| Abu Dhabi (ADGM) | ADGM FSRA Financial Services Permission (FSP) | USD 250,000–500,000 base plus EBCM | USD 830,000-2,940,000 by permission class (statutory FSRA application plus first-year supervision 50,000-250,000; build 775,000-2,690,000). Excludes base capital, which is held, not spent | 6–18 months | 9% | Clear |
| Antigua and Barbuda | Digital Asset Business licence (activity-based) + renewable Sandbox licence | No fixed paid-up share capital in the Act for the company. Statutory deposit (minimum risk capital) scaled by activity and client assets under management: EC$50,000-100,000 (~US$18,500-37,000) most categories; EC$100,000-300,000 (~US$37,000-111,000) for an exchange, by turnover band. Held as cash, a bank line of credit, or liability insurance, deposited with or approved by the Commission | USD 34,100-64,100 for the non-exchange smallest band, excluding the statutory deposit, which is held rather than spent (application fee EC$10,000, due diligence EC$6,800 per principal for two to four principals, the Year-1 annual licence fee EC$20,000, IBC formation with registered agent, professional and advisory work, and the s.21/s.22 principal office and senior representative). The published floor read 30,000 until 2026-08-27 and was 4,100 BELOW the page's own rows; the money column was not last, so the sum gate could not see it | 2–4 months | 25% | Clear |
| Argentina | PSAV (Virtual Asset Service Provider) registration with the CNV; mandatory, 5 activity categories | Minimum net worth by category: USD 150,000 (Cat. 1, 2, 4); USD 75,000 (Cat. 3); USD 35,000 (Cat. 5). Halved to USD 75,000 (Cats. 1 and 2), USD 37,500 (Cat. 3) and USD 75,000 (Cat. 4) where the provider is under USD 2,500,000 over the prior 12 months - TRANSACTED volume for Cats. 1 to 3, CUSTODIED volume for Cat. 4. Category 5 is excluded from the reduction by CNV NORMAS Title XIV Chapter III Article 9, so USD 35,000 applies at any volume. A provider registered in two or more categories meets the most demanding threshold. Client virtual assets are segregated and excluded from net worth (Article 16) | USD 27,000-58,000 all-in Year 1 (includes the first-year CNV tasa) | 3–6 months | 35% | Clear |
| Australia | AUSTRAC VASP registration (ex-DCE, auto-rolled 31 Mar 2026) + ASIC AFSL + DAP/TCP (from 9 Apr 2027) | None (AUSTRAC) / AUD 50,000 NTA (AFSL base) | AUD 187,708-506,912 plus capital lock-up (statutory 4,108-9,412: ASIC AFSL application 2,233-7,537, ASIC industry levy 1,500, AFCA 375; AUSTRAC registration is nil; build 183,600-497,500) | 5–8 months | 30% | Clear |
| Bahamas | Digital asset business registration under DARE (2 fee classes: digital asset exchange; all other digital asset businesses) plus token offering filings | No fixed statutory minimum; DARE s.15 sufficient-financial-resources test, case-by-case SCB assessment | 47,000–150,000 USD | 3–6 months | 0% | Clear |
| Belize | Digital Asset Services Licence | No bespoke digital-asset capital figure in SI 162/2025; reg.6(1) requires compliance with the FSC (Capital Requirements) Regulations 2020 and the Economic Substance Act 2019, proportionate to risk and scale. No crypto-specific paid-up capital figure published as of June 2026. Circulating USD 75,000-500,000 figures relate to forex/securities/IFSC-era licences, not the digital asset licence | USD 20,000 government fees (USD 5,000 application + USD 15,000 licence under SI 162/2025 Schedule); plus professional setup, capital, and substance costs | 3–6 months | 0% | Clear |
| Bermuda | DABA Digital Asset Business Licence (Class T / Class M / Class F) | USD 100,000 baseline net assets (Class M, Class F); USD 10,000 (Class T); BMA discretion to direct materially higher amounts based on activity, scale, and risk (Class T USD 10,000 is a time-bound test licence, not an operating floor) | USD 377,266-1,460,266 Class F (statutory BMA application plus grant and first annual fee 17,266-302,266 at the published activity minimums; build 360,000-1,158,000). Class T is materially cheaper: statutory USD 3,000, build 85,000-218,000 | 6–12 months | 0% | Clear |
