Today, there is an opinion that opening a foreign account abroad for companies in the field of IT services is quite problematic. In this article, we propose to find out if this is the case.
Under the IT business, the article will cover a wide range of industries: from Forex, online stores, online games (boosting MMR), betting, cryptocurrencies, gambling, bookmakers, SEO advertising to the IT industry and booking applications.
Banks and other financial institutions around the world provide a wide range of opportunities for opening accounts: these can be either individual IBAN accounts, or various variations of sub-accounts.
The procedure for opening current accounts with foreign banks abroad for all types of IT companies has been significantly tightened recently. This means that along with the standard list of corporate documents and information about the ultimate beneficiaries, a detailed structure of all business processes of the company is required, as well as the presence of an active and structured website.
This information is mandatory for applying to any serious and reliable banking institution.
Additionally, not only the applicant's company is checked, but also all partners declared by him, as well as affiliated companies in case of possible mutual settlements.
Additional requirements are imposed on the turnover of IT companies, which is required to be confirmed for a number of compliance services. This requirement causes difficulties for start-up projects that are required to submit their business plans.
In this regard, it may not be enough to manage your own resources and knowledge, and you need to contact companies that specialize in providing professional assistance in opening accounts and preparing documents accompanying acceptance (for example, a business plan and management reports).
Such intermediary companies will be able to use their deep knowledge of legislation, experience and facts to defend the position of the client company or show it to the bank's managers in a favorable light. And here the task of every business owner is to choose a worthy representative of their interests in front of the compliance banking service.
At the same time, you should not assume that preparing a package of documents and providing comments to the bank for opening an IT company account is an impossible task.
If you correctly build the logic of communication with the compliance service at the initial stages, you can avoid many additional questions.
However, opening a current account is not always a sufficient condition for the successful operation of an IT company, since corporate current accounts are primarily designed to provide the possibility of continuous mutual settlements between typical market participants, i.e. only between companies.
When it comes to providing mass services to end users-individuals on behalf of legal entities (often by posting information about services or products on the company's own website), merchant accounts come to the rescue.
An acquiring merchant account differs from a regular current account in that it also has a "linked" web interface that allows site users to pay for services by entering their bank card details. This type of account is provided exclusively by payment systems/ aggregators that are independent or created at banking institutions.
And since thousands of transactions can take place on trading accounts per minute, refunds are made from the trading account's rolling reserve, i.e. those funds that have not yet been credited to the bank account.
That is why opening a merchant account is the primary task of any company planning to conquer the world of the IT industry.
An acquiring account is a way to resolve issues with receiving funds when working with individuals who pay for goods/services on the Internet?
Utility Bill, Lawyer
It is worth noting that most payment systems, within the framework of their internal AML (anti-money laundering) policy, open acquiring accounts mainly for low-risk companies ( these are large companies from the category of digital advertising, various types of bookings: starting with scooters/ bicycles and ending with booking accommodation and air travel) or those that have operational history. But since the IT industry consists of a third of companies classified as high risk (boosting MMR, file sharing, betting, trading, etc.) and startups, the selection of alternative payment solutions is required. And here one of the most optimal options is to use payment aggregators that connect evayring to the site without opening an individual company account in the payment system.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
The principle of operation is absolutely identical to the merchant account, the applied rates may be slightly higher and start, for example:
Do I need to open a bank account if I already have a merchant?
Utility Bill, lawyer
The answer to this question is definitely yes. You definitely need to open a bank account.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
Do not forget that trading accounts are not designed for aggregating large amounts of money, and even more so for saving them.
Most payment systems have thresholds for withdrawing and accumulating received client payments. If you exceed these thresholds, the account holder will receive a request for corporate current account details and will be recommended to withdraw the specified amounts.
Also, when opening an acquiring account or connecting a payment aggregator, you will need to specify the bank account details (if any) for transferring funds in the service agreement or account opening forms.
Can I open a bank and merchant account in the same payment institution?
Utility Bill, lawyer
It is possible, if the payment system is created at a banking institution or it allows you to open individual IBAN accounts within its own system, then often 2 accounts are opened simultaneously at once – a settlement IBAN account and a trading one.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
It is worth noting that this option is the most optimal and convenient, since opening two accounts takes place within the same process and requires less costs – both time and financial.
