The reporting, policies, governance and conduct standards every regulator requires after authorisation, delivered as a project or on retainer, in more than 60 countries.
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.
Authorisation is the start of supervision. From the first day of the licence the firm reports to its regulator, maintains the policies it promised in the application, evidences governance and treats customers to the standard the regulator sets. We run that programme for payment institutions, e-money institutions, money services businesses and cryptoasset firms, in the United States, the United Kingdom, every European market, Canada, Australia and Asia.
The work is practical. We write the policies the firm will follow, build the reporting calendar, prepare and submit the returns, and sit with the board when the regulator asks questions.
Every periodic return the regulator requires, prepared, reconciled to the accounts and submitted on time, with the working papers kept for inspection.
A complete, maintained policy set: AML, safeguarding, outsourcing, operational resilience, complaints, conduct, data and business continuity, written for the firm’s own business.
Board and committee structure, terms of reference, management information, three lines of defence and the individual accountability regime that applies in each market.
Fair treatment of customers, complaints handling, vulnerable customers, product governance and the consumer standards each regulator applies.
A risk-based monitoring plan, executed quarterly, with findings tracked to closure and reported to the board.
Supervisory meetings, information requests and thematic reviews handled with the firm, with every response reviewed before it goes.
| Deliverable | What it contains | Who relies on it |
|---|---|---|
| Obligations map | Every rule that applies to the firm by market, product and permission, with the owner and the evidence required | Board, auditors, regulator |
| Policy set | Complete, version-controlled policies and procedures approved by the board | Staff, auditors, banks |
| Reporting calendar and returns | Every return with its deadline, preparer, reviewer and submission record | Regulator, board |
| Quarterly compliance report | Monitoring results, breaches, complaints, regulatory correspondence and actions | Board, audit committee |
| Annual framework review | Assessment of the framework against current regulatory expectations with a prioritised plan | Board, regulator |
The FCA in the United Kingdom, the national authorities across the EU and EEA, FinCEN and the state regulators in the United States, FINTRAC in Canada, AUSTRAC in Australia, the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. The framework is built once and mapped to each market the firm operates in.
Yes. Many clients retain the firm to run the compliance function on an ongoing basis, including preparing and submitting returns, running monitoring and reporting to the board. The firm’s own staff remain accountable to the regulator and we work to their instruction.
A fixed monthly fee set against the licence type, the number of markets and the reporting load, agreed in writing before the engagement starts.
The approved roles sit with the firm’s own people. We prepare them, support them and, where the regulator permits, provide interim cover while a permanent appointment is made.
Every request is answered through a single process: we read the request with you, draft the response, assemble the evidence and review the whole before it is sent.
A reply within three business hours and a written proposal on scope, cost and timing the same day.