Licensing for iGaming, Crypto and Fintech businesses.
Jurisdiction selection, application drafting, substance build-out, regulator communication and ongoing regulatory support — handled in-house by named people. We work in the jurisdictions where we can operate end-to-end, and we say so honestly if a case is outside our scope.
Three industries. One operating model.
Licensing is rarely a paperwork exercise. It connects to your corporate structure, your AML framework, your banking partners, your tax position and your investor narrative. We treat it as one integrated workstream.
iGaming and gambling licensing.
We assist with obtaining gambling licences in jurisdictions suited to your project — typically Curaçao, Kahnawake, Anjouan, Isle of Man and Malta (MGA). We assess Nevis, Tobique and other emerging jurisdictions case-by-case where the regulatory framework and banking outlook support an operator. We do not present jurisdictions where filings are paused or where we cannot deliver end-to-end.
Master and sub-licences
B2B and B2C structures, jurisdictional sub-licensing where the master licensor allows it, and direct licences where the regulator supports them.
Launching from scratch
Coordinated approach to licensing, platform selection, payment and acquiring partners, AML procedures and gamification strategy — sourced from specialised providers we have worked with before.
Restricted-market coverage
Where operators run hybrid brands, we plan secondary licensing to cover grey-market exposure so a compliance issue in one entity does not invalidate the licence of another.
Crypto and Web3 authorisations.
MiCA changed the EU crypto licensing landscape. We help identify whether your activity requires CASP authorisation, which member-state route fits your product, capital and timeline, and what banking and custody partners are realistic at your stage. Outside the EU, we work in Switzerland, the UAE and Liechtenstein where the regulatory framework is mature.
CASP / VASP authorisation
Activity mapping, business plan, AML manual, risk assessment, governance pack and fit-and-proper dossiers for directors and UBOs. Jurisdictional fit checked before filing.
Conversion of legacy registrations
Older VASP registrations (Lithuania, Czech Republic and others) generally do not auto-renew under MiCA. We audit the gap to CASP requirements and file the upgrade inside the transitional window.
Custody and payment integration
Qualified custodian selection, treasury policy, hot/cold split, multi-sig setup, and integration with crypto-aware payment processors — sequenced with the licence application so banking is in place at go-live.
Payment institutions and e-money licensing.
Full EMI and small-EMI authorisations across Lithuania, Ireland, Malta, Estonia and via FCA-registered UK partners. Payment institution authorisation (authorised and small PI) for acquiring, money remittance and payment initiation services. Where speed-to-market matters more than margin, we plan an agency-programme launch in parallel with own-licence filing.
Full and small EMI
Capital structuring, safeguarding plan, governance, AML framework and outsourcing register — drafted in-house, reviewed by regulated counsel in the filing jurisdiction.
Agency programmes
Launch under a BaaS or principal partner to be live faster while own-licence runs in parallel. We design the architecture so compliance does not need to be rebuilt at upgrade.
Rescue and re-filing
Stalled applications audited file-by-file: where the regulator is actually stuck, what the AML manual is missing, and what re-drafting is needed. We take over regulator liaison where useful.
Structure, substance and the people who sign.
A licensed business is only as resilient as its governance. We provide the structural pieces that regulators, banks and investors all look at twelve months later — and that founders rarely have time to design correctly the first time.
Nominee director services
Qualified, named professional directors with regulated-industry experience. We do not provide anonymous shelf nominees — banks and regulators see through them inside the first review.
Corporate secretary
Statutory filings, board calendar, register maintenance, minutes and resolutions — kept audit-ready throughout the engagement so a regulator inspection is not a project.
Company structuring
Holding and operating-entity design for regulated businesses, including jurisdictional fit, substance footprint, dividend flow and permanent-establishment review.
AML / compliance frameworks
Risk appetite, AML manual, transaction monitoring rulebook, onboarding flows, suspicious-transaction reporting and ongoing review cycle — drafted to the specific regulator's expectations.
Regulatory structuring
Where the product spans multiple licensable activities, we map which entity holds which authorisation, where the licensable boundary sits, and where exemptions realistically apply.
Ongoing regulatory support
Policy updates, renewals, key-person changes, rule-change monitoring and inspection-readiness across the lifecycle of the licence.
Five steps, agreed in writing.
We do not bill hourly on licensing files. Stage 1 is always fixed; subsequent stages are fixed once the diagnostic is complete. Project milestones are written into the engagement letter, and weekly status updates keep deviations visible early.
Diagnostic call
30 minutes. We map your product, target markets, cap table, capital budget and the realistic regulator appetite for your activity.
Jurisdiction memo
Written recommendation comparing 3–5 candidate jurisdictions: capital, timeline, banking outlook, substance bar, ongoing cost. Yours to keep, with or without us.
Pre-clearance, filing and substance
Where the regulator allows informal pre-clearance, we engage early. UBO and source-of-funds dossiers, AML manual, governance pack, substance set-up and licence filing — in parallel where the regulator permits.
Regulator Q&A
We lead the back-and-forth, draft responses and keep a single shared status document. You handle the product; we handle the paperwork.
Ongoing operations
Renewals, policy updates, regulator inspection readiness, key-person changes, and integration with accounting and audit for licensed entities.
Licensing engagement deliverables.
Every licensing engagement produces a defined set of documents and working systems — not a "file submitted, wait and see" arrangement.
Jurisdiction comparison memo and recommendation
Application roadmap and document checklist
Business plan and regulated activity description
AML/KYC policy package and risk assessment
Substance and governance setup documentation
Regulator communication & application management
Post-approval compliance calendar and renewal schedule
UBO and source-of-funds dossier
Corporate governance pack (board calendar, resolutions, secretary)
Common questions about licensing.
Short answers below. We expand each on the diagnostic call against the specifics of your file.
Which licences can Yourshield help me obtain?
We focus on iGaming licences (Curaçao, Kahnawake, Anjouan, Isle of Man, Malta MGA), crypto authorisations (VASP/CASP in Lithuania, Czech Republic, Switzerland, UAE, Liechtenstein) and fintech licences (EMI, small EMI, payment institution) across the EU and UK. Other authorisations are assessed case-by-case on the first call.
How long does a licence application typically take?
Timelines vary by jurisdiction, regulator workload, completeness of UBO and source-of-funds documentation and the complexity of the business model. We give an indicative window on the first call and confirm a realistic timeline in the engagement letter — but we do not guarantee third-party regulator decisions.
Do you guarantee that a licence will be approved?
No. Licensing outcomes depend on the regulator, applicable law and the specifics of each file. We pre-qualify cases before engagement and decline files where we do not believe approval is realistic — but no consultant can guarantee a regulator's decision.
Do you provide nominee directors or corporate secretary services?
Yes, in jurisdictions where this is permitted and appropriate. We provide qualified, named professional directors and corporate secretary services as part of substance build-out for regulated entities — not anonymous shelf nominees.
What does ongoing regulatory support cover?
Policy updates, AML and KYC manual reviews, regulator inspection readiness, licence renewals, fit-and-proper updates for new key persons, and monitoring of rule changes that affect your authorisation.
Can you help with launching an online casino from scratch?
Yes — licensing, corporate structuring, AML and compliance frameworks, banking and payment processing coordination, and platform / PSP selection. The actual casino platform and game content are sourced from specialised providers; we coordinate procurement and integration but do not develop game software.
Tell us what you're licensing. We'll tell you what's realistic.
30-minute diagnostic call. You leave with a view on jurisdiction fit, banking outlook and a realistic timeline — whether or not you hire us.