| British Virgin Islands | VASP Registration | None | USD 40,000–156,000 | 4–6 months | 0% | Grey-listed |
| Bulgaria | MiCA CASP authorisation | EUR 50,000 | EUR 74,818-260,813 excluding paid-in capital (statutory 5,318-36,813: FSC authorisation fee 5,113-30,678 by class plus the first-year supervision fee; build 69,500-224,000) | 4–9 months | 10% | Grey-listed |
| Canada | Dual-track: CSA securities registration (restricted dealer / investment dealer) + CIRO membership, plus FINTRAC money services business (MSB) registration; no single unitary crypto licence | None for a FINTRAC-only MSB (the primary route); CAD 50,000 (registered dealer, NI 31-103) | CAD 226,500-517,500 excluding capital (statutory 64,500-91,500: CIRO entrance 40,000, OSC restricted-dealer 24,500, marketplace relief and Bank of Canada PSP where applicable; FINTRAC registration is nil; build 162,000-426,000) | 12–24 months | 26.5% | Clear |
| Cayman Islands | VASP Registration or Licence (dual-track) | None (statutory) | Statutory USD 3,000-19,493 (Registration) / 80,468-190,224 (Custody) / 190,224-373,151 (VATP), per Schedule 2 of the VASP Amendment Regulations 2025; build USD 175,000-1,520,000 quoted per case | 3–12 months | 0% | Clear |
| Comoros (Anjouan) | International Brokerage and Clearing House Licence with crypto activities certificate | No fixed minimum | USD 19,000-49,500 build, quoted per case. NO STATUTORY COST EXISTS AND NONE IS TOTALLED HERE: the AOFA levies USD 5,500-25,000 for its crypto certificate and about 300 for the IBC, but the Banque Centrale des Comores names that authority among bodies holding no legal authorisation, and a charge levied without authority is not a lawful fee to add into a cost of doing business. It is recorded in govt_fees_native as what is demanded, not as what is owed | 1–2 months | 0% | Clear |
| Costa Rica | No crypto licence; SUGEF VASP AML registration (voluntary APNFD today; mandatory under Article 15 quater post-Expediente 25.340) | No fixed minimum (nominal CRC 10,000–100,000 declared in practice) | USD 5,984-21,714 (statutory 884-1,414: Registro Nacional registration tax, timbres, La Gaceta publication, the first-year Law 9428 corporation tax, and CRC 181,500 for the notarial incorporation deed at the arancel art. 95(a) reference tariff, projected to USD 400 at the canonical 28 August 2026 FX rate; SUGEF APNFD inscription under Acuerdo SUGEF 11-18 carries NO fee and is expressly not an authorisation to operate; build 5,100-20,300 quoted per case). The resident agent is GONE from both halves: Ley 10.597 of 30 May 2025 repealed art. 18(13) of the Codigo de Comercio and replaced it with a registered corporate email address | 3–6 months | 30% | Clear |
| Cyprus | MiCA CASP authorisation | €50,000 | EUR 217,000-462,000 (statutory 28,000-64,000 CySEC application fees by service; build 189,000-398,000 quoted per case) | 8–14 months | 15% | Clear |
| Czech Republic | MiCA CASP authorisation | €50,000 (Class 1) / €125,000 (Class 2) / €150,000 (Class 3) per MiCAR Annex IV | EUR 232,000-604,000 excluding initial capital (statutory CZK 27,000-30,000, about EUR 1,090-1,215: CNB application state fee CZK 20,000, commercial-court registration CZK 6,000, UBO filing CZK 1,000-4,000; build 231,000-603,000 quoted per case) | 9–18 months | 21% | Clear |
| Dominica | Virtual Asset Business certificate of registration (single type) | No fixed minimum capital. The 2024 Regulations (reg 6) require capital and liquidity adequate to the nature, size, and complexity of the business; the FSU may require additional capital/liquidity by written notice on the risk profile. Quasi-capital protections: 40% of total client funds in escrow with a registered trust/custodial provider (Act s11); custodian must hold more of each virtual asset than its client obligations (reg 10); mandatory insurance on FSU terms (reg 25) | Government fees EC$43,200 (application EC$10,800 + registration EC$32,400) ~USD 16,000; professional costs (formation, resident representative, AML build, insurance, banking) separate and not publicly benchmarked because no registrant is on the public record | 3–6 months | 25% | Clear |