Once deposited into the current account, the funds can be used for mutual settlements with partners, payments for site maintenance services to developers, business expansion by investing in related projects of the group of companies, as well as the withdrawal of dividends to shareholders, etc.
Is it possible to open a settlement and merchant account simultaneously?
Utility Bill, lawyer
Yes, it is possible and more than that-recommended.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
Unfortunately, not all payment systems are created at banks and provide opportunities for opening an individual IBAN account, so you often need to open 2 accounts in parallel – a trading and settlement account.
Of course, you should give priority to opening a merchant account, but do not forget that the choice of a bank is also important, and it is advisable to decide on the banking and payment institution immediately and discuss in advance with managers the possibilities of potential acceptance of the company for service, conditions and internal integration of accounts.
Do I need to integrate a bank account with a merchant account?
Utility Bill, lawyer
Is required.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
Integration depends on a number of indicators, the main ones being:
Fortunately, such cases are extremely rare, and similar situations arise due to inattention or ignorance of the business owner himself.
Most of these criteria are standardized by financial institutions, which allows for integration in a short time, but it is worth considering that each financial institution has its own characteristics and wishes for the client base and the process of withdrawing / accepting funds, which must be taken into account when selecting them and making the final decision.
If you apply for the services of professional intermediaries, you should not seriously worry about this issue, since managers are aware of all the essential features of the work of specific payment systems and banks and will offer you the most optimal solutions, taking into account your wishes, taking on the task of coordinating the integration capabilities of your company's bank and trading accounts.
Perhaps the most serious requirement for carrying out mutual settlements is the coincidence of the country of registration of the company and the jurisdiction of the bank.
In other words, if your company has entered into a contractual relationship with these monopolists, you will need to open a bank account in the country where your company is registered to make payments.
It should be recognized that this requirement is actually feasible, but somewhat labor-intensive, since many European banks, especially in countries such as Switzerland, Germany, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Cyprus, have a requirement for the actual presence of the company in the country, as well as a desire to link the business to this jurisdiction.
Therefore, in order to minimize the costs of organizing the legal and banking component of the company's work, it is necessary to provide for this requirement in advance.
Also, one of the features of working with Google and Facebook is compliance with efficiency requirements: the partner company's advertising revenues, as well as the customer base, should grow and be stable, and expenses over the past 90 days should be at least $ 10,000.
Can I open a merchant account via an offshore account?
Utility Bill, lawyer
There is a common belief that it is possible to open a settlement and trading account only with a European or American company. We can say with confidence that this is not the case.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
Of course, it should be recognized that the company's status jurisdiction is a serious advantage, and European banks in most cases are not ready to open accounts for offshore startup companies with unconfirmed turnover, but there are always exceptions to any rule.
The main thing is to set the right accents and prepare an appropriate business plan.
In addition, when choosing an offshore jurisdiction, you should not exclude offshore banks from the field of view, assuming that they are unreliable. Based on our experience, many of the latter are no less stable than the European ones, and some of them exist and successfully provide banking services for even longer periods of time.
The type of IT business will also be very important when opening a merchant account for an offshore company.
Example
A company whose activities fall under licensing-Forex, gambling, bookmakers, betting, etc. - will most likely not be accepted by European financial institutions without a European license. In this case, companies whose activities will be classified as "low risk" have a much better chance of working with a classic offshore company.
As for the trading account for various categories of offshore IT companies, there are also options for opening, and first of all you should pay attention to the payment aggregators that we mentioned earlier.
Naturally, these options are most applicable to an existing operational business in cases where abandoning an offshore company and a familiar brand may lead to a loss of the customer base, and for a startup, we would recommend stopping at registering a company and opening accounts in Europe.
Do I need a real presence in the country of registration of the company to open a current account and merchant account?
Utility Bill, lawyer
It is often required when opening a current account with a bank; payment systems do not often make this requirement, but much depends on the category of IT business and the tasks that the owner sets for himself.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
Example
If the company's activities are subject to licensing and the license is obtained outside of Europe, or if the site owner is exclusively an offshore company, then to open an acquiring account and bank account, you may need to register an operating European company with an office and employees that performs settlements on behalf of the offshore company.
