To apply for fintech licenses, in most cases,  the business should be incorporated in the jurisdiction where it intends to obtain a license. Though some licenses do not make it compulsory and allow as a minimum requirement to have a registered branch with an established place of business in the country, it is highly recommended to incorporate a separate local legal entity.

The new company incorporation process differs from one jurisdiction to another. You can refer to this article to check the company formation process in Singapore and Hong Kong, but our team is ready to handle your individual case in other jurisdictions across Asia as well.

Planning to operate in the fintech & crypto sphere with a new company, you need to understand the requirements for the initial capital, shareholders, and directors profiles, and AML/KYC officers for specific business activities you intend to provide in the future. From the company formation step, the Sino Fintech team provides detailed information about further requirements to operate in the chosen jurisdiction.

Company registration in Singapore is an easy and fast process. A business can be incorporated in just 1-3 business days with all the necessary documents.

Company registration in Hong Kong is a fast and relatively inexpensive process. The company is incorporated in just 1-5 days from the date of documents submitted to the Companies Registry.

Sino Fintech New Company Formation services include:

• Business model analysis, white paper analysis (for crypto-related projects), and advice on the best jurisdiction for company formation for your business needs;     
• Detailed consultation about further licensing activities and requirements so that you can choose the company structure and management board accordingly;
• Company name availability check;
• Preparation and filing of all the required documents;
• Payment of all government fees;
• New company kit (Share Certificate, all corporate documents, company chops, etc.).

We use an individual approach to every business and will happily assist you in expanding to Asia.

Whether it is required by imperative law in the country to have a local director and other local employees or you decide to hire local personnel by your own choice to conduct business operations in the region in the best manner, Sino Fintech can assist you in finding proper candidates.
For example, in Singapore, any company should have at least one director who is a Singapore citizen, Permanent Resident, or holder of an EntrePass visa. This is a regulation of the country's Companies Act.
The Payment Services Act requires that any applicant applying for an SPI license must have either:
- at least 1 executive director who is a Singapore Citizen or Singapore Permanent Resident
- at least 1 non-executive director who is a Singapore Citizen or Singapore Permanent Resident and at least 1 executive director who is a Singapore Employment Pass Holder.
If you need someone to act as a resident director for your new company, we will help you hire a person for a nominee director fee.

Singaporean payment institutions (both MPIs and SPIs) can choose one of the two following ways to organize their compliance function:
- An independent compliance function - The applicant should put in place an independent compliance function in Singapore with suitably qualified staff. Compliance staff may perform other non-conflicting and complementary roles, such as that of an in-house legal counsel.
- Compliance support from a holding company or an overseas-related entity - The applicant may obtain compliance support from an independent and dedicated compliance team at its holding company or an overseas-related entity, provided that it can demonstrate that there is adequate oversight by the applicant’s compliance officer, sole-proprietor, partners, or directors and CEO, and other senior management.
Whereas the Sino Fintech team is ready to handle Compliance and MLRO outsourcing for your Singaporean Payment Institution, we can also assist you in hiring a qualified local employee upon your request. Our vast regional network helps us recruit specialists that are certified in compliance by recognizable institutions.

If you need to hire local employees for your local office, we provide recruiting services for your needs.
You should know about a quota system if you need to hire foreign employees as Foreign Workers or S pass holders. You must hire a certain number of Singapore residents in the company before work pass to a foreigner can be applied for. The quota varies from sector to sector.
If you are hiring employees in the technical, managerial, and specialist roles under employment pass, then the quota rule does not apply.

Besides Singapore, Sino Fintech provides recruitment services in multiple jurisdictions across Asia.

Sino Fintech team provides ongoing legal services tailored for fintech, blockchain, and crypto companies. Our services include but are not limited to the legal services mentioned below.

Ongoing legal consulting
You can not only involve Sino Fintech for exact assignments but outsource the legal function of your company to our team. Having a multinational team and a vast network of lawyers practising in different jurisdictions, Sino Fintech can handle various legal tasks and ensure complex protection for your business. Besides, if you are a startup business without an in-house legal department, it would be more cost-effective for you to outsource legal tasks than to build a legal department internally.

Contract drafting
Whether you need a contract with clients, partners, or suppliers, the Sino Fintech team can draft a contract that minimises risks and protects your rights and business interests. We have vast experience in bilingual contracts in English and Chinese. Our multinational team can also draft contracts in other languages upon your request.

Contract review
If you receive a contract from your potential client, partner, or supplier, we can check the contract, identify potential risks for you and suggest amendments. We also can communicate contract amendments with your contractor on your behalf.
Contracts with digital currencies have certain specific features. For example, if the payment under the contract is in digital currency, it is important to understand the legal nature of digital currency in the law applicable to the contract: is digital currency a legal tender there or not, what are the taxation rules, etc.

Due diligence
Due diligence is necessary in various cases, and performing it properly in high-risk industries is essential. For example, if your company invests in projects with tokens in a private round or in crowdfunding or if your company acquires equity in a business with tokens, due diligence should include analysis of token economics and token legal nature.

