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Malta suits e-money issuers that serve the gaming sector or want a rulebook that sets out governance in full, with one licence covering e-money and every payment service across the EU.
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: two directors in Malta, a chair and an MLRO.
The licence, the requirements, the cost and the timing for your business.
You will need two directors based in Malta, a Malta-resident board member, an independent non-executive chair, a compliance officer and an MLRO.
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 issuing stored value to customers in Malta or, through passporting, across the EU and EEA needs an MFSA licence. Malta’s rulebook sets out governance in unusual detail, and its gaming and payments sectors are closely linked. An EMI may provide every payment service under the same licence.
| Requirement | Amount |
|---|---|
| Initial capital | €350,000 |
| Ongoing own funds | Higher of €350,000 and 2% of average daily outstanding e-money |
| Unrelated payment services | Method A, B or C as the MFSA determines |
The current rulebook contains no small EMI waiver; every e-money issuer holds the full licence.
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Statutory decision period | 3 months from receipt; silence is a deemed refusal | Financial Institutions Act, Cap. 376 |
| Regulator’s published figure | Replies to applicant feedback within 20 working days, about 1 month, at each stage | MFSA authorisation process service charter |
| Application preparation | 6 to 8 weeks | From instruction to submission, including banking in parallel |
| Our realistic timeline | 6 to 8 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee | €15,000 | E-money issuance and payment services; €10,000 for one category of activity |
| Annual supervisory fee | €35,000 fixed plus variable | Variable element: the higher of 0.02% of total assets, 0.0003% of payment transactions or 0.01% of average daily outstanding e-money, capped at €250,000 |
| Initial capital | €350,000 | Held before authorisation |
| Professional fees | Fixed | Quoted after scoping |
A Maltese EMI passports throughout the EU and EEA by branch, agent or distributor, or cross-border services, under the European passport rights regulations.
The MFSA publishes stage-level service targets rather than a list of causes of delay. In our experience the three causes are the same as in every EU regime: incomplete submissions, insufficient substance in Malta, and business plans whose assumptions and flows of funds are not clear.
An EMI 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.
Three months from receipt by statute, with silence treated as refusal. Counting the in-principle approval and conditions stages, we plan for six to eight months after submission.
At least three directors, including an independent non-executive director as chair and a Malta-resident member, meeting at least quarterly, with two individuals effectively directing the business from Malta.
€15,000 on application for e-money and payment services, and a fixed annual fee of €35,000 plus a variable element capped at €250,000.
Not in the current rulebook. Every e-money issuer holds the full licence.
Yes. Malta licenses gaming operators under the Malta Gaming Authority and many payment firms serving the sector are authorised there; we obtain both licences.
Buckingham Capital Consulting opens global markets to payment, e-money and crypto businesses: the licences to enter, the banking to operate and the compliance to scale. Founded in 2013, it has obtained more than 250 licences in more than 60 countries.
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.