To date, there are not so many options for opening a bank account for an IT company without a real presence in the country of its registration. First of all, this is due to the specifics of the business itself, since the services sold are often virtual, financial institutions want to receive as confirmation of the reality of the business the real existence of the company (substance) in the country of its registration or operating activity.
Naturally, even such minimal compliance entails some costs, but it should be borne in mind that all financial market participants and, first of all, the compliance and AML departments that control compliance are trying to find compromise solutions for their clients, providing the opportunity to work with minimal requirements for a real presence.
Business owners can assign the selection of an office and the organization of a telephone line to professional intermediaries involved in opening accounts.
If the company is large and experienced, it has offices and employees in different countries of the world, who, knowing the requirements of a particular bank and payment system for a real presence, can easily choose the most optimal solution for the client company with minimal costs.
1) non-compliance of the company's activities and jurisdiction with the bank's and/or payment system's policies;
2) the presence of unconfirmed turnover and the lack of a clear and structured business plan;
3) lack of a license (including a European one) to carry out regulated activities, such as::
5) refusal to establish an economic presence of the company in the country of its residence or country of doing business;
6) unwillingness of the owner to disclose the structure of the company and its affiliates, as well as to provide the required information in the framework of compliance / AML verification;
7) intentionally misleading the compliance/ AML service and providing false information.
Today, the feasibility of implementing IT projects is not in doubt, since it is due to the real possibility of opening accounts in banks and payment systems abroad.
Summing up, we can conclude that opening a merchant account abroad for an IT company is indeed a difficult process, requiring a serious analysis of opportunities at the initial stages: from choosing the jurisdiction of a foreign company to selecting a working bundle of bank accounts and payment systems.
However, as fast as the IT industry is developing, financial institutions are also responding to these changes when providing work opportunities.
Despite all the difficulties, it is still possible to choose working options for each type of IT activity, you just need to correctly calculate and assess the risks, carry out serious preparatory work, or choose competent specialists who will represent the interests of your business before all the controlling structures of the bank and/ or payment system.
(c) https://gsl-news.org/582083-kak-otk...t-schet-dlya-it-kompanii-v-inostrannom-banke/
Content
- Current account for an IT company: opening features
- Additional requirements from banks and merchant service providers for opening an account
- What is a merchant account?
- Why do I need a merchant account?
- Features of opening an acquiring account: site requirements and integration
- Domain Requirements
- Site Requirements
- Special requirements for goods/ services with age or other restrictions (games, dating, social networks, betting, bookmakers, brokerage services, stock market and securities, Forex)
- Recommendations for language versions
- Consequences of refusing to check for account integration
- Features of working with Google, Apple and Facebook
- The most popular payment systems that allow opening settlement and acquiring accounts
- General requirements for financial institutions to have an economic presence for opening accounts
- Reasons for refusal to open a settlement / acquiring account: types of licensed IT activities
Under the IT business, the article will cover a wide range of industries: from Forex, online stores, online games (boosting MMR), betting, cryptocurrencies, gambling, bookmakers, SEO advertising to the IT industry and booking applications.
Current account for an IT company: opening features
A current account is an account with a financial or banking institution that allows transactions to be made between market participants who have similar accounting parameters.Banks and other financial institutions around the world provide a wide range of opportunities for opening accounts: these can be either individual IBAN accounts, or various variations of sub-accounts.
The procedure for opening current accounts with foreign banks abroad for all types of IT companies has been significantly tightened recently. This means that along with the standard list of corporate documents and information about the ultimate beneficiaries, a detailed structure of all business processes of the company is required, as well as the presence of an active and structured website.
This information is mandatory for applying to any serious and reliable banking institution.
Additionally, not only the applicant's company is checked, but also all partners declared by him, as well as affiliated companies in case of possible mutual settlements.
Additional requirements from banks and merchant service providers for opening an account
If the company's activities are subject to mandatory licensing in the IT field (managing funds of third parties-Forex, gambling, etc.), the relevant documents must be submitted. Often, the compliance service requests licenses for certain related types of regulated IT activities, which, in its competent opinion, are also required for licensing.Additional requirements are imposed on the turnover of IT companies, which is required to be confirmed for a number of compliance services. This requirement causes difficulties for start-up projects that are required to submit their business plans.
