Head of International Corporate Law and Fintech Practice
Expert in fintech, crypto, and international corporate law with over 20 years of experience. Specializes in crypto licensing (VASP/CASP), iGaming business support, and international structuring, asset protection, and OSINT analytics for risk assessment and due diligence.
Payment licenses
A payment business rarely starts with a licence. It is important to have answers to the following questions: the legal status of the business (legal form and regulatory requirements), the jurisdiction in which services will be provided, and the type of service/product offered (transfers, acquiring, payment services, electronic money or business solutions).
In the EU and other developed financial jurisdictions, the answers depend on the specific model. Some companies require a Payment Institution (PI) licence, others need Electronic Money Institution (EMI) status, while in certain cases the capabilities of another regulatory regime may be sufficient.
Therefore, obtaining a payment services licence is not simply a matter of submitting an application form and a package of relevant documents to the regulator. First, it is necessary to classify the business model correctly, identify the regulated services and build a structure that genuinely complies with legal requirements.
What is a payment services licence and who needs one?
A payment services licence is an authorisation from the competent regulator that allows a company to provide payment services defined by law. The specific list of such services depends on the jurisdiction and the type of such authorisation (licence).
For example, a payment business may operate with money transfers, digital wallets, card programmes, payment initiation, access by payment applications to payment accounts or other regulated transactions. If a company actually receives client funds and transfers them to third parties, simply calling the activity a “technology service” is not sufficient. The regulator looks at the economic substance of the model rather than the marketing name of the product.
What payment services can be provided under a licence?
The first practical steps are to determine exactly which transactions the company plans to carry out, their volume and the relevant jurisdiction. The following are typically analysed:
- Payment Accounts — opening and servicing customers’ payment accounts.
- Money Transfers / Remittance — domestic and international transfers.
- Credit Transfers — bank/payment transfers, including SEPA where the relevant infrastructure is available.
- Direct Debits — debiting funds on the customer’s instruction.
- Card Payments — executing payments using payment cards.
- Card / Payment Instrument Issuing — issuing payment instruments. Important: regulatory permission itself does not automatically mean direct membership in Visa/Mastercard — a BIN sponsor / issuing partner may be required.
- Merchant Acquiring — accepting and processing card payments for merchants.
- Payment Processing — technological/operational processing of payments; the regulatory status depends on whether the company actually participates in the regulated payment flow.
- Money Remittance — standalone transfer of funds.
- Payment Initiation (PISP) — initiating payments through open banking.
- Account Information (AISP) — obtaining and aggregating account information through open banking.
At the same time, the same business model may fall under different regulatory regimes in different countries. This is why copying a competitor’s structure from another jurisdiction is not the best strategy, and it is important to build your own structure correctly from the outset.
How does a Payment Institution differ from an EMI?
This is one of the key questions when structuring a FinTech project. A Payment Institution and an Electronic Money Institution are not interchangeable statuses.
An EMI has one fundamentally additional function: Issuance of Electronic Money (E-money). For example, where a customer transfers an indicative EUR 1000 to the company, the company issues the corresponding electronic value, which the customer can hold in a wallet/account and use for payments.
| Criterion | Payment Institution | EMI |
|---|---|---|
| Main focus | Payment services | Payment services + electronic money |
| Electronic money | Not the core product | May be issued in accordance with the licensing regime |
| Application | Payments, transfers and other defined services | A broader model involving wallet/e-money products |
| Suitable for | Payment services, transfers, acquiring, etc. | E-wallet, e-money and comprehensive FinTech models |
The exact scope of rights depends on the legislation of the relevant country and the authorisation obtained.
What requirements does the regulator impose on a company holding a payment licence?
The regulator assesses more than financial indicators. It is interested in whether the company is capable of handling client funds safely and controlling risks.
In particular, the following are analysed:
- ownership structure and ultimate beneficial owners;
- management and its professional reputation;
- business plan and financial forecasts;
- internal AML/KYC procedures;
- management of operational and financial risks;
- IT and information security;
- mechanisms for safeguarding client funds.
For a FinTech project, it is important that these elements do not exist separately from one another. The business plan must correspond to the actual operating model, compliance must correspond to the product, and the IT architecture must correspond to the declared processes.
