The process starts with formulating the business plan and financial model. Next is to deal with regulators to assess the qualification of the team you have assembled, the quality of the documents provided, and the amount of capital available.
If your application is approved, you generally will receive a pre-approval to organize. This allows you to form a company with the word “bank” in the name and begin building out your operations (hiring employees, setting up core software systems, etc.).
Then, once you are ready to open your bank to the public, the final step is to ask regulators to review your operations and systems. If you pass their final audit, you will receive your formal permit to operate. Only then may you begin conducting banking business.
We can as well source and negotiate the purchase of an existing bank. This can be completed in 90 days, assuming you have a solid business plan ready. The usual time to launch a new bank is 9 to 18 months depending on the jurisdiction.
In most cases, the time to receive a pre-approval to organize is 3 to 4 months. Then, you have up to a year to build your operation. Finally, you might wait two months for your Permit to Operate.
We can help you to start a bank in Puerto Rico, Dominica, Philippines, Vanuatu and Hong Kong.
The average cost for applying for a new bank is around US$1 million to USD3 million while that for acquiring an existing bank is usually between US$5 million to US$8 million.