In this regard, it may not be enough to manage your own resources and knowledge, and you need to contact companies that specialize in providing professional assistance in opening accounts and preparing documents accompanying acceptance (for example, a business plan and management reports).
Such intermediary companies will be able to use their deep knowledge of legislation, experience and facts to defend the position of the client company or show it to the bank's managers in a favorable light. And here the task of every business owner is to choose a worthy representative of their interests in front of the compliance banking service.
At the same time, you should not assume that preparing a package of documents and providing comments to the bank for opening an IT company account is an impossible task.
If you correctly build the logic of communication with the compliance service at the initial stages, you can avoid many additional questions.
However, opening a current account is not always a sufficient condition for the successful operation of an IT company, since corporate current accounts are primarily designed to provide the possibility of continuous mutual settlements between typical market participants, i.e. only between companies.
When it comes to providing mass services to end users-individuals on behalf of legal entities (often by posting information about services or products on the company's own website), merchant accounts come to the rescue.
What is a merchant account?
A merchant account (or acquiring / trading account), similar to a current account, is an account, but this account is designed to accept payments from end users of services - individuals, from VISA, MasterCard, American Express bank cards via the Internet or POS terminals.An acquiring merchant account differs from a regular current account in that it also has a "linked" web interface that allows site users to pay for services by entering their bank card details. This type of account is provided exclusively by payment systems/ aggregators that are independent or created at banking institutions.
Why do I need a merchant account?
The need for such accounts was formed due to the historical features of the e-commerce market, since in any kind of sales there is a percentage of refusal of services, which is marked by a refund to the buyer due to personal reasons of the customer or fraudulent transactions from the outside.And since thousands of transactions can take place on trading accounts per minute, refunds are made from the trading account's rolling reserve, i.e. those funds that have not yet been credited to the bank account.
That is why opening a merchant account is the primary task of any company planning to conquer the world of the IT industry.
An acquiring account is a way to resolve issues with receiving funds when working with individuals who pay for goods/services on the Internet?
Utility Bill, Lawyer
It is worth noting that most payment systems, within the framework of their internal AML (anti-money laundering) policy, open acquiring accounts mainly for low-risk companies ( these are large companies from the category of digital advertising, various types of bookings: starting with scooters/ bicycles and ending with booking accommodation and air travel) or those that have operational history. But since the IT industry consists of a third of companies classified as high risk (boosting MMR, file sharing, betting, trading, etc.) and startups, the selection of alternative payment solutions is required. And here one of the most optimal options is to use payment aggregators that connect evayring to the site without opening an individual company account in the payment system.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
The principle of operation is absolutely identical to the merchant account, the applied rates may be slightly higher and start, for example:
- from 1.5-2% + fixed amount (no more than 0.20 EUR) - for incoming transactions in Europe;
- 3.5% + fix – for the CIS;
- 4% + fix - America and Australia.
Features of opening an acquiring account: site requirements and integration
Due to the fact that merchant accounts are linked to the company's website, payment systems have a number of requirements for it. The main recommendations are given below. After they are completed, integration with the payment system is carried out, which takes a minimal amount of time – payment system technicians connect the site to the gateway, then the testing process takes place, and the final stage is to provide the ability to accept payments.Domain Requirements
- All pages of the website must be under the same domain name (including the return URL and the client's personal account).;
- Paid domain name, paid hosting;
- All pages of the site are accessible and contain up-to-date and reliable information;
- TLS-protected login pages;
- Starting with the buyer's choice and order of goods/ services, there should be no redirects from / to pages or frames of other domains, except for the acquirer's secure payment page;
- The domain name owner is a commercial legal entity.
Site Requirements
All information and features must be accessible to any visitor to the website, including unauthorized visitors, and remain on the website for at least 120 days from the last payment transaction.- Original logos of payment schemes (Visa, MasterCard, etc.) in the footer of the site or on the page with a description of the payment procedure, payment options;
- Description/ list of payment methods;
- Full description of services/ products (price, currency, dimensions, photo, content, material, technical parameters, system requirements, service content). The list of services / products on the website must correspond to the services / products specified in the seller's documents (seller identification form, business profile, contract).
