Glossary
Terminology
Definitions as they are used on this platform, with jurisdiction-specific meanings marked. Where a term means something different in another jurisdiction, that is stated rather than smoothed over.
B
- Beneficial owner
- The individual who ultimately owns or controls a company, looking through any intermediate entities. Institutions and registries require the whole chain, not just the immediate shareholder.
- See alsoSignificant controllerKnow your business (KYB)
C
- Company secretary
- A governance role with statutory duties for maintaining registers and filings. It is a mandatory, continuing appointment in Hong Kong and Singapore.
- Jurisdiction note: Not a general requirement in US states, where a registered agent serves a different purpose.
- See alsoRegistered agentRegistered office
E
- E-money
- Electronically stored monetary value issued against receipt of funds, usable for payments. Issuing it is normally a licensed activity.
- See alsoStored value facilitySafeguarding
- Economic substance
- The requirement that an entity's real activity, people and decision-making are located where it claims to operate. Several jurisdictions impose notification and reporting obligations for in-scope activities.
- External state
- A state in a workflow that is owned by an external authority — a registry, regulator, institution or payment provider — rather than by the platform. The platform records what the authority reports and never predicts it.
I
- Information request
- A request from an authority, institution or provider for further evidence during an application. On this platform each request is tracked as a first-class item with an owner and a due date.
- See alsoExternal state
K
- Know your business (KYB)
- The due-diligence process institutions and providers apply to a corporate customer: entity, ownership chain, controllers and activity.
- See alsoBeneficial owner
M
- Money services business
- A business that moves money for other people — remittance, transfer or currency exchange. The applicable licence and regulator depend on the jurisdiction.
- Jurisdiction note: In the US, federal registration is separate from state-level money transmitter licensing.
- See alsoE-money
R
- Readiness assessment
- A structured review that produces a gap list before an application is prepared. It is not an approval, a score, or an indication of likelihood.
- See alsoResult band
- Registered agent
- A person or firm with a physical address in a US state, appointed to receive service of process on the company's behalf. The appointment must be maintained continuously.
- Jurisdiction note: A US-specific concept.
- See alsoRegistered office
- Registered office
- The statutory address at which a company receives official correspondence, required in jurisdictions such as Hong Kong and Singapore.
- See alsoRegistered agentCompany secretary
- Result band
- The classification a readiness assessment returns: likely fit, needs review, missing prerequisites, not supported, or not enough information. Bands describe preparation, never an authority's decision.
- See alsoReadiness assessment
S
- Safeguarding
- The requirement to hold customer funds separately from the firm's own money, with documented reconciliation, where a business holds money belonging to customers.
- See alsoE-money
- Significant controller
- A person with significant control over a Hong Kong company, who must be recorded in the company's significant controllers register.
- Jurisdiction note: Singapore maintains an equivalent register of registrable controllers.
- See alsoBeneficial owner
- Stored value facility
- A Hong Kong regulatory concept covering device- or account-based facilities that store value for making payments. Operating one requires a licence.
- Jurisdiction note: Hong Kong-specific terminology.
- See alsoE-money
V
- Virtual asset service provider
- A business providing virtual asset services to others — exchange, transfer, custody or platform operation. Regimes and terminology differ substantially by jurisdiction.