, ownership, projections | Banks, processors |
| Introductions and terms | Institutions approached, outcomes, and the terms agreed for each account or facility | Board, finance |
| Processing arrangement | Acquiring or processing terms including pricing, reserves and settlement cycles | Finance, operations |
Banks, e-money institutions and payment processors in the United Kingdom, Europe, the United States, Canada, Asia and the Middle East that serve regulated and higher-risk firms. Introductions are made in confidence and named to the client when the institution has confirmed interest.
Yes. Operating accounts and Banking-as-a-Service arrangements are arranged during the application, so the firm can trade on authorisation. Safeguarding accounts are opened as the licence is issued.
Yes. Payment providers, programme managers and marketplaces obtain acquiring and processing capacity for their own clients through the same relationships, including higher-risk verticals.
A clear business plan, the financial crime framework, the flow of funds, ownership and control information, projections and the compliance team’s credentials. We prepare the pack to that standard before any introduction.
A fixed fee for the readiness pack and introductions, agreed in writing, with success fees where an institution is secured.
A reply within three business hours and a written proposal on scope, cost and timing the same day.