- The currency and payment amount must be clearly indicated in the buyer's basket on the seller's website. If the order currency differs from the payment currency, you must also specify this before purchasing.
- The final price of services/ goods indicated on the site must include all internal costs of the seller.
- Details and contacts of the seller's legal entity: full name of the legal entity, legal and physical address, registration number, license number and details (if applicable), contact phone number and email address.
- Terms of delivery / service provision: methods, terms, and other conditions. The buyer must read and accept them manually before purchasing.
- Cancellation, refund, withdrawal policy: description of the procedure and conditions (contact email address, cancellation/refund/withdrawal forms, terms, fees, penalties, etc.) in case the client needs to receive a withdrawal, cancel the order, return or exchange the product. The buyer must read and accept it manually before purchasing.
- Terms of Use / Terms and conditions. The buyer must read and accept them manually before purchasing.
- Privacy policy. The site must contain a privacy policy describing the terms of protection and non-disclosure of personal information, including information about TLS encryption.
- Registration and login functionality with a personal account for clients.
- Order confirmation page.
- After successful payment, the cardholder should be sent to the confirmation page (return URL), where they should be provided with information about the transaction result, order details, and instructions for receiving the order. The cardholder should be able to print this page or see the same information in their personal account.
Special requirements for goods/ services with age or other restrictions (games, dating, social networks, betting, bookmakers, brokerage services, stock market and securities, Forex)
- the age restriction notification must be shown and manually accepted by the customer before they can access the content/products/services and order functionally.;
- notice of possible legal restrictions (for example, related to the buyer's country of location or country of citizenship) should be shown before purchasing;
- notice to customers of their obligation to determine independently whether the relevant local legislation allows the purchase of such goods/services via the Internet using cards;
- description of conditions and restrictions for depositing / donating a trading / gaming account;
- detailed description of the procedure, conditions and restrictions for paying / withdrawing winnings from the trading/ gaming account.
Recommendations for language versions
- different language versions of the seller's website must be under the same domain name. Language versions located under different domain names require separate merchant accounts and credentials;
- if the store accepts payments from different regions and countries, the site must have an English version.
Do I need to open a bank account if I already have a merchant?
Utility Bill, lawyer
The answer to this question is definitely yes. You definitely need to open a bank account.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
Do not forget that trading accounts are not designed for aggregating large amounts of money, and even more so for saving them.
Most payment systems have thresholds for withdrawing and accumulating received client payments. If you exceed these thresholds, the account holder will receive a request for corporate current account details and will be recommended to withdraw the specified amounts.
Also, when opening an acquiring account or connecting a payment aggregator, you will need to specify the bank account details (if any) for transferring funds in the service agreement or account opening forms.
Can I open a bank and merchant account in the same payment institution?
Utility Bill, lawyer
It is possible, if the payment system is created at a banking institution or it allows you to open individual IBAN accounts within its own system, then often 2 accounts are opened simultaneously at once – a settlement IBAN account and a trading one.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
It is worth noting that this option is the most optimal and convenient, since opening two accounts takes place within the same process and requires less costs – both time and financial.
Once deposited into the current account, the funds can be used for mutual settlements with partners, payments for site maintenance services to developers, business expansion by investing in related projects of the group of companies, as well as the withdrawal of dividends to shareholders, etc.
Is it possible to open a settlement and merchant account simultaneously?
Utility Bill, lawyer
Yes, it is possible and more than that-recommended.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
Unfortunately, not all payment systems are created at banks and provide opportunities for opening an individual IBAN account, so you often need to open 2 accounts in parallel – a trading and settlement account.
Of course, you should give priority to opening a merchant account, but do not forget that the choice of a bank is also important, and it is advisable to decide on the banking and payment institution immediately and discuss in advance with managers the possibilities of potential acceptance of the company for service, conditions and internal integration of accounts.
Do I need to integrate a bank account with a merchant account?