Besides, Sino Fintech team provides operating compliance services, security, and data protection services, intellectual property services, drafting corporate policies, and legal opinions on various issues – they are described on relevant pages.

Fintech, blockchain, and crypto companies are facing various risks. It is crucial to implement corporate policies that would help to mitigate risks. Some corporate policies are necessary by imperative laws (for example, for licensed entities AML, KYC policies are mandatory). Other policies are not mandatory by laws, but they can help you to protect your business (for example, the Risk management policy outlines steps that company management should do to prevent and mitigate risks, the Intellectual property policy protects your technical solution from copying, etc.)
The Sino Fintech team drafts complex corporate policies for different jurisdictions across Asia. We consider the applicable law of the jurisdiction where your company is incorporated, the jurisdiction of your permanent places of business, and the jurisdiction of the physical location of your end customers (when the policy is connected with customer relations).

Here are some of the key corporate policies that fintech, blockchain, and crypto businesses should consider implementing:
Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Policy: Fintech and crypto companies must implement AML policies to prevent their platforms from being used for money laundering or terrorist financing. The AML policy should outline procedures for customer due diligence, transaction monitoring, and reporting suspicious activities.
Know Your Customer (KYC) and Know Your Business (KYB) Policy: Fintech and crypto companies should implement a KYC and KYB policy to verify the identity of their customers and ensure they are not engaging in illegal activities. The policy should specify the types of documents required for identification, the procedures for verification, and the frequency of updates. The Know Your Transaction (KYT) Policy should also be in force if the business nature is connected with transaction processing.

Privacy Policy: Fintech and crypto companies should have a privacy policy outlining how they collect, use, and disclose their customers' personal data. The Privacy policy should specify the purpose of data collection, the types of data collected, and the measures taken to protect customer data. It is necessary to understand where your business can store the end customers’ data in accordance with the rules of their country of citizenship and/or country of residence.
Chinese PIPL (Personal Information Protection Law) determines "sensitive data'' similar to the European GDPR and even goes slightly further, classing sensitive data as any information which may cause material harm to an individual if it's leaked or illegally used. Opposite the European GDPR that applies to the data protection of all EU citizens, Chinese PIPL chooses the territorial scope of data protection. Chinese PIPL applies to:

• The handling of personal information within China's borders;
• Any handling of personal data outside China if it's related to selling goods or services to people within China.

Those details can influence the process of how one business treats the sensitive data of its different users. So, it is extremely important for a company to outline the guideline in the Privacy Policy.
Information Security Policy: Fintech and crypto companies must implement a comprehensive information security policy to protect their platforms from cyber-attacks and data breaches. The policy should outline procedures for access control, encryption, data backup, and incident response. If any technical certifications are required (for example, PCI DSS certification for payment processing), it should be mentioned in the Information Security Policy.
Code of Conduct and Ethics: Fintech and crypto companies should have a code of conduct and ethics that define the expected behaviour of their employees and the consequences of violating company policies. The policy should outline the principles of honesty, integrity, and transparency principles that govern the company's operations.
Risk Management Policy: Fintech and crypto companies should implement a risk management policy to identify, assess, and manage risks associated with their business. The policy should outline risk assessment, mitigation, and monitoring procedures.
Intellectual Property Policy: When a technological fintech or blockchain company develops new technologies, it should protect this technology from third-party use. Intellectual Property Policy should outline the process to protect know-how, patent inventions, and deal with the employees and independent contractors that create innovations for the company.
Token Sales Policy: Whether a start-up initiates crowdfunding and sells tokens, individuals from different jurisdictions can buy tokens by using their cryptocurrencies. Different rules should apply depending on the jurisdiction of citizenship and residence of the token supply. Before token sales start, it is essential to draft a Token Sales Policy and mention in it restricted jurisdictions and rules for token buyers. Depending on the legal nature of your token, you might have different regulations for qualified investors.

The Sino Fintech team is ready to draft various corporate policies that your business requires to minimize risks. 

Legal opinion about the legal nature of a token
A security token is a digital asset, the purchase of which vests the owner with several rights that are similar to securities such as bonds or stocks. To understand if a token falls into the scope of securities, a lawyer shall observe the WhitePaper and the project website on the following:
- promising returns to token buyers,
- mentioning a potential increase in value from ongoing efforts of the company to give the token utility, and
- mentioning a possible increase in value from listing on the secondary market and making announcements regarding exchange listing.
According to Howey Test, developed by the US Supreme Court and used as an unwritten international standard to characterize individual transactions in cryptocurrencies as investment contracts, a token is a security if the project (platform) has:
- Investment of funds in the project;
- Investments will be made in a common enterprise;
- One of the main goals of investors is - the expectation of profit from the project.
Besides the Howey Test, a lawyer shall analyze laws on securities of a jurisdiction for which a legal opinion is requested.