Authorisations of new financial services institutions

The set-up of a new financial services entity can be a complex process. Access of new market players is regulated by specific legislation providing detailed requirements for the overall licensing process with the competent authorities. From fit and proper requirements for shareholders to comprehensive business plans, these authorization processes may take longer than you would expect. 

New shareholder approval

Partial or full ownership changes are subject to pre-approval or notification requirements to the relevant competent authority. Recent market consolidation trends have triggered numerous ownership changes, either full ownership or simply acquisitions of controlling stakes by new investors. 

The importance of such transactions and the effort put in such processes can be easily overshadowed if the authorization process with the competent authority is treated too lightly. We are best positioned to stand by you from the initial contact of supervisory authority to the detailed clearance of any issued requirement, however hard to fulfil it may be. We have been working closely with the supervisory authorities in the past 10 years allowing us to respond promptly and expertly to any issues raised by the competent authorities.

A typical new shareholder authorization is focused around the following components:

• Experience and expertise of the acquirer and its management;
• Presentation of planned financials for 3 years ahead;
• Outline of integration plans following acquisition; and
• Outline of corporate governance arrangements and any organizational changes planned.

Other approvals

We have also supported our clients in other types of internal changes which require the competent authority’s approval, such as:

• New management approval;
• Extension of existing activities; and
• Authorization of new regulatory models for capital requirements computation

How we can help you?

We can support you step-by-step throughout the authorization process by providing the right experts equipped with regulatory proof solutions covering key components such as:

• Structured business plans built to fully cover applicable regulatory requirements;
• Financial modelling solutions, scalable to various levels of detail;
• Advanced market analysis capabilities including forecasting of key trends and indicators
• Access to bank financial & operating performance benchmarking database covering 7 years of data (banking);
• Corporate governance models adapted to internal & external requirements;
• Documented processes around key operational areas; and
• Regulatory accepted capital and risk management frameworks.