Utility Bill, lawyer
Is required.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
Integration depends on a number of indicators, the main ones being:
- bank's jurisdiction;
- payment system jurisdiction;
- client company's jurisdiction;
- client company activity;
- whether the payment system/instrument has a license and the country of issue;
- bank and payment system rating;
- account currencies;
- regular withdrawal of funds;
- transaction volumes;
- technical capabilities of both parties and service policy.
Consequences of refusing to check for account integration
A mismatch of any of these indicators may lead to the inability to conduct financial transactions of the client. In other words, in this case, the negative scenario will be the following: the client company, an e-commerce market participant, will have working accounts with both the bank and the payment system, but they will interact and work together for the benefit of the business. they can't.Fortunately, such cases are extremely rare, and similar situations arise due to inattention or ignorance of the business owner himself.
Most of these criteria are standardized by financial institutions, which allows for integration in a short time, but it is worth considering that each financial institution has its own characteristics and wishes for the client base and the process of withdrawing / accepting funds, which must be taken into account when selecting them and making the final decision.
If you apply for the services of professional intermediaries, you should not seriously worry about this issue, since managers are aware of all the essential features of the work of specific payment systems and banks and will offer you the most optimal solutions, taking into account your wishes, taking on the task of coordinating the integration capabilities of your company's bank and trading accounts.
Features of working with Google, Apple and Facebook
Companies in the field of digital and SEO advertising, and not only, often face the issue of conducting transactions between their company and Google, Apple, Facebook. It's no secret that these companies are conglomerates of the IT industry, but not everyone is familiar with their requirements for partner companies.Perhaps the most serious requirement for carrying out mutual settlements is the coincidence of the country of registration of the company and the jurisdiction of the bank.
In other words, if your company has entered into a contractual relationship with these monopolists, you will need to open a bank account in the country where your company is registered to make payments.
It should be recognized that this requirement is actually feasible, but somewhat labor-intensive, since many European banks, especially in countries such as Switzerland, Germany, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Cyprus, have a requirement for the actual presence of the company in the country, as well as a desire to link the business to this jurisdiction.
Therefore, in order to minimize the costs of organizing the legal and banking component of the company's work, it is necessary to provide for this requirement in advance.
Also, one of the features of working with Google and Facebook is compliance with efficiency requirements: the partner company's advertising revenues, as well as the customer base, should grow and be stable, and expenses over the past 90 days should be at least $ 10,000.
Can I open a merchant account via an offshore account?
Utility Bill, lawyer
There is a common belief that it is possible to open a settlement and trading account only with a European or American company. We can say with confidence that this is not the case.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
Of course, it should be recognized that the company's status jurisdiction is a serious advantage, and European banks in most cases are not ready to open accounts for offshore startup companies with unconfirmed turnover, but there are always exceptions to any rule.
The main thing is to set the right accents and prepare an appropriate business plan.
In addition, when choosing an offshore jurisdiction, you should not exclude offshore banks from the field of view, assuming that they are unreliable. Based on our experience, many of the latter are no less stable than the European ones, and some of them exist and successfully provide banking services for even longer periods of time.
The type of IT business will also be very important when opening a merchant account for an offshore company.
Example
A company whose activities fall under licensing-Forex, gambling, bookmakers, betting, etc. - will most likely not be accepted by European financial institutions without a European license. In this case, companies whose activities will be classified as "low risk" have a much better chance of working with a classic offshore company.
As for the trading account for various categories of offshore IT companies, there are also options for opening, and first of all you should pay attention to the payment aggregators that we mentioned earlier.
Naturally, these options are most applicable to an existing operational business in cases where abandoning an offshore company and a familiar brand may lead to a loss of the customer base, and for a startup, we would recommend stopping at registering a company and opening accounts in Europe.