| El Salvador | CNAD Digital Asset Service Provider (DASP / PSAD) registration | USD 2,000 paid-in (general Salvadoran corporate law); 5% (USD 100) payable at incorporation, balance within 12 months. CNAD may require additional capital based on risk profile | USD 53,200-150,000 (statutory 5,659-5,709: CNAD initial DASP registration USD 5,475, fifteen minimum wages payable in USD or BTC within ten days of a favourable resolution, plus CNR entity registration USD 184.25; build 47,500-144,300 quoted per case) | 3–6 months | 0% | Clear |
| Estonia | MiCA CASP authorisation | €50,000 | EUR 132,700-312,000 fully outsourced (statutory 4,200-8,000: Finantsinspektsioon application processing fee EUR 3,000 plus the supervisory fee, itself an equity-based part from EUR 1,200 and an assets-based part set annually by the Minister of Finance; build 128,500-304,000 quoted per case). A minimal configuration lands near EUR 80,000 | 6–12 months | 0% | Clear |
| Georgia | Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) registration with the National Bank of Georgia, by activity | None (statutory). No VASP-specific minimum capital; a Georgian LLC can be formed with nominal share capital. NBG assesses financial soundness case-by-case where client assets are held. Separately, general company law requires a JSC to have GEL 100,000 authorised capital (25% paid in), but an LLC has no minimum. | USD 14,925-43,000 (statutory 1,925-2,000: NBG VASP registration GEL 5,000 plus company registration GEL 200-400; build 13,000-41,000). No annual state fee: statutory Year 2 is nil | 2–4 months | 0% | Clear |
| Gibraltar | DLT Provider Licence (custodial) / Virtual Asset Arrangement Provider Licence (non-custodial, from 27 October 2025) | No fixed statutory minimum; risk-based under Principle 3; market practice £100,000–£250,000+ for low-complexity firms, £1m+ for full custodial exchanges | GBP 353,437-881,137 (statutory 88,437-181,137: GFSC application 45,000, base fee 12,254, additional fee 28,183, AML fee 3,000 and the volume fee up to 92,700; build 265,000-700,000) | 9–12 months | 15% | Clear |
| Hong Kong | SFC VATP licence (SFO Type 1 + Type 7 + AMLO Part 5B) | HKD 8m (5m paid-up + 3m liquid) | HKD 7,042,660-15,053,400 (statutory 42,660-53,400: SFC and AMLO application and approval fees for a dual-regime platform with two responsible officers; build 7,000,000-15,000,000). Separately, HKD 8,000,000 is held: 5,000,000 paid-up plus 3,000,000 liquid | 12–18 months | 16.5% | Clear |
| Ireland | MiCA CASP authorisation (Class 1/2/3) | EUR 50,000 | EUR 230,000-680,000 by CASP class (statutory ZERO: the Central Bank charges no application fee and no CASP industry-funding levy category has been published; build 230,000 Class 1, 430,000 Class 2, 680,000 Class 3) | 12–18 months | 12.5% | Clear |
| Kazakhstan | AIFC Digital Asset Service Provider (DASP) authorisation | USD 10,000 (Advising on Investments / Arranging Deals / Arranging Custody) to USD 250,000 (Providing Custody, Dealing as Principal) | USD 87,300-192,950 (statutory 6,300-14,950: AFSA add-on application, Approved Individual applications, AIFC registration and token admission, plus an initial supervision fee assessed on grant; build 81,000-178,000) | 4–12 months | 0% | Clear |
| Kyrgyzstan | Virtual Asset Exchange Operator (AVA) / Virtual Asset Trading Operator (ATOC) authorisation | KGS 40,000,000 (~USD 460,000) for AVA exchange office; KGS 300,000,000 (~USD 3.4M) for ATOC trading operator from 01 July 2026 under Presidential Decree No. 112 of 13 March 2026. Resolution No. 514's own floor (paragraph 48, KGS 10bn) was repealed by Resolution No. 516 of 30 July 2026 | USD 35,000-64,800 (statutory 2,000-4,800: state application 1,500-3,000, grant fee 500-1,500, qualified-investor certificate up to 300; build 33,000-60,000). Authorisation is indefinite, so statutory Year 2 is nil | 2–4 months | 10% | Clear |
