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Agency forex and money market brokers serving institutional and high net worth clients across Asia choose Labuan for a 3% tax rate on audited profits and a client charter measured in weeks.
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.
Client money and liquidity provider accounts opened alongside the application, so you trade on authorisation.
We assemble your team: a principal officer and two staff in Labuan.
The licence, the requirements, the cost and the timing for your business.
You will need two directors, a principal officer to run the firm, a Labuan contact person and two full-time staff in Labuan for the 3% tax rate.
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 arranging transactions between buyers and sellers in the money or foreign exchange markets as an intermediary, for brokerage or commission, from Labuan needs a money broking licence under Part VI of the Labuan Financial Services and Securities Act 2010. Forex brokers operating an agency model are the main applicants. The licence excludes buying or selling currency as principal, liquidity provider or market maker, and products outside the money and foreign exchange markets, including CFDs whose underlying is not money or foreign exchange. Brokers transact in foreign currency only, use Ringgit solely for administrative and statutory expenses, and may not deal with Malaysian residents other than authorised dealers under the Exchange Control Act 1953. Audited net profits are taxed at 3% where the substance requirements are met.
| Type | Scope | Paid-up capital | Annual fee from 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Money broker (conventional) | Money and foreign exchange market activities (paragraph 6.1 of the guidelines) | RM1,000,000 | US$5,000 |
| Money broker with digital asset activities | Adds bringing counterparties together to trade digital assets without securities features and operating an order-matching facility (paragraph 6.2) | RM1,500,000 | US$10,000 |
| Islamic money broker | The same activities under the Labuan Islamic Financial Services and Securities Act, with a Shariah adviser | As above | As above |
| Requirement | Amount |
|---|---|
| Money broking (money and foreign exchange) | RM1,000,000 |
| With digital asset broking | RM1,500,000 |
| Shareholder reserve | A further 20% expected in reserve |
| Tax substance | 2 full-time employees and RM100,000 annual operating expenditure in Labuan |
Capital must be unimpaired by losses at all times, with certified evidence of deposit at a bank in Labuan or Malaysia; Labuan FSA may require more by risk and scale. Brokers licensed under the 2017 guidelines had one year to raise capital by at least half and two years to comply in full.
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Statutory decision period | No statutory decision period published; Labuan FSA applies its client charter | Labuan Financial Services and Securities Act 2010, Part VI |
| Regulator’s published figure | 30 working days, about 1.5 months, for a money broker licence; 15 working days, about 0.75 month, fast track | Labuan FSA client charter |
| Application preparation | 4 to 6 weeks | From instruction to submission, including banking in parallel |
| Our realistic timeline | 2 to 3 months after submission, allowing for information requests and the capital injection and office set-up on approval | 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Processing fee | US$350 | With Form LFB-MB under the 2024 guidelines; the Labuan FSA fee schedule lists licence application US$500 and fast-track processing US$1,500 |
| Annual licence fee, conventional | US$5,000 | From 1 January 2026, payable on or before 15 January; existing licensees pay US$1,500 in 2026 and US$3,250 in 2027 |
| Annual licence fee, digital asset | US$10,000 | From 1 January 2026; existing licensees pay US$1,500 in 2026 and US$5,750 in 2027 |
| Marketing office outside Labuan | US$500 | Establishment; US$3,500 a year |
| Paid-up capital | RM1,000,000 | RM1,500,000 with digital asset broking |
| Tax | 3% of audited net profits | With two full-time Labuan employees and RM100,000 of annual Labuan expenditure |
| Professional fees | Fixed | Quoted after scoping |
The licence covers business from Labuan; there is no passport. Operating in Malaysia or in Ringgit needs prior approval from the Malaysian authorities. A marketing office outside Labuan is permitted under the marketing office guidelines. Where a client’s jurisdiction has no licensing regime for the activity, Labuan FSA may accept a local legal opinion; where it has one, the broker obtains the local approval. For groups serving those markets, we obtain the EU, UK or Australian authorisation alongside the Labuan licence.
Labuan FSA publishes its eligibility tests. It looks for money broking expertise and a track record, a letter of awareness or consent from the home supervisor of a broker regulated abroad, adequate financial resources, a credible business plan and a sound management structure. The 30-working-day charter runs from a complete submission; further information requests extend it. Non-compliance with the guidelines after licensing attracts administrative penalties or enforcement under the Labuan Financial Services Authority Act. Brokers that need more time to meet transition deadlines request an extension with mitigating measures, assessed case by case.
A broker needs segregated client money accounts marked per client, an operating account and settlement accounts in the currencies it serves, and regulated principal broker, custodian, payment provider and liquidity provider relationships notified to Labuan FSA before they start. Banks and liquidity providers review the licence scope, the client money arrangements, the leverage policy and the financial crime framework before onboarding. We open each alongside the application, so you trade on licensing. See banking and payment processing.
Labuan FSA’s client charter is 30 working days, about 1.5 months, or 15 working days fast track. We plan for two to three months after submission, allowing for information requests and the capital injection and office set-up on approval.
RM1,000,000 paid up, or RM1,500,000 with digital asset broking, under the September 2024 guidelines; the earlier RM500,000 figure no longer applies. Labuan FSA expects shareholders to hold a further 20% in reserve.
No. Money broking is intermediation for brokerage or commission; dealing as principal, liquidity provider or market maker is outside the licence, and CFDs whose underlying is not money or foreign exchange are not permitted.
At most 100:1, a minimum margin of 1%, for money and foreign exchange; 1:1 for digital assets; with stop-loss safeguards.
Only authorised dealers under the Exchange Control Act 1953. Brokers transact in foreign currency only; operating in Malaysia or in Ringgit needs prior approval from the Malaysian authorities.
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.