The most popular payment systems that allow opening settlement and acquiring accounts
| Name of the payment system | Support for SWIFT and SEPA operations | Possibility of opening a merchant account | Possibility of opening a current account (individual IBAN) | Possibility of opening an account with an offshore company | Availability of Russian-speaking staff |
| Connectum (UK) | + | + | + | - | + |
| Skrill (UK) | - | + | - | + | - |
| TransferWise (UK) | + | + | + | - | - |
| MYPOS (UK) | - | + | - | - | - |
| Bilderlings (UK) | + | + | + | + | + |
| EcomPay (UK) | + | + | + | + | + |
| GlobalPay (UK) | - | + | - | - | - |
| Settlego (UK) | + | + | + | - | - |
| Oppay (UK) | - | + | - | + | - |
| PayperPort(UK) | + | + | + | + | - |
| 24/7PAY (UK) | + | + | + | - | + |
| Unlimit (Cyprus) | + | + | + | - | + |
| e-Commerce (Cyprus) | + | + | + | - | - |
| Payoneer | - | + | - | + | + |
| MajorPay | + | + | + | + | - |
| GalaxyPay | - | + | - | + | - |
| PocketPay | + | + | + | - | - |
| AsiaPay (HK) | - | + | - | - | - |
| GA PAY | - | + | - | - | - |
| GamePay | - | + | _ | - | + |
Do I need a real presence in the country of registration of the company to open a current account and merchant account?
Utility Bill, lawyer
It is often required when opening a current account with a bank; payment systems do not often make this requirement, but much depends on the category of IT business and the tasks that the owner sets for himself.
Elvira Kutueva, GSL Financial Manager
Example
If the company's activities are subject to licensing and the license is obtained outside of Europe, or if the site owner is exclusively an offshore company, then to open an acquiring account and bank account, you may need to register an operating European company with an office and employees that performs settlements on behalf of the offshore company.
To date, there are not so many options for opening a bank account for an IT company without a real presence in the country of its registration. First of all, this is due to the specifics of the business itself, since the services sold are often virtual, financial institutions want to receive as confirmation of the reality of the business the real existence of the company (substance) in the country of its registration or operating activity.
General requirements for financial institutions to have an economic presence for opening accounts
Fortunately for the owners of companies, the organization of compliance with this requirement is not as difficult as it may seem initially, because, in general, an office with an employee, mainly outsourced, and a dedicated telephone line are requested, which is also easy to organize.Naturally, even such minimal compliance entails some costs, but it should be borne in mind that all financial market participants and, first of all, the compliance and AML departments that control compliance are trying to find compromise solutions for their clients, providing the opportunity to work with minimal requirements for a real presence.
Business owners can assign the selection of an office and the organization of a telephone line to professional intermediaries involved in opening accounts.
If the company is large and experienced, it has offices and employees in different countries of the world, who, knowing the requirements of a particular bank and payment system for a real presence, can easily choose the most optimal solution for the client company with minimal costs.
Reasons for refusal to open a settlement / acquiring account: types of licensed IT activities
For the most part, the reasons for refusing to open accounts are not commented on by the compliance/ AML services, but based on experience, the main ones include the following::1) non-compliance of the company's activities and jurisdiction with the bank's and/or payment system's policies;
2) the presence of unconfirmed turnover and the lack of a clear and structured business plan;
3) lack of a license (including a European one) to carry out regulated activities, such as::
- forex;
- sphere of gambling;
- online betting;
- bookmakers;
- stock market companies (including those that trade in securities) (stock market and securities).
5) refusal to establish an economic presence of the company in the country of its residence or country of doing business;
6) unwillingness of the owner to disclose the structure of the company and its affiliates, as well as to provide the required information in the framework of compliance / AML verification;
7) intentionally misleading the compliance/ AML service and providing false information.
Today, the feasibility of implementing IT projects is not in doubt, since it is due to the real possibility of opening accounts in banks and payment systems abroad.
Summing up, we can conclude that opening a merchant account abroad for an IT company is indeed a difficult process, requiring a serious analysis of opportunities at the initial stages: from choosing the jurisdiction of a foreign company to selecting a working bundle of bank accounts and payment systems.
However, as fast as the IT industry is developing, financial institutions are also responding to these changes when providing work opportunities.
Despite all the difficulties, it is still possible to choose working options for each type of IT activity, you just need to correctly calculate and assess the risks, carry out serious preparatory work, or choose competent specialists who will represent the interests of your business before all the controlling structures of the bank and/ or payment system.
(c) https://gsl-news.org/582083-kak-otk...t-schet-dlya-it-kompanii-v-inostrannom-banke/