| Labuan (Malaysia) | Money Broking Business with Digital Asset activity (primary); also Credit Token, STO Issuer, Securities Licensee, Fund Manager, Section 134 Exchange, Payment System Operator | RM 300,000 (Fund Manager working funds); RM 500,000 (STO Issuer); RM 1,000,000 (Credit Token / Securities Licensee); RM 1,500,000 (Money Broker DA, primary pathway) | USD 90,000-236,500 (statutory 2,000-3,500: application processing 500 plus the Money Broker (Digital Asset) annual fee 1,500, and fast-track where taken; build 88,000-233,000) | 4–6 months | 3% | Clear |
| Latvia | MiCA CASP authorisation | EUR 50,000 (Class 1) / EUR 125,000 (Class 2) / EUR 150,000 (Class 3) | EUR 180,500-440,500 (statutory 5,500: Latvijas Banka application fee 2,500 plus the first-year supervisory levy 3,000; build 175,000-435,000) | 6–9 months | 0% | Clear |
| Lithuania | MiCA CASP authorisation | €50,000 | EUR 75,925-268,425 by service class (statutory 5,425 on every class: the 2,425 state fee to issue the CASP licence plus the Bank of Lithuania Year-1 supervision fee at its 3,000 floor; build 70,500 at Class 1 to 263,000 at Class 3), excluding own funds of 50,000-150,000, held not spent | 4–8 months | 17% | Clear |
| Malta | MiCA CASP authorisation | €50,000 | EUR 535,000-EUR 1,150,000 (excludes the EUR 125,000-150,000 own funds, held not spent) | 9–18 months | 35% | Clear |
| Marshall Islands | DAO LLC (non-profit or for-profit), standard LLC, IBC. No active VASP licensing regime | No fixed minimum | USD 15,500-24,500 (USD 9,500 statutory, MIDAO's published package covering the certificate of formation, FIBL, first-year registered agent and the initial BOIR filing, plus USD 6,000-15,000 of build quoted per case) | 2–5 months | 0% | Clear |
| Mauritius | VASP licence (Classes M, O, R, I, S) + ITO issuer registration | Class M MUR 2,000,000 (~USD 44,000); Class R MUR 5,000,000 (~USD 110,000); Class S MUR 6,500,000 (~USD 145,000); Classes O and I and ITO issuer have no fixed floor (sufficient working capital, Class O on a 12-month forward test) | ~USD 55,000-150,000 (Class S full exchange); ~USD 30,000-60,000 (Class O/I build), excluding paid-in class capital | 6–9 months | 15% | Clear |
| Nevis (Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis) | VASP Registration (federation regime; no Nevis-specific instrument) | None fixed in the Act; client-asset coverage required (s.9(1)) or undertaking for out-of-jurisdiction assets (s.9(2)); 15% client-fund escrow with a registered trust company (s.9A, 2021 amendment) | XCD 256,000-324,000 (statutory 189,000 gazetted under SRO 47 of 2021: application fee 54,000 plus first-year registration 135,000; build 67,000-135,000 quoted per case), excluding the 21,600 per-principal due-diligence charge, which no instrument in force prescribes since SR&O 13 of 2026 repealed SRO 25 of 2022 and which the FSRC may still charge administratively | 3–6 months | 25% | Clear |
| New Zealand | FSPR registration + DIA AML/CFT supervision (no dedicated crypto licence) | None | NZD 50,000–150,000 | 4–6 months | 28% | Clear |
| Oman | Interim VASP registration (AML/CFT); full VASP licence under the VARF pending | No published VASP minimum capital figure as of June 2026. The VARF, which would set capital tiers, remains in draft; minimum capital was a 2023 consultation question but no number has been set | USD 5,000-15,000, and that figure is the BUILD ALONE: Omani entity formation, legal, the AML build, and audit readiness. NO STATUTORY FIGURE CAN BE ADDED TO IT, because none is published: the interim VASP registration fee has not been released and the VARF, which would set licence and annual fees, remains in draft. So this is the only jurisdiction here whose published number is a build with no statutory half, and it will rise when the VARF is made | 1–1 months | 15% | Clear |
