Who this path is for
- - Startup founders
- - COOs
- - Compliance leads
- - Consultant-prep teams
Starting point
You have a financial services business model and need to know what licence, application evidence, and adviser questions to prepare.
Outcome
You can describe the regulated activity, applicant type, key people, documents, source links, application pack, and likely bottlenecks before hiring external advisers.
Path stages
Stage 1
Convert business model to regulated activity
Use facts, not labels.
- - Map every client journey step: marketing, onboarding, advice, management, dealing, custody, reporting, complaints, and exit.
- - Run the Licence Finder and read the matching licence requirements page.
- - Separate individual approvals from corporate authorisation.
Stage 2
Build the evidence pack
Make the adviser conversation concrete.
- - Read the relevant jurisdiction process page and any route-specific application pack.
- - Prepare people, ownership, governance, compliance, AML/CFT, capital, custody, outsourcing, technology, complaints, reporting, forecasts, and wind-down notes.
- - Keep a source-alignment checklist so every claim can be traced to an official source or a clear adviser question.
Stage 3
Pressure-test timing and bottlenecks
Find the weak points before submission.
- - Use the Timeline Estimator for an indicative range and delay factors.
- - Open public registers for comparable firms and official source pages for the current route.
- - Write adviser questions around any unclear activity, person, capital, custody, or cross-border fact.
Checkpoints
- - I can describe the activity in regulator language.
- - I know whether the applicant is individual, corporate, cross-border, startup, or existing firm variation.
- - I have a list of missing people, policy, capital, custody, and outsourcing evidence.
- - I have official-source links open for every route assumption.
Common mistakes
- - Calling a regulated workflow software, consulting, or education without mapping the facts.
- - Treating people evidence as a CV list instead of competence, authority, time, and supervision evidence.
- - Leaving public-register and official-source checks until after the application narrative is drafted.
Disclaimer
Information on LicenseCompare is for general educational purposes only and does not constitute legal, regulatory, financial, tax, investment, or professional advice. Licensing requirements depend on facts and change over time. Always consult official regulator materials and qualified professional advisers.