What documents are required to obtain a payment licence?
The package depends on the jurisdiction and the specific type of authorisation (licence). In practice, it may include:
- constitutional and corporate documents;
- business plan;
- description of the payment model and transaction forecasts;
- documents relating to shareholders and UBOs;
- evidence of the source of capital;
- AML/KYC policies;
- risk management procedures;
- description of the IT infrastructure and security;
- information about management and key personnel.
Particular attention should be paid to evidence of the source of capital and the owners’ funds. A formally correct structure without a clear Source of Funds may stop the process at the review stage.
How long does it take to obtain a payment licence?
There is no single timeframe. The duration depends on the country, the complexity of the business model, the readiness of the documents and the number of regulator requests during the review of the documents and the process of agreeing the licensing decision in respect of the applicant.
The process may be delayed if:
- the business model is not described clearly enough;
- the documents contradict one another;
- the source of capital is not confirmed;
- compliance policies exist only formally;
- the IT and operating model do not correspond to the declared product.
Therefore, the quality of preparation before submission is often more important than the formal speed of the submission itself.
How to obtain a payment licence: stages of work
1. Business model analysis
We determine exactly which services the company plans to provide and whether they are regulated.
2. Selection of jurisdiction and licence type
We compare regulatory requirements, capital, corporate structure, management requirements and scaling prospects.
3. Preparation of the structure and documents
We prepare the business plan, corporate package, compliance framework, risk management and the necessary IT documentation.
4. Submission and communication with the regulator
We submit the application, respond to requests and amend the documents where necessary.
5. Preparation for launch
After obtaining the authorisation, we help bring the operating processes into compliance with the licensing requirements and prepare the company for further operations.
What are the advantages of professional support for payment services licensing?
- Correct classification of the model before submission. This helps avoid spending months on an application that was initially based on an incorrect regulatory assumption.
- Consistent logic across documents. The business plan, AML, risk management, IT and corporate structure must tell the regulator the same story.
- Preparation for regulator questions. We analyse potential weaknesses in advance and are prepared to respond where necessary.
- Focus on the future operation of the business. The licence is not the final point. It is important that the status obtained genuinely allows the business to operate and scale the product.
Is a payment licence suitable for you?
To make a preliminary assessment of the complexity of the project, it is sufficient to answer four questions:
- Does your company plan to provide payment services independently?
- Will the business involve handling client funds?
- Which economic areas / jurisdictions do you plan to work with counterparties from? Do you plan to work with clients or counterparties in the EU?
- Does the business model involve issuing electronic money or a wallet solution?
If the answer to most questions is “yes”, a regulatory analysis should be carried out before the product is launched.
Why choose Prikhodko & Partners?
We support FinTech projects end-to-end — from the initial analysis of the business model and selection of the optimal jurisdiction to structuring the corporate model, preparing the licensing application and communicating with the regulator. We provide comprehensive support on licensing, AML/KYC, banking and payment infrastructure, as well as ongoing regulatory compliance. For us, it is important not only to obtain the relevant authorisation or licence, but also, already at the structuring stage, to understand how the company will actually operate after authorisation and what infrastructure is required to launch its operational activities.
Our approach is not simply to obtain a licence, but to build a legally and operationally viable FinTech model: from the regulatory structure to the actual launch of the business.
Planning to launch a payment or FinTech business? The lawyers at Prikhodko & Partners will help analyse the business model, determine the required regulatory status, select a jurisdiction, prepare the licensing application and support communication with the regulator — from structuring through to the actual launch of operations.
Is a payment licence required if the company operates through a third-party payment provider?
Not necessarily. It all depends on the functions your company actually performs. If it only uses the infrastructure of a licensed provider and does not independently provide regulated services, a separate licence may not be required.
Can a company obtain a payment licence in one EU country and operate in other countries?
In the EU, the ability to provide payment services cross-border depends on the specific regulatory regime and completion of the relevant procedures. The mere fact of holding a licence does not automatically grant the right to operate in any country without additional formalities.
Can a payment licence be obtained without a finished FinTech product?
Product development may be at different stages, but the regulator must clearly understand what the company plans to do, how its operational and technological model will function, and how customers and their funds will be protected. Therefore, it is better to define the licensing strategy before the full product launch.
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