| Panama | No dedicated crypto licence (structured under general corporate + AML law) | No fixed minimum. Standard S.A. authorised capital USD 10,000 (not required to be paid in) | USD 8,000-24,950 (statutory 700-950: Registro Publico inscription about 250, notarial fees 150-400, the Year-1 tasa unica 300, and the Aviso de Operacion 15 or 50 where the entity operates inside Panama; build 7,300-24,000 quoted per case), excluding banking application and per-account costs; there is no licensing fee, because there is no licence | 2–4 months | 25% | Clear |
| Poland | MiCA CASP Authorisation (regime not yet operational; KNF not yet accepting applications as of June 2026) | €50,000 (Class 1) / €125,000 (Class 2) / €150,000 (Class 3) under MiCA Annex IV | ~€74,000 (Class 1) / ~€156,000 (Class 2) / ~€273,000 (Class 3) excl. the locked own-funds capital (€50k / €125k / €150k), indicative of a MiCA CASP authorisation via an operational EU regime; Polish KNF fees not yet fixed | 4–8 months | 19% | Clear |
| Portugal | MiCA CASP Authorisation | €50,000 (Class 1) / €125,000 (Class 2) / €150,000 (Class 3) | €85,500–€293,000 (Year-1 total excl. the €50,000–€150,000 locked own-funds capital, varies by service class) | 6–12 months | 19% | Clear |
| Romania | MiCA CASP authorisation | EUR 50,000 / EUR 125,000 / EUR 150,000 by MiCA Annex IV class, or 25% of fixed overheads, whichever is higher | Statutory EUR 100-300 (ONRC registration only; no ASF authorisation fee or ADR certification fee is set, because the enabling ordinance is unadopted); build EUR 100,000-220,000 quoted per case | Not published | 16% | Clear |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | VASP Registration | None prescribed in the Act (s.18 reserves power to set capital regulations to the Minister, not yet exercised as of May 2026) | XCD 256,000-324,000 (statutory XCD 189,000 under SRO 47 of 2021: application fee 54,000 plus first-year registration 135,000; build XCD 67,000-135,000 quoted per case), before the chosen Saint Kitts or Nevis entity cost and excluding any per-principal due-diligence charge not prescribed by a current instrument | 4–9 months | 25% | Clear |
| Saint Lucia | Virtual Asset Business Licence | No statutory minimum capital figure. The Virtual Asset Business Act prescribes none on the face of the Act, and regulation 10 of SI No. 37 of 2025 prescribes no numeric floor either: it empowers the FSRA to require capital and liquidity by written notice on the risk profile, and requires the licensee to hold capital adequate to the nature, size and complexity of the business. The full gazetted instrument (32 pages, regulations 1-32 and Schedules 1-4) was read in full on 2026-08-25 and contains no capital schedule; the only figures in it are the Schedule 2 fees. A separate 15% client-fund escrow applies (s.12(1)) | USD 34,030-58,930 (statutory 6,530-6,930: VABA application fee EC$1,000 and the flat licence fee EC$15,000 under SI No. 37 of 2025 Schedule 2, plus IBC incorporation, the IBC government fee, and the beneficial-ownership filing; build 27,500-52,000 quoted per case), excluding regulatory capital, which is held rather than spent. Multi-principal and custody-heavy scopes run higher and are not priced by this band | 4–6 months | 30% | Clear |
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Virtual Asset Business (VAB / VASP) registration | EC$300,000 registered share capital, of which EC$50,000 (~USD 18,500) must be paid up; minimum paid-up capital of EC$50,000 maintained on an ongoing basis. Separate statutory deposit of EC$100,000 (~USD 37,000) or 25% of financial obligations to clients, whichever is greater (refundable) | About USD 27K-50K (statutory EC$16,000, displayed as about USD 5,900: FSA application fee EC$4,000 plus the registration fee EC$12,000, published schedule; build USD 21,500-44,000 quoted per case), excluding the EC$100,000 statutory deposit and EC$50,000 paid-up capital, which are held rather than spent, and the advisor-reported per-officer levy, which no published or gazetted schedule carries. The widely quoted USD 50,000-80,000 is NOT this figure: it adds the deposit, which is refundable capital, and the ungazetted levies | 3–4 months | 28% | Clear |
