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Cross-border payment firms that collect and pay out in Hong Kong, and money changers serving the city, hold the MSO licence, which carries no minimum capital requirement.
Selected engagements from more than 250 licences obtained since 2013, for payment, e-money and cryptoasset 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.
Our realistic timeline from submission to decision.
Safeguarding, operating and settlement accounts opened alongside the application, so you trade on authorisation.
We assemble your team: a compliance officer, MLRO and directors.
The licence, the requirements, the cost and the timing for your business.
You will need a compliance officer and an MLRO, fit and proper directors, and at least one director who passes the department’s competence assessment.
One programme, from scoping to launch. Speak to an expert about this licence.
Requirements, capital, timing, fees and common questions, drawn from the regulator’s own publications.
A business remitting money to or from Hong Kong, or changing currency, needs an MSO licence under the anti-money laundering ordinance unless it holds a stored value facility licence or is an authorised institution providing the service ancillary to its main business. Cross-border payment firms use the MSO licence to collect and pay out in Hong Kong for Asian and global corridors.
| Requirement | Amount |
|---|---|
| Minimum capital | None |
| Ongoing security | None published |
Banks assess an MSO’s financial standing and compliance framework when opening accounts; we prepare that pack alongside the licence.
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Statutory decision period | No statutory period; licence valid for 2 years | Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance |
| Application preparation | 6 to 8 weeks | From instruction to submission, including banking in parallel |
| Our realistic timeline | 2 to 3 months after submission | Our own figure, from the regulator’s published data and our applications |
Regulator figures are quoted as published and converted to months. Our realistic timeline assumes a complete, well-prepared application.
| Item | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| New licence | HK$3,810 | Plus HK$2,440 per additional premises and HK$945 per person subject to the fit and proper test; non-refundable |
| Renewal | HK$910 | Plus HK$410 per additional premises and HK$945 per person |
| Approval of a new director, owner or partner | HK$945 | Each |
| Adding premises | HK$2,440 | Each |
| Professional fees | Fixed | Quoted after scoping |
The licence covers Hong Kong. Cross-border operators pair it with licences in their other markets; we obtain each, including the Singapore payment institution licences and the Hong Kong stored value facility licence for firms that also hold balances.
The department publishes its grounds for refusal: not meeting the fit and proper test; unsuitable premises or a missing local management office or record store; a business plan or anti-money laundering policy below its guidelines; no competent compliance officer or MLRO; an incomplete application; no director attending or passing the competence assessment. Refusals may be appealed to the review tribunal within 21 days.
A payment institution needs a safeguarding account, an operating account and settlement accounts in the currencies it serves. We open each alongside the application, so you trade from authorisation. See banking and payment processing.
No. The department publishes no capital requirement; banks assess financial standing when opening accounts.
Yes, as a registered non-Hong Kong company with a business registration certificate, a local management office or premises, and a local record store.
A test set by the department that a sole proprietor, or at least one director or partner, must pass.
Two years, renewed at least 45 days before expiry.
No, where remittance or money-changing is ancillary to the stored value facility.
A regulatory advisory firm to payment, e-money and cryptoasset companies since 2013, with more than 250 licences obtained in more than 60 countries. The firm builds licensed payment, e-money, crypto and stablecoin businesses: the licence, the team, the technology, the bank accounts and card issuing.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Requirements and fees change, and the regulator’s own publications take precedence.
The licence, your team, banking and technology, delivered as one programme.