If you are wondering how to open a bank account for crypto business, then keep reading as we are going to deep dive into this.
The majority of traditional banks and payment institutions, or EMIs, are not opening accounts for crypto-related businesses, and there is a fundamental reason for this: money laundering.
Why Opening A Bank Account For Crypto Business Is So Hard?
Compliance, compliance, and compliance. It is extremely hard or impossible to determine where the money is coming from. Essentially, any financial institution faces a money laundering risk.And such risks are not tolerable, especially for institutions that have top-tier banks as correspondents.
The problem with crypto is that it is extremely hard to determine where the funds came from. Even if the crypto firm is paying regular employees or utilities, such as phone or internet bills, the money was earned in the crypto trading or exchange-related business where users could interact and trade in an undisclosed manner.
Crypto-Friendly Banks and Payment Companies: What to Look For?
There are a huge variety of digital banks and payment providers that serve high-risk industries, but only a small number of those will actually be looking to open accounts for crypto businesses.
Still, there are some, and as such a selection is small, there are some things to pay attention to:
Licence. It is critical that the firm be licenced on-shore, preferably within the EU.
Named IBANs. In case some PSP approves your crypto business, find out if you are going to be provided with an IBAN.
Currencies. The reason we put this as a separate checkpoint is because it is extremely hard to have payment and accounts supported in USD for crypto business, as the majority of USD correspondents are very strict in regards to such transactions. It would be really nice to have multiple currencies available, not just the euro.
Fees. As the number of institutions willing to open an account for crypto-related business is so small, they are usually very aggressive with fees, as the high risk of banking such clients has to be justified. Even though there are ways to reduce such fees to a minimum, And we help clients negotiate that.
Ongoing compliance. It is important to be aware of ongoing compliance with any payments company, as it may cause a lot of operational obstacles. There are a few things to ask before opening an account for crypto business so that there is an understanding of what ongoing compliance will look like:
Transfer limits. What are the limits of money transfers before payments get stopped for a compliance check?
Number of payments allowed. Is there a certain number of payments that can or cannot be processed within a certain period of time?
Types of documents to support payments. Sooner or later, you will be asked by the payment company's compliance department to provide documents supporting the transfer. Be ready and have a clear understanding of what kind of documents will be accepted and how often this will be required.
Monthly minimums. Will there be any minimums to adhere to?
Or similar questions that might look important for your crypto business.
Conclusion.
All in all, it is not easy to open an account for crypto business. Therefore, it is important to have someone besides you who can help, and that is why we are ready to help you! Reach out to us and get a consultation from our expert team!