| Seychelles | VASP Licence (four categories: Virtual Asset Wallet Provider, Virtual Asset Exchange, Virtual Asset Broking, Virtual Asset Investment Provider) | USD 25,000–100,000 paid-up by category (Schedule, SI 72 of 2024): Wallet Provider USD 75,000, Exchange USD 100,000, Broking USD 50,000, Investment Provider USD 25,000; from the beginning of year 3, additionally at least 2.5% of annual turnover where that exceeds the category minimum | Statutory USD 13,000-36,000 FSA fees (application SCR 75,000 + registration SCR 22,500 + Year-1 licence by category); build USD 42,500-122,000 quoted per case. The 1.5% Seventh Schedule rate is a TAX, not a fee, and is in neither figure | 3–6 months | 1.5% | Clear |
| Singapore | MAS Payment Services Act DPT service licence: Standard Payment Institution (SPI) or Major Payment Institution (MPI); plus FSM Act 2022 Part 9 Digital Token Service Provider (DTSP) regime for Singapore-based providers serving only overseas customers | SGD 100,000 base capital (standard payment institution); SGD 250,000 base capital (major payment institution), plus an SGD 100,000-200,000 MPI security deposit (Payment Services Regulations 2019, regs. 8, 12 and 13). The SPI/MPI split is set by PSA 2019 s.6(5) at SGD 3m per month for one service and SGD 6m per month across two or more, digital payment token services included | SGD 1,030,000-2,700,000 (statutory 5,000-15,000: the MAS application fee plus the Year-1 annual licence fee, by licence class and number of DPT services; build 1,025,000-2,685,000 quoted per case), excluding base capital of 250,000 and the MPI security deposit of 100,000-200,000, which are maintained rather than spent | 9–12 months | 17% | Clear |
| Slovakia | MiCA CASP authorisation | €50,000 | Statutory EUR 2,700-6,400 (NBS application fee EUR 1,700 / 2,500 / 3,400 by scope of services under Opatrenie NBS 5/2021 as amended by 8/2024, the LOWEST published CASP application fee in the EU, plus the part-year supervisory contribution); build EUR 36,500-73,500 quoted per case | 3–9 months | 21% | Clear |
| South Africa | Crypto Asset FSP authorisation (FAIS Category I; Category II for discretionary) | No fixed monetary minimum for Category I advice-only | ZAR 732,000-2,905,000 (statutory 42,000-95,000: FSCA Category I and II application fees post-discount 17,000-35,000 plus the Year-1 FSCA, ombud, and tribunal levies 25,000-60,000; build 690,000-2,810,000 quoted per case), excluding commercial working capital | 6–12 months | 27% | Clear |
| Spain | MiCA CASP Authorisation | EUR 50,000 (Class 1) / EUR 125,000 (Class 2) / EUR 150,000 (Class 3) | Statutory ~EUR 5,000 / 8,000 / 12,000 by class, indicative because the CNMV publishes no CASP fee schedule; build ~EUR 103,000 / 201,500 / 348,000 quoted per case; own funds EUR 50,000-150,000 held, not spent | 5–9 months | 25% | Clear |
| Switzerland | No single crypto licence. Activity-based, five authorisation routes: SRO affiliation under AMLA (AML only, no FINMA licence); FinTech licence (Banking Act Art. 1b); securities-firm licence (FinIA); DLT trading facility licence (FinMIA Arts. 73a ff); full banking licence (Banking Act). FinIA reform (consultation closed 6 Feb 2026) would replace the FinTech licence with new Payment Institution and Crypto Institution categories from ~2027 | Route-dependent. SRO/AML route: none fixed (adequate operating funds still required). FinTech licence: CHF 300,000 and 3% of public deposits held. Securities-firm licence: CHF 1.5 million. DLT trading facility: CHF 1m (no custody/settlement/clearing), CHF 5m (with them), CHF 500,000 floor for small facilities. Banking licence: CHF 10 million (often higher in practice) | CHF 29,000-915,000 or more, by route. NO STATUTORY FIGURE CAN BE STATED, and that is a finding rather than unfinished research: FINMA charges authorisation and Year-1 supervision on cost recovery under FINMA-GebV, hourly at CHF 100-500 under Art. 8(4) with a surcharge of up to 50% under Art. 9, publishes no flat crypto tariff, and its fees are additional to every figure here. The SRO route carries an SRO tariff of 14,000-45,000 or more, which is not a state charge; build 15,000-60,000 on the SRO route and 315,000-915,000 on a FINMA-licensed route. Excludes regulatory capital of 300,000 for a FinTech licence up to 10,000,000 for a bank, which is held not spent | 2–24 months | 11.7% | Clear |
| United Arab Emirates | VARA VASP / ADGM FSP / DFSA Crypto Token (3 regulators) | AED 100,000 (VARA Advisory floor) | AED 1.33-7.26m (USD 362k-1.98m) on the VARA route (statutory AED 120,000 Advisory and VA Transfer, AED 300,000 for Broker-Dealer, Custody, Lending, VA Management and Exchange; build quoted per case). ADGM FSRA USD 1.01-2.03m; DFSA USD 1.02-2.15m | 4–18 months | 9% | Clear |
| United Kingdom | FCA cryptoasset registration under the Money Laundering Regulations 2017 (live now, AML-only); FSMA authorisation for regulated cryptoasset activities from 25 October 2027 | None for the live MLR registration. Proposed FSMA own funds (permanent minimum requirement, PMR, from 25 October 2027): £75,000 dealing as agent / arranging deals; £150,000 custody, trading platform, or staking; £350,000 qualifying stablecoin issuer (highest figure applies where both stablecoin issuance and custody are carried out). Own funds = highest of PMR, fixed overhead requirement, and K-factor requirement; figures are proposals (CP25/14, CP25/42) as of June 2026, not final rules. | GBP 196,860-574,360 on the MLR registration route (statutory 11,360: FCA cryptoasset registration 11,260 at Pricing Category 6 plus Companies House incorporation 100; build 185,500-563,000 quoted per case), excluding the FSMA route, whose application fee the FCA tariff has not yet set for cryptoassets, and the proposed own funds of 75,000-350,000, which are held rather than spent | 9–18 months | 25% | Clear |
| Uzbekistan | NAPP crypto licence (activity-specific: crypto-exchange / crypto-store / crypto-depository / mining-pool) | 5,000 BRV (bazovaya raschyotnaya velichina) for crypto-exchange, of which 3,000 BRV must be reserved in a separate account at an Uzbek commercial bank at the date of application (Ministry of Justice reg. 3380, point 10). At the BRV of UZS 412,000 in force from 1 August 2025 (Presidential Decree UP-91 of 2 June 2025) that is UZS 2,060,000,000, with 3,000 BRV = UZS 1,236,000,000. From 1 September 2026 the BRV rises to UZS 440,000 (Presidential Decree UP-115 of 23 June 2026), lifting the same unchanged rule to UZS 2,200,000,000, with 3,000 BRV = UZS 1,320,000,000. No numerical charter-capital floor is set for crypto-store, crypto-depository or mining-pool | USD 224,100-3,121,500 by licence category (statutory 146,600 for a mining-pool to 2,868,500 for a crypto-exchange: a one-time state duty plus twelve monthly operational fees, both set in BRV so both move with the indexed unit; build 77,500-140,000 for a mining-pool and 139,500-253,000 for a crypto-exchange, quoted per case), excluding charter capital of 5,000 BRV, about 174,300, which is deployed rather than spent. Ranked by Year-1 all-in: mining-pool, crypto-store, crypto-depository, then crypto-exchange far above them | 3–6 months | 0% | Clear |
| Vanuatu | VASP Licence (Classes D, D.1, D.2, D.3, D.4) + ITO Licence | VT 200,000,000 (≈ USD 1.69m at May 2026) | USD 665,000-1,060,000 for one class (statutory 150,000: application 50,000 plus licence 100,000, FLAT ACROSS CLASSES D to D.4 under Virtual Asset Service Providers Order No. 9 of 2026, gazetted 16 January 2026, which SUPERSEDES the vatu schedule and removes the Class D.4 banking discount; build 515,000-910,000 quoted per case). Excludes the capital floor, which is held not spent. The dollar figures land BELOW the vatu minima s.66(2) names, a drafting tension stated rather than papered over | 9–15 months